Glaciar Perito Moreno, Argentina
An early start today to meet the taxi at 7:30. Breakfast was provided at the hostel and it was surprisingly good, although no eggs included. Nice marks for presentation too. Some of us had ordered box lunches and ditto for them too. I'm a bit surprised that we haven't seen many/any obese people in Argentina because the portions at restaurants (and in today's lunch bag) are pretty huge. We have learned to share meals where we can.
Esteban was our taxi driver today. Nice guy, although he spoke nearly no English. I'm thankful that we have Joan and Barb with us - they both speak quite a bit of Spanish. Of course, I really shouldn't have any expectation of Argentinian citizens speaking my language; I should have made an effort to learn at least a bit of Spanish. Everywhere we go, though, people are happy to try to communicate by whatever means we can. The drive was about 90 minutes and by taking a taxi we were ahead of the big crowds that arrived by bus a bit later.
So - Moreno Glacier...... The Perito Moreno Glacier is located in Los Glaciares National Park and is named after the explorer Francisco Moreno, a pioneer who studied the region in the 19th century and played a major role in defending the territory of Argentina in the conflict surrounding the international border dispute with Chile. The glacier has a surface area of 250 square km, is 30 km in length, 5 km wide, an average of 74m above the surface of the water of Lago Argentino, and is one of 48 glaciers fed by the Southern Patagonia Ice Field. This ice field is the world's third largest reserve of fresh water. Where a low Andean pass lets Pacific weather systems cross the cordillera, countless storms have deposited hundreds of metres of snow that, over the millennia, have compressed into the Moreno Glacier. This is one of the few glaciers in the world that is not currently retreating as a result of global warming and climate change. It is pretty much maintaining a state of equilibrium as it continues to accumulate mass at a rate similar to that of its loss. Apparently there is a bit of an annual cycle, though, as it advances between June and December and recedes between December and April. On average, it advances 2.2 metres per day in the centre and 0.35 metres per day at the edges.
We have 4 hours to wander the extensive catwalks to view the glacier from a variety of elevations and orientations. We were kept amply entertained by the calving activity. I was a bit surprised by just how much calving there was going on. One sign I read said it advanced about 2m per day, so I guess it has to go somewhere. I could have stayed and watched for much longer, but it was a wonderful 4 hours.
Here was one of our first views as we approached it.
As we got a bit closer, we could see the free-flowing water at the toe of the glacier. Apparently the glacier occasionally advances sufficiently to block off this channel. It happened 15 times during the 20th century. Each time, eventually the weight of the backlogged water becomes too great and it triggers a spectacular eruption of ice and water.
As more and more tourists have flocked to see the glacier, the national park has responded by building a series of catwalks. I'm not sure what year they were built but perhaps they didn't want to lose any more people.......
Here's a series of photos from the day:
Back to El Calafate. A bit of laundry, shopping, out for dinner, and some chin-wagging before bedtime.
Our roommates last night were from Venezuela and France. Tonight I met 3 from Taiwan. Not sure who the other two are. I've really enjoyed this hostel (Folk Hostel). Movin' on to Chile tomorrow.
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