We fancied ourselves tough. I mean, genuinely hardy. Our resumes boasted five expeditions across the great Southern Patagonian Ice Cap, a place where the wind is less a weather phenomenon and more a personality trait. So, surely, a casual stroll down to the river in El Chaltén would be a walk in the park. What […]
Food, Glorious (and Sometimes Surprising) Food When we first arrived in El Chalten in 2006, the dining scene was simple: one restaurant. Return today, and you’re met with a dizzying array of choices. The catch? The options have become decidedly "Americanized." The menus are a familiar chorus of pizzas, burgers, fries, and pasta. You can, […]
Some of the finds from Sunday's walk. We seized a small break in the Patagonian weather for a walk to Chorillo del Salto. As I write this on Monday, it's snowing in town—you've got to love a Patagonian summer! Thorn-tailed Rayadito Austral Thrush Fire-eyed Diucon Southern Lapwing American Kestrel Andean Condor Upland Goose We arrived […]
We were stealing a day. Sandwiched between brutal weather alerts for wind and rain, we had a precious half-day window. The target? Chorillo del Salto, a popular waterfall just outside El Chalten. A 9km round trip with barely a hill to climb seemed like the perfect, sensible mission. "Sensible," however, is a relative term in […]
We’ve been housebound, or more accurately, apartment-bound, for the last few days. The reason? Patagonia is showing off outside our window with hurricane-force winds and driving rain that could strip paint. Suddenly, being here for a month instead of a few rushed days feels less like a booking and more like a brilliant, prescient survival […]
Some of my favourite finds from today's half day walk up a windy Cerro Antenna. Andean Condor Guanaco Long-tailed Meadowlark Just as predicted, it’s a windy day in El Chalten. We seized a brief lull in the weather—a precious window between yesterday's gusts and the stronger winds forecast for this afternoon and tomorrow. With our […]
The Patagonian weather is finally breaking. After days of settled conditions, the script has flipped: while patches of sun still linger, the peaks are now swaddled in cloud, and the wind has arrived with a vengeance. These are the strongest gusts we’ve felt in the 13 days since we arrived. A proper Patagonian welcome. And […]
Some of my favourite finds from our aborted bivvy on Loma de Pliege Tumbado. After my illness cost us several good weather days, we decided to seize a narrow window for a hike. The climb was a grueling 1000 meters with heavy overnight packs, making "slow and steady" our only pace. For a birder like […]
"I don't think the clouds are going to change color," Kiersten said, her voice barely audible over the wind screaming across the ridge. I grunted, a non-committal "Hmmmm," that hid the battle raging in my mind. We were at 1,276 meters on Loma de Pliege Tumbado, a spot I’d called my favourite viewpoint in all […]
Just back from a stunning two-day backpacking trip to Laguna Torre, at the foot of the mighty Cerro Torre. We're committed to honest travel tales, the sublime, the frustrating, and the downright ridiculous. So, here's our warts-and-all report from the trails. The Good Let's start with the obvious: the scenery is otherworldly. The jagged summits […]
