Day 7 - El Calafate, Perito Moreno Glacier

We're still staying at our hotel in El Calafate - a pleasant, spacious hotel on the outskirts of the town and looking over the lake. Noting that this part of Lago Argentino has low water levels at the moment as it fill up more over summer with glacier-melt, so the water is a fair way out. But there are flamingos visible in the distance.

We spent pretty much the whole day at the Peritio Moreno Glacier. This area has a lot of glaciers, and many feed into Lago Argentino. Perito Moreno seems to be the most popular for tourists because there is a penninsula that just touches the middle of the glacier, bisecting the glacier's face and meaning that people can easily approach it for a good view.

So we took the bus out along this penninsula, and at the end is a series of platforms and walkways allowing a good view of the glacier's face. The air is cold but it was a clear, sunny day and so we alternated between rugging up and then getting hot and having to remove our jackets. Parts of the glacier glow a vivid blue as the light is refracted through compacted ice. There are periodic groans and cracks, and pieces of ice falling into the lake.

After wandering around we went to a nearby restaurant for lunch and then out on a boat for an hour or so. In the south are (Braco Rico) it gets a efw hundred metres from the ice and was very beautiful and pleasant - though everyone had phones at the ready in the hope of a large ice-fall. The Braco Rico is a blind arm of the lake, and so either the water level builds up then ruptures into the north side or, as at present, a tunnel forms through the ice with water flowing south-to-north.

After we both slept on the bus ride back we went into town. It turns out there is one main street which is shared equally between souvenir shops, chocolate shops, resuatrants and hiking gear outlets. That didn't take long so we took the hotel shuttle back for dinner.

Just a note on food in Chile and Argentina; it is generally not very good. Often plain, uninspired and without flavour. I admit that we are a long way from anywhere and so it may be difficult to source fresh ingredients, but even so the lamb and beef for which the region is famous is often done without much flavour or style.