Around the World in 70 Days

The land of the glaciers

Written by

Phil Matthews

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Today we took a 130km catamaran trip deep into Los Glaciares National Park, to see glaciers even bigger than the Perito Moreno!

The journey there was spectacular, even before reaching the port, as we spotted a family of Andean condors. With a 3m wingspan, these are the largest birds of prey in the world. I’ve been on the look out for them throughout my time in the Andes so was thrilled finally to have a sighting!

It’s hard to see from the picture, but this is an adult, with the distinctive white feathers on its neck, and a juvenile. In flight they were majestic.

The boat trip took us into one of the “fingers” that emanate from the “hand” of Lago Argentino. It bore some resemblance to the Norwegian fjords I visited last year, with the addition of ever larger icebergs, of which, amazingly, 90% of the mass is below the surface of the water.

The water was a beautiful turquoise colour when the Sun was out
The crew “fished” for glacial ice, which was incredibly smooth and crystal-like

And then the glaciers came into view. The furthest one we reached was the most impressive: the Spegazzini glacier, named after an Argentine-Italian explorer:

These ice walls are the biggest in the National Park, reaching to a height of 135m!
We enjoyed a lunch of empanadas in a café that was surprisingly well-equipped, given its remote location

This glacier is reassuringly stable, but others are in hasty retreat as the climate changes: a sobering reminder of the fragility of the natural world.

The stunning springtime waterfalls from this glacier reduce it in size by more and more each year
The glacier on the right no longer reaches the lake 😦

We all fell in love with this remote corner of Patagonia, and hope it will be preserved for generations to come.

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