Los Glaciares National Park
1. Where is Patagonia?
2. Why is it called Patagonia?
3. What is Los Glaciares National Park?
4. How do I get there?
5. Where can I stay?
6. What is the weather like?
7. Planning a trip
8. Buying maps
1. Where is Patagonia?
Patagonia is the generic name for 800,000km square of land at the
tip of South America. Bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and
the Atlantic Ocean to the east, it is owned by both Argentina and
Chile. Although its bad weather and harsh surroundings make it one
of the least densely populated places on earth, many people visit
for the spectacular scenery and the glaciers forming Los Glaciares
National Park.
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2. Why is it called Patagonia?
In 1520, Ferdinand Magellan became the first European to navigate
around the southern tip of mainland South America. Whilst Magellan’s
fleet had wintered at Puerto San Julian, a giant, partly-clothed
native was spotted on the shore, dancing around on the sand. Antonio
Pigafetta, Magellan’s chronicler —one of only 18 men
who returned to Spain, having circumnavigated the globe— describes
his appearance as “so tall that the tallest of us only came
up to his waist” and that his feet were covered with the skin
of a guanaco “in the manner of shoes”.
Legend has it that Magellan, on perusing this member of the Tehuelche
tribe, either declared to his men “Ha! Patagon!”, from
the Spanish ‘paton’ meaning ‘big feet’,
or, as Laurence Bergreen describes in his book ‘Magellan’s
Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe’, called them Pathagoni,
from the Spanish ‘Patacones’, meaning ‘dog with
great paws’.
Yet another theory is offered by Bruce Chatwin in his book, ‘In
Patagonia’, suggesting that Magellan had on board a copy of
‘Primaleon of Greece’, a book published in 1512 that
talked of the Knight Primaelon travelling to a far off island and
meeting a ‘cruel and ill favoured people who eat raw flesh
and wear skins’. In their midst was a monster called the Grand
Patagon, which Primaelon felled with a ‘single sword thrust’
before allowing it to recover and shipping it home to meet his queen.
Chatwin, who queries the literal Spanish translation of the word
‘patagon’, mentions how Magellan captured a native Indian
in his time at Puerto San Julian and took him on board, possibly
with the intention of taking him home for the king...
| CONTINUED IN THE BOOK - A
detailed history of Patagonia, including more on Ferdinand
Magellan, who the native inhabitants were, early attempts
at colonisation, the first settlers and early explorations
by explorers such as Antonio de Viedma, Robert Fitz Roy, Charles
Darwin and Dr Francisco 'Perito' Moreno.
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2. What is Los
Glaciares National Park?
Los Glaciares National Park is a UNESCO world heritage site named
after a multitude of glaciers that flow east from the Southern Patagonian
Ice Cap - the largest expanse of ice in the southern hemisphere
outside of Antarctica.
The park was created by the National Parks Department of Argentina
in 1937 to protect and preserve a vast wilderness area which remains
heavily affected by the geological process of glaciation. It is
located in the south-west region of Argentina’s Santa Cruz
province, in Patagonia, at the tip of South America.
Los Glaciares National Park's boundaries encompass the eastern
edge of the Southern Patagonian Ice Cap and, generally, all the
glaciers exiting east from the ice between 49º 15’ S
and 50º 40’ S. This area, roughly about 6,000km square,
includes the mountains and forests of the Patagonian Andes and the
western edges of Lago Argentino and Lago Viedma; two huge glacial
lakes that deposit the ice into the Atlantic Ocean via the Rio Santa
Cruz.
Major visitor attractions in Los Glaciares National Park include
the Perito Moreno Glacier and the mountains of the Fitz Roy region...
| CONTINUED IN THE BOOK - A
detailed history of Los Glaciares National Park, including
available information sources, when you should visit, things
to do in the park and details of the relevant park maps and
orientation.
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3. How do I get to Los Glaciares National
Park?
The access town to Los Glaciares National Park is El Calafate,
80km east of the Perito Moreno Glacier. 220km north-west of El Calafate,
the smaller town of El Chalten gives access to the mountains of
the Fitz Roy region.
The easiest, but most expensive, way to get to El Calafate is to
fly direct from Buenos Aires (Aerolineas Argentinas: www.aerolineas.com.ar
and others) . The flight takes around 3.5 hours, an hour or so longer
if the pilot detours via the scenic mountain town of Bariloche and
the ice-clad Cerro Catedral.
Buenos Aires has two airports. Aeropuerto Ministro Pistarini,
or Ezeiza, (www.aa2000.com.ar / 011-5480-6111) is the main airport,
found 47 km outside the city centre. It serves the major international
carriers, including Lufthansa, Air France, Air Canada and American
Airlines, as well as the main national carrier, Aerolineas Argentinas.
To continue south by air to El Calafate, you must transfer to the
domestic airport, Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (www.aa2000.com.ar /011-5480-6111).
The easiest way to do this is by remis (taxi) or minibus. There
are booths in the arrivals hall.
From El Calafate you can get a bus or coach tour or drive to El
Chalten, across the Patagonian steppes...
CONTINUED IN THE
BOOK - Full details on how to get to Los Glaciares National
Park, including travel guides to El Calafate and El Chalten,
and relevant bus, tour, and taxi services and car hire.
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4. Where can I stay?
The towns of El Calafate and El Chalten both have an extensive
selection of campsites, bunkhouses, hostels and hotels.
There are also estancias (from the verb estacionar in
Spanish, meaning to stop) dotted across the Patagonian steppes which
have been turned into tourist accommodation. These are the settlement
houses of Patagonian sheep and cattle farmers. Many of them have
been around since the days of the Indian raids in the 19th Century.
There is a 5-star hotel next to the Perito Moreno Glacier...
CONTINUED IN THE
BOOK - Full details for both El Calafate and El Chalten, including
arrival information, information sources and town services,
where to stay, places to eat and drink, other things to do
and where to buy supplies and hire equipment.
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5. What is the weather like?
The prevailing weather in El Calafate, over 200km east of the Andes,
is generally dry and windy. The village of El Chalten, which lies
immediately below the Andes and directly east of the Southern Patagonian
Ice Cap, receives much more inclement weather.
Up in the mountains, the average rainfall can be more than 2000mm
per annum. In Summer, the prevailing weather is generally frigid
and unsettled with strong winds but not unlike a country like Scotland,
where blustery, damp squalls are interspersed with bright, sunny
spells and it doesn’t feel that cold as long as you are attired
for it...
CONTINUED IN THE
BOOK - Full geography, climate and weather information, including
the reason for the Southern Patagonian Ice Cap and an explanation
for the prevailing weather conditions.
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6. Plannng a trip
In the book, you'll find all the information you need for a trip
to Los Glaciares National Park, including local information on the
following topics, a reading list and a complete list of resources
available to you for trip planning.
- Travelling independently
- Using a tour operator
- Booking flights
- City accommodation
- Passports and visas
- Money
- Insurance
- Language
- Telephoning home and abroad
- Electricity
- Health and safety
- First aid
- Fitness
- Photographs
- Vaccinations
- Returning home
- Onward travel to Chile (Torres del Paine national park)
Some useful websites listed in the book;
Airports and transfers -
www.aa2000.com.ar
www.tiendaleon.com.ar
Park website -
www.losglaciares.com
Town websites -
www.calafate.com
www.elchalten.com
Weather -
www.accuweather.com
www.weather.com
CONTINUED IN THE
BOOK - All the information you need for planning a trip, along
with a bibliography and an 11-page section on clothing and
equipment with a checklist and tips for best use.
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8. Buying maps
Local publisher, Zagier & Urruty (www.patagoniashop.net)
publish the following maps.
- LGNP Ecomapa
- LGNP Minimap
- Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre - Trekking and Mountaineering
- Patagonia Southern Icefield
You can purchase the maps in El Calafate or El Chalten, or on the
internet at;
- www.stanfords.co.uk
- www.longtitudebooks.com
- www.patagoniashop.net
IN THE BOOK - Trekking
routes, visitor attractions, town guides to El Calafate and
El Chalten, and more...
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