The body aches but the feeling’s good! Its day 8 and we are leaving on a 4 hour journey through the Patagonian Steppes to Argentina, the other side of Patagonia.
Miguel at the Checkpost
We stopped over for coffee at Cerro Castillo, the border town of Chile and concluded immigration formalities and then drove across the ‘no-man’s land’ to Cancha Carrera, the Argentinian check post, where Miguel picked us up for the three hour drive to El Calafate. The Patagonian plains looked different on this side of the Andes, lined with Estancias, we encountered Gauchos rounding their cattle and very few vehicles on this 240 km drive. The road was paved and excellent.
Welcome to Argentina - The Checkpost at Cancha Carrera
The first sights of Lago Argentina in the horizon was a sign of approaching urban civilisation and soon we were at El Calafate. A town founded in 1927 and at first glance looked interesting. We will spend a night here on our way back from the Perito Moreno Glacier. We changed some money and cars. Buying some cigarettes and candies I realised things were much cheaper than in Chile. Good feeling.
The Road Through Argentinian Steppes
The drive to the Los Glaciares National Park was just under an hour and our abode for the next two nights is Hosteria Los Notros, the only hotel with direct views of the Perito Moreno glacier from every room! This 32 room hotel is luxury and class throughout, perched on a high ground over looking the south face of the glacier on Lago Argentina. This hotel has a fantastic bar and a ‘lazying lounge’ (in my words) up the stairs where the views are awesome and the set up is most appropriate.
The Shores of Lago Argentino
This hotel is closed 3-4 months in a year due to the extreme weather conditions in this region and today is just one week of its re-opening for the new season.
The 'Lazying Lounge' at The Hosteria Los Notros
With drink in hand I retired on a reclining chair – enjoying the certain wild solitude and moments of magnificent calm of this great landscape.
- The View From The Lazying Room
