We started in El Calafate, where the Argentine President is from and has built up the past ten years. There's not much to do there, but it's a great spot to post up before heading to other backpacker towns/parks. From there we went and saw our first glacier. I wasn't overly excited for something any tourist could go see, but I walked away impressed by the size of these things. When we first got on the trail with a mix of Aussies and Europeans I heard a huge crack that sounded like thunder overhead. Quickly I realized it was actually the glacier breaking off. Unlike most glaciers in the world, Perito Moreno Glacier is one of the healthiest in the world and continues to put on a show every Summer for tourists.
From the boat. 
After a few days we headed to El Chalten, which brought tears to my eyes when I first saw Fitz Roy. For years I had pictured coming here and after four years of goal setting, budgeting, visualizing, it was reality. It's funny how you see an image so many times and when you finally see it with your own eyes you don't know how to react. I felt waves of adrenaline rushing through my body like that scene in Trainspotting when he shoots up heroin. It's a euphoric feeling no doubt.
Anyone who has hiked with me knows I like to race to my destination and you can imagine the speed I was going racing up to the best view possible. I was impressed with how Jess kept up and once we threw on our full packs, (a few days later) she continued to hold pace. We chose a less popular camp spot because the tour companies dominated the main campsite and I didn't want someone's tent 4 feet from ours.
We hiked in about 7 miles and set up about 1/2 mile from Grande Glacier on Lagoon Torre. Once again I was amazed by the glacier and how small it made me feel. It got cold at night but never rained too hard. It did snow a bit the second day, but it only made the experience that much better. Mission Complete: I had finally backpacked El Chalten and saw Fitz Roy.
El Chalten is a unique town in that you're in the National Park and just walk straight down Main Street to access the trailhead. No other national park that I've been to has that. Also, it's light out until 10pm so you have backpackers coming and going all day long. The trails are very well marked and the town is set up perfectly for adventure seekers like myself.
North of here is where things get a little difficult to navigate and as a result we backtracked to El Calafate in order to fly to Bariloche. I was planning on heading 12 hours (by bus) north and crossing over to Chile in Chile Chico, but it involved too much bus/ferry hopping. I came to realize after months of research and weeks of asking around why its so difficult to navigate Patagonia. Of course Patagonia is very vast, but also it's a land shared by Argentina and Chile. As our friend, Rami at Schilling Hostel in El Calafate explained "we don't hate each other but we don't like each other either".
Anytime I asked someone how to make it across the border near Chile Chico I was reaching the same conclusion. Nobody cared to promote getting me to Chile. So based off Rami's advice we flew to Bariloche(Tahoe of Argentina). Again, I wasn't too excited to be surrounded by tourists in this popular destination, but was blown away by its beauty. As soon as we got into town I actually left my iPhone in the airport taxi and Jessica at Hotel Flamingo tracked it down for me. For about 30 minutes I started planning how I would navigate this trip without my iPhone....wouldn't be easy.
After two nights in Bariloche I booked a hostel in El Bolson on HostelWorld. Keep in mind most of these towns have awful internet compared to US standards. Lots of times I'm rushed and booking at a cafe before we're hopping on a bus or flight. I didn't research and just assumed it was near the center of town. After a two hour bus ride I realized the hostel was outside of town and we would need to hike a bit on foot. After another 40 minute bus ride down a rock road we got off in Wharton. I felt like I had warped back in time to the 60s was about to partake in an acid test. There were signs for Refugios all over but I still had no idea what I signed us up for. We just needed a bed and a shower for two nights. By the looks of the 30-40 backpackers, there were no showers nearby.
After one of the steepest 45 minute hikes I've done we ended up at an oasis in the wilderness. La Confluencia Farm/lodge/hostel is owned by an Amercan who bought the land and turned it into a model of sustainability. Google it for more info and if you're considering an adventure, put this on your destination list.
Once inside I panicked and thought I misread the $1000 as USD and not Pesos($1usd is $10arg peso on black market). You could only pay with cash so this would've been a big issue. Turned out it was pesos and we had just enough cash for the two night stay and dinner. The chef, Gina had gone to culinary school in Buenos Aires and had the luxury of using fruits/vegetables/herbs right out of the garden. All the meat was local and often attained through trade. The place was powered through a water turbine and located next to the river and trails.
At breakfast we sat with a newly wed couple from Toronto and the four of us hiked to a look out of the property and later beers and meats by the river. Although I loves Fitz Roy, this was the highlight of our trip so far. Another couple from Calgary joined us and the six of us drank and laughed into the night.
That's what it's all aboot.
If this wasn't a lesson in just go with the flow. I don't know what is. The following day we traveled from 7am til 10pm, only to find our hostel in chile hadnt been confirmed because the internet was down. Luckily he found us a hostel and we're now back where we intended to be in Tren del Sur, located in Puerto Montt, Chile.
After a few days we'll be heading to Valparaiso to meet Jess' aunt and then meet up with Billy in Santiago on February 6th.
If anyone has an iPhone or email and wants to see most our photos just shoot me an email(langan15 at gmail) or Facebook message me.
Hope all is well back in the States and thanks again for all the support.
