CARRETERA AUSTRAL
Day Twenty Seven - Perito Moreno Glacier
Posted on 16th Mar 2016
Just 75 km's from El Calafate is the impressive Perito Moreno Glacier and this was our objective today.
The 250 km2 (97 sq mi) ice formation, and 30 km (19 mi) in length, is one of 48 glaciers fed by the Southern Patagonian Ice Field located in the Andes system shared with Chile. This ice field is the world's third largest reserve of fresh water.
It's changed a lot since I was last there in 2001. After parking in the lower car park we were transported by minibus to the upper car park and the start of the metal walkways that offer stunning views over the glacier from many different levels. Unfortunately for safety reasons the lowest walkway was closed and the walkways didn't go as close to the glacier (for safety reasons) as they did when I was last there; although the views were still outstanding and on numerous occasions we were lucky enough to see huge ice chunks breaking off and plummeting into the lake. The face of the glacier is about 50 - 60m tall and stretches for more than 4kms.
After admiring the glacier for about an hour we continued along the walkways back to the main car park and the departure point for one of the boat trips that provides a different vantage point, sailing about 300m from the face of the glacier you get to look up and appreciate really how vast it is. After a snack in the restaurant we header back to he walkways to find a good vantage point to sit and watch the glacier again.
We were back in El Calafate by early evening and even enjoyed a stop to watch two Condors soaring overhead on the way home.
