Bariloche (Argentina) - Ushuaia (Argentina)

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6th Jan 2007 - 19th Jan 2007
Bariloche (Argentina) - Ushuaia (Argentina)

We left Bariloche on the 6th to move into the heart of Patagonia. First stop; El Chalten and Fitzroy National Park. We had the choice to do some ice climbing here but since you were only able to climb 20 metres of ice wall and the excursion took 13 hours and cost a bomb, I chose sme hiking in the National Park. No regrets; I saw some of the most amazing scenery i have ever seen, along with two avalanches. Throw in some crystal clear glacial lakes and the odd glacier here and there and it made for a damn good day. We only had the day there before moving on to El Calafate, home of the Perito Moreno Glacier. We took an excursion out to the glacier where we went on a boat trip and hike around some viewing points. Huge chunks of ice always break of the glacier and fall into the lake. It's one of the reasons why its such a tourist attraction. So i had my camera focused on this huge chunk of ice (it was about the size of 2 or 3 houses on top of eachother). It was about to go at any second. I was going to start taking a video of it as soon as it fell. Sure enough it began to fall. I got one second of footage before the batteries packed it in. Not only did I miss one of the best parts of the trip so far, i also messed up the videos of everyone standing within 100 metres or so with my profanities. I'll try andget somebody elses and put it up. It might just give you a laugh. So that was that. Next stop was Torres Del Paine National Park and home of the W-Trail. Whatever complaints people have about the Inca Trail being overcrowded, this was much worse. But it didnt detract from it in the slightest. I did 90% of the walk over 3 days using transfers in the morning instead of camping. The park is absolutely spectacular. And the W-Trail gets you right up into the thick of it. The pictures i have put up will give you an idea but they dont do it justice. It was amazing. My favourite part was finishing the second leg of the trail in Valle Frances. Everyone else in the group turned back but i pushed on. Eventually I got to the top of the hill and before me was a forested valleys between two huge mountains. So i kept walking through the forest. The next clearing that I came across was at the centre of a forested basin surrounded by a circle of mountains. It was easily the best thing I've ever seen. From Torres, we move south and after a quick stop in Punta Arenas we finally came to Ushuaia. So on the 18th of January, I started out my birthday at "the end of the world" with a light hike in Tierra Del Fuego National Park. Later on in the day, to celebrate my birthday, the group got together in the campsite and Papa cooked us a traditional argentinian BBQ of steak and sausage. It was a still is the best meal i've had on this continent. It was unbelievable. Later on we went to both Irish bars in the town for some Guiness. It was a great day.

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