Today was a full-day hike guided by Leo, the craftiest guide in El Chalten and the nicest man in Argentina*. We drove a ways outside town this morning to have a longer one-way route, worth it for the additional views. Over the course of 15 miles and 3,100 vertical feet, we saw glaciers and the moraines they left behind over millions of years of glacial movement; we saw the Fitz Roy massif summits, the surrounding peaks, and rivers and lakes all the way to the horizon. I’ve never seen a glacier before (Kelly has), and it’s impossible to describe. It is eerily silent and still, but also appears to rush toward you from the base of those iconic granite peaks, literally frozen in time. We learned that the peaks of the Fitz Roy (aka Chalten) range were all formed by venting magma under the Pacific Ocean ~16 million years ago (a baby in mountain time). The magma cooled into those shapes. The peaks were pushed partially above ground by tectonic plate movement, and then the glaciers scraped away the rest, resulting in the formation pictured above (and in the Patagonia(TM) logo). We finished at a brewery for beers with Leo—resting our feet, reflecting on the day, and thanking him for so earnestly sharing his love of the mountain with us. This was by far my biggest hike ever, and maybe Kelly’s as well, though she’s done some long ones. The views were stunning, but equally great was experiencing something so rare and awe-inspiring together on our honeymoon.
Tomorrow, we’re looking forward to rest and recovery. And hunting for the best coffee in El Chalten.
*well, maybe tied with Eduardo.
sabbatiblog 