Perito Moreno Glacier (Sat 3/13)

Well, our morning started with a few surprises. First, we were presented with REAL juice squeezed from REAL fruit for breakfast.   Okay, it wasn't the grapefruit juice I squeezed in Borrego Springs, but it was the best juice since the fresh squeezed orange juice we enjoyed for breakfast in Pucon or the raspbery juice in Santiago.  Yes, I probably take juice a little too seriously. I just figure if I am going to drink calories instead of chewing them, they should be tasty.  The second surprise also presented itself at breakfast --- so many food choices it was staggering. Now, do you think I ate bread?  No damn way!  Fresh fruit, scrambled eggs, and a Dulce de leche "cookie bomb".  Today was the best breakfast of the trip!

The third surprise was snow. Yes, it snowed last night and the current snow level seems to be between 750 and 1000 feet above us. This means it was in the 30's last night where we are.  Given that we are downhill and to the east of the Southern Icefield, I guess one could call this 'fall weather'.   
 
Over breakfast, we discussed plans for today, our next two days and three different all conflicting weather forecasts. Based on our sizing up of El Calafate, it is a one trick town for us --- the Perito Moreno Glacier. Beyond this, there is no hiking, biking, or other outdoor things of interest. We are not into "treking on ice" or "horseback riding".  As Arn likes to explain, a horse killed Superman.  And, as I like to say, "I ride only one kind of pony and it has two wheels." And, we could go watch them shear a sheep on a working ranch and eat bad lamb for lunch. Yeah, that's not happening either. 

So, we decided to hire a taxi for the trip to see the Perito Moreno Glacier. The price is not vastly different than renting a car for the day, but the stress level is hugely different.  The taxi was easy to arrange and he picked us up 45 minutes later. 

The drive to the glacier was beautiful.  The lake water was shades of teal against the golden grasses and the mountains dusted white with fresh snow.  We drove through a beautiful lenga forest and there are more signs of the impending arrival of fall. The trees are turning yellow, orange and red.  Along the road, we saw a huge fox. He trotted into the center of the road, gave the taxi a long look of assessment and jumped back into the bushes. You aren't going to be surprised by this, but the wind was howling again. From the shelter of the taxi, this road cried, "Ride baby ride".  Really, everything about this road was ideal for a road bike ride...nice surface, no traffic, beautiful views, and the promise of a nice experience. HOWEVER, the wind guaranteed that no rider would ever live out that promise.

Once at the glacier, our cab driver dropped us off for the "walk" to see it.  For you to get the right image in your mind, I need to give you some context. First, there was a guy named, "Moreno". He was an explorer in Patagonia and set out to demonstrate that people really could settle in these parts. Frankly, I think he must have had an in with the gods because in this wind, no one would park themselves here permanently. Either the gods put the wind on hold for a few seasons or Moreno is also the inventor of earplugs.  So, the glacier is named after this dude. Second this glacier is huge. It is part of the Southern Patagonia Icefield. The terminal face of the glacier reaches to Lago Argentina. Despite being 50 miles from the glacier, the town of El Calafate is located on the shores of this same lake. The Perito Moreno Glacier reaches heights of nearly 200 feet. However, none of this tells you the single most defining feature. Perito Moreno is an advancing glacier. It is actually growing in size. It has advanced as much as 6 feet in one day!  Third, the glacier is easily accessible. From El Calafate, it is a short drive that ends on a pennisula of land that juts into the lake. At times, the glacier reaches this pennisula. It creates an "ice dam" between the face of the glacier and the land. Since the mid 80's, this ice dam has formed and exploded 7 times.  The glacier is part of the national park (Parque de Los Glaciers).  The park service has built a raised, metal grate walkway with viewing platforms.  There is a cafeteria that would hold several hundred people, parking for probably fifty buses, and a boat ramp for those interested in paying the bucks to take a ride along the face of the glacier.

Okay, in case you haven't read between the lines, I will spell it out. The place is more Disneyland than wilderness experience.  While many are surprised to learn that we love Las Vegas, probably no one will be surprised to learn we don't like our nature experience "a la Disney".  Still, we can be entertained by spliting ice. There was only one big break.  It was a stunning face to a massive glacier. Our favorite part of the experience was the drive through the changing lengas and the fresh snow.       
 
Our taxi driver took the scenic route along the lake into the center of town. The drive went along a small bay of the lake. The edge of the water was very marsh-like and it is the summer home for hundreds of flamingoes. I have only see flamingoes in the wild one other time. It was in the Atacama Desert in northern Chile where it was about 90 degrees. Here, the winds are howling, I'm wearing long underwear under my pants and there are flamingoes playing in the water. It was an image that didn't ready add up in my mind.  Who knew flamingoes would tolerate having their pretty pink feathers whipped and beaten around in the freezing cold wind with snow on the nearby hills and mountains?  Really, isn't it time to fly north?

The driver also took us past the President's house. Yes, the President and her husband have a house in town and it turns out they are IN town. It was a nice looking place along the water. Perhaps her location explains all the road improvements along the lakeshore. Yeah, I sound cynically, but I'm probably right. 

Our driver dropped us in town. We walked around town looking for something to compliment the bad cheeseburger we shared in the cafeteria near the glacier.  Arn had a slice of pizza on his mind. My idea won out and we had alfajores dipped in chocolate. I like alfajores. I make them at home. But, what I would really love is a good, chewy chocolate chip cookie made with no nuts and semisweet chocolate. Also on the agenda was buying another duffle bag. While waiting for the store to open (everything closes between 12pm and 3pm), we ducked into the enclosed ATM machine to get out of the wind. We noticed a poster advertising loan rates. 18% for a mortage, 46% for a personal loan, and 72% for some type of business loan.  This certainly says a lot about the economy in Argentina  Once the stores opened, we bought another duffle bag for about $18 and learned latter that everthing in it will need to be packed in plastic bags. The duffle smells like manure.  Okay, horseshit --- I thought I would try and improve my language for the blog. 

For dinner, we were picked up at our hotel by the restaurant. How nice is this? The driver looked familar and I finally put my finger on it --- he looked like Batman (Christian Bale).  The restaurant was a place called, "Don Pinchon". Everything about it smacked of Argentina. The lamb was strung out on a crucifix over hot coals. The tables, floors, and chairs were well worn wood. The placemats were black leather. The light fixtures were wagon wheel looking things with huricane glass bulbs. The bar was massive and bulit from timbers that still show where the tree branches were cut off.  The menu pages were incased in plastic sheet protectors. And, the silverware had wooden handles. We enjoyed a great steak dinner and the waitress complimented Arn on his Spanish. We enjoyed great views looking over town and the lake. Once it grew dark enough, we noticed that music videos were projected onto the wall above the bar. The music was like a Deborah's greatest favorites collection --- Scorpions, Bee Gees, Nazareth and Poison...just to name a few.  We will be headed back tomorrow!