Driving time: 3 hours
Say goodbye to Helsingfors and drive to Road N°23 as you make your way towards El Chaltén, a small mountain village in Patagonia regarded as the trekking capital of Argentinian Patagonia. Rising sharply above the flat town are Fitz Roy’s two magnificent, towering peaks (3,405 m) and Cerro Torre behind them (3,128 m).
During the summer months (December to March), trekkers make their way to explore the many lagoons, lakes, glaciers, and mountains within. The Patagonia steppe is inhabited by herds of guanacos, foxes, partridges, pumas, deer, guanacos, and rheas, all of which run freely across the steppes.
Today, explore the region’s incredible glaciers, for which it’s renowned. The Viedma Ice Trek excursion is led by certified mountain guides, glacier experts who will explain everything there is to know and understand about the glacier. Start in the small, sheltered harbor of Bahia Túnel, where a boat sails south to the glacier. Get up close and personal with the glacier (from a safe distance away) as you observe chunks of ice calving from the glacier and falling into the water below.
Disembark from the boat onto terra firma. Today’s hike involves a short section of walking on rock, (remnants of what was in the glacier before it receded) followed by traversing the glacier itself. Our mountain guides will outfit us with crampons for a two-hour trek on the ice. During this unique experience, your guides will explain and highlight many of the glacier’s features, like crevasses and moulins.
Continue on to El Chaltén to check into your hotel, the Destino Sur. This hotel, constructed from wood and iron with the feel of a luxe log cabin, is located on a quiet corner just off the main street in El Chaltén within walking distance of the trailheads.