Southern Patagonia Icefield Expedition (EHC)

We welcome you at Calafate airport and transfer to town to check in at your hostel. You get the rest of the day to enjoy the town and later you have your welcome dinner.

• Lodging in a Hostel double or triple room with private bathroom / Meals we provide: Dinner

We dedicate this day to one of the World’s Natural Wonder: the Moreno glacier. This ice field- type glacier flows down from the Patagonian Icefield. Because unusual favourable local conditions, this glacier is the only one in the world that shows a closure and rupture process. The road leads to the very front of the glacier, which will be only meters away from your eyes. A beautiful, short trail, will lead us from the shores of the lake to the upper viewpoints. The roar of the chunks of ice falling inside the glacier or from the glacier into the lake, the frequent collapse of the front 60 mts high seracs into the turquoise water, makes out of this day a very special and unique experience. We will drive 80 km (1 and a half hour) to get and come back from the glacier across the steppe.

• Lodging in a Hostel double or triple room with private bathroom / Meals we provide: Breakfast

Alter breakfast we take our bus for the 220 km drive to El Chaltén, a small and picturesque village at the foot of Fitz Roy & Cerro Torre massif. We make a stop half way to enjoy local pastries and hot coffee. On approach, the views of both Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre massifs and of glacier Viedma and the mountains of the Icefield are spectacular.
In the afternoon, we meet the Expedition guide. He gives us a short speech about the Icefield and details of the program. We provide technical equipment and the guide and assistant will explain how to use it. Finally we prepare our packs for the next day.

• Lodging in a Hostel room with shared bathroom. / Meals we provide: Breakfast and dinner

Today we start our trek, driving north and then west for 15 km. Once in River Electrico, we hike up valley, leaving behind after a couple of hours the forest which is replaced by rocks eroded and polished by the surpass of the glacier a fey hundred of years ago. We go around lake Electrico, get good views on Fitz Roy north face and we camp at the foot of Marconi glacier. 5 hours trekking, to gain 300 mts.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

This is a key day, as it is demanding and we depend on the weather conditions. We hike up glacier Marconi up to the Paso (Pass) Marconi (1500 mts above sea level). According to conditions, in some moment of this day we will use our crampons first and our snowshoes later. Hiking up valley, we will first meet the Pier Giorgio glacier valley flowing into the Marconi glacier valley, and then an evident change of steepness lead us to the pass itself. From Paso Marconi, an incredible view of the Paso de los Cinco Glaciares (the Five Glaciers Pass), Vulcano Lautaro, Cerro Gorra Blanca and an Antarctic type landscape. 6 – 7 hours trekking. We climb 800 mts approximately.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

We hike on the icefield southbound towards the Circo de los Altares and the legendary Cerro Torre west face. We walk west of the Marconi range with its typical snow mushrooms topping the summit, with permanent view to the Mariano Moreno range towards west. Very likely we use our snowshoes today. 6 hs trekking, no up hill today.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

We use this day, weather depending, to visit with only a day pack the Circo de los Altares, to get close-up views of the west faces of Cerro Torre group. These ice covered walls are probably one of the most serious alpine challenges in Patagonia.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

We continue south towards Laguna de los Esquíes, which is the exit door to the Ice cap. It is located on a lateral moraine of glacier Viedma. If weather is specially awfull, we have the chance of continue 1 and a half more hour to the Paso del Viento hut for protection. Trekking time 7 hs, no up hill.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

From our camp we climb up to Paso del Viento (Wind Pass) at 1550 mts and give a final and spectacular look to the Icefield, the Mariano Moreno range and glacier Viedma. We hike down into the upper river Tunel valley, across scree and alpine meadows rich in alpine flowers. These flowers are the real welcome after days of only rock and ice. We cross the glacier Tunel and after crossing river Tunel across a tyrolean (horizontal fixed rope attached to both sides of the river) we get to our camp at Laguna Toro.

• Lodging in Expedition Camp / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

This day features the end of our traverse, we walk on the river Tunel valley, wading a couple of streams. We climb up and down Pliegue Tumbado, gentle slope to spend our last energies, and our final downhill inside the forest lead us to the River de las Vueltas valley and to El Chaltén. From the watershed between the 2 valleys we have still spectacular views of Cerro Fitz Roy, Torre, Grande, Huemul and Paso del Viento. 6 hs trekking.

• Lodging in a Hostel room with shared bathroom / Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner

Spare days to use in case of bad weather conditions.
Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner.

Spare days to use in case of bad weather conditions.
Meals we provide: Breakfast, box lunch and dinner.

Alter breakfast we transfer to El Calafate airport where our services end.
Meals we provide: Breakfast.