Crossing the border from Chile to Argentina was a bit easier than everyone told me. After camping in Estancia Chacabuco, everyone warned me it was almost impossible to hitchhike to the border using the nearest road. They advised me to travel about two days to a road more frequently traveled.
I waited about thirty minutes before a truck slowed to greet me. I saw Argentina license plates and smiled. Turns out they were traveling five hours to Perito Moreno. Perfect.
Perito Moreno, New Friends and an Ancient Cave
Many travelers are advised that Perito Moreno does not have much to offer to tourists. I have to agree with this. It is a small town of three thousand people, yet not much happens there and it's not a very pretty town. What makes this a popular destination is the 'Cave of the Hands.' While trying to hitchhike from town, I met a man named Osmar at the gas station. He told me I was in the wrong end of town, and offered to drive me 5 minutes to the opposite side. On our drive he pointed out his house and told me to knock on his door if I needed anything.
He dropped me off at the best waiting area for passing cars on the infamous 'Ruta 40' and wished me luck. I was beginning a hitchhiking adventure from Perito Moreno to El Chaltén, a journey stretching about three hundred fifty miles. About ten minutes later, a car slowed and rolled down their windows. A Dutch woman, Margje and an Argentinian said they were traveling sixty miles. I figured it was a good start to my journey.
On our drive, they mentioned their plan for the day was to visit the famous cave. I had heard about this site only the night before and decided it would be fun to visit, especially because buying a bus ticket to the cave is expensive, and I had a free ride.
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| Margje and Tomas hiking towards the cave |
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| These hand prints were painted over 9,000 years ago. |
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| Thousands of these paintings of hands cover the walls. There are also paintings of hunting scenes. |
We thoroughly enjoyed the cave and by the time we were ready to leave, the sun was going down. I decided to return to Perito Moreno and hitched a ride with a nice Argentinian couple. Upon arriving to town, I nervously knocked on Osmar's door at 9:30pm, an hour after the sun had set. He welcomed me immediately and helped me make myself at home. Thanks Osmar for offering a warm bed and feeding me delicious food and wine.
350 Miles Hitchhiking on a Rarely Traveled Road
What makes this trip interesting is that the three hundred fifty miles that separate the two towns, there is little to nothing in between except flat Patagonian desert filled with small shrubs. The next day I decided to continue my travels south. I began hitchhiking with talkative Chilean that drove me eighty miles, a fourth of my journey. About an hour later, a truck loaded with two giant tractors slowed to a stop before my waving arms. He said he was traveling about two hundred miles in the direction I was traveling. Perfect! The trip was quiet, as neither of us felt very talkative. He shared mate (pronounced mah-tay) and we settled in for a long journey. Argentinians are culturally known for carrying a thermos with warm water and mate everywhere they go.
We arrived to a small town called Tres Lagos, and I found a hostel to spend the night. The next morning I was given a ride by a German and two Argentinians, whom I met at the hostel, and they drove me to a cross section where I would find another ride to the town of El Chaltén. I met a Bulgarian man, Yassen, trying to find a ride and we decided to travel together to the town.
Upon arriving to El Chaltén, I checked my email to see if a couchsurfer had written me. A mom named Florencia wrote me with her address. Yassen and I walked to her house to find out her husband and three sons lived in the house. They offered their back yard to camp, as well as access to their home to cook, shower and make ourselves at home. Yassen and I decided to start hiking that day, and told Florencia and her husband Mario we would be back in two to four days.
Hiking and Camping Glacier National Park
Yassan and I began to hike later than we planned, and quickly hiked three and a half hours to the camping area outside Mt. Fitzroy. As soon as we arrived, I began to set up camp and he decided to hike another hour to the lagoon and view of Mt. Fitzroy. I thought it was a bad idea; the sun was setting and I was tired and hungry. I met a nice couple from Colorado and we shared a meal together. As we ate our food, we saw a light slowly making its way down the switchback mountain trail and I told them it was my new Bulgarian friend. We laughed and all agreed it was a bit too adventurous to hike at night.
I expected to see Yassen at our camp shortly, but time kept ticking. I waited up another hour before I anxiously fell asleep around 10pm.
In the middle of a dream, I was frightened when I awoke to a flashlight in my eyes.
"Thank God you are safe! What time is it?" I said.
"It's midnight. I did something really stupid. I'll tell you in the morning" he replied.
The following morning he told me his story. After descending from the lagoon hike, he decided to hike to another glacier that he assumed was close. Through the darkness, he hiked to the glacier. He said there were giant boulders that he had to navigate around to arrive to the glacier. He was adventurous and decided to get as close to the glacier as possible. Within a few yards, he could not go further and thought it was best to turn back. Unfortunately, he slipped and fell several feet, landing on his ankle in a weird way. He said pain rushed through his body and his initial thought was that he broke his ankle. After taking a few minutes to settle down, he realized it was not broken, and that he could walk home without putting too much pressure on his foot. To make matters worse, he said that on his hike back to camp, he heard giant boulders falling down the side of the mountain. Looking up, he saw the boulders make yellow sparks when they collided. He was appreciative as the boulders fell only on the opposite side from where he stood.
We ate breakfast and decided to hike to the lagoon and the famous view of Mt. Fitzroy. A few moments after reaching the viewpoint, he turned back and said he would be heading back to town. His flight home to Bulgaria left from another town later that evening.
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| Mount Fitzroy and Mt Torres |
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| I climbed to the lagoon and glacier and had the views all to myself for about 2 hours |
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| The clouds covered the highest peak, Mt Fitzroy. This did not stop me from enjoying my time alone at the lagoon |
The next day I hiked to Lago Torres and enjoyed meeting the other campers there. The next day, it rained most of the day, but I hiked anyway, as my food supply was small. I arrived to El Chaltén and Florencia and Mario welcomed me with open arms. There were eight others backpackers staying the night with her! Six French travelers and two British travelers accompanied us. The family sent a couple of us to the grocery store to buy ingredients to make pizza. We all chipped in, and for four dollars each, we ate a ton of pizza and enjoyed the company of the family. Thanks Mario and Florencia for everything!
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| Florencia, Mario and me at their home |
I hitchhiked two hours to El Calafate with an Italian couple. I called Ana, a couchsurfing friend, and she came to pick me up at the local gas station. Ana, a mom of her thirteen year old daughter Valentina, made me laugh immediately. She told me that she had an extra house that she has couchsurfers stay in. I stayed with Ana for three days, enjoying delicious food and funny conversations. Ana, Valentina, two Japanese couchsurfers and I traveled to Perito Moreno Glacier.
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| Perito Moreno Glacier is 3 miles wide and averages 240 feet in height above the lake. It has a total depth of over 550 feet! It is 1 of 3 glaciers in Chile that is still growing. This is a popular destination because ice from the glacier falls periodically throughout the day |
The next day, two more travelers arrived to stay with Ana. Matt McDonald is from England, and we clicked immediately. He told me that he is a year and a half into a multiple year cycling trip. I asked if he knew Rob Lilwall, another English cyclist that provided the beginning inspiration for my trip. He smiled and said yes. We quickly realized that we both worked for Southwestern in the past. Matt inspired me to travel by bicycle at some point in my journey, and we continue to stay in contact.
To see his blog, visit www.thecyclediaries.com
The following day, I decided to hitchhike to Chile...
