Moving on to El Chalten

Today we had to leave our warm and sunny lake paradise for wilder, windier and cooler terrain. Our afternoon flight from Bariloche was less than two hours, but we spent about five hours on the road today, between the 2-hour mostly gravel road transit from Hotel Tronador to the airport, and the 3-hour paved route from El Calafate airport to El Chalten.

Our driver from the El Calafate airport to El Chalten, Jorge, pointed out features along the way — guanacos (llama relative), Mt Fitz Roy and another mountain spire, Cerro Torre. The peaks were uncharacteristically clear of clouds, according to Jorge. He stopped at his favorite spots to let us take photos, and even he was snapping away.

El Chalten is a very small town, dedicated to backpackers, climbers and day explorers like us. We were told the town has only been in existence since 1985. I guess before that it was only camping? There are many good restaurants, bakeries, and lodging options — from hostels to
cozy guesthouses to pricey hotels. It is very windy here, which is characteristic of Patagonia.Read more