January 5
(i've now returned home, and have to backdate the entries.)
__________________________________________
the past day and a half involved almost all travel. fourteen hours overnight to rio gallegos and a six hour layover before the next six on a bus bound for el calafete. rio gallegos is the central transportation hub for the region; anyone going anywhere to or from tiera del fuego, chile, calafete, any of the inland or coastal routes come through here. i have never seen so many people in a small bus station.
the town itself was an unremarkable business center and port. we lunched and tried to arrange the evenings accomodations via the interweb since we would be arriving at calafete in the wee hours.
unsuccessful, we did arrive at calafete with no reservations and humped our packs around to several hostels (closed) and hotels (full), finally landing at the hotel cerro cristal for a room with a split bed and a well needed sleep.
out and about calafete in the morning and afternoon hours. it is a small mountain town at the southern gateway to the glacier parks. the place reminds me of tahoe without the hummers.
there are a great many travelers from all over the world here and i am feeling the bite of lost opportunities. earlier encountering a late twentysomething woman at the hostel traveling on an open ended ticket after finishing her masters degree. i am beating myself over spending the last year in portland with no job, no ambition, and no prospects. in many ways, perhaps a big pot รณ lost opportunities.
...and then, to finally be here in this natural wonderland and only two days to explore it! sacrilege! blasphemy!
in any case, we sit in the streetside cafes and stroll the shops, whiling away the hours in the southern sun. it is not bad, really, and tam wonders why i spend so much time in a state of dissatisfaction. i suppose i am my own worst critic.
-------------------------------
6 january
we made the 80km trek to glacier moreno in the morning clouds, minor off and on drizzling. on the way up, we got the economic low down from our english speaking guide.
ten years ago, calafete was a small and occasionally traveled mountain village frequented by the hardiest of travelers. winter population 900, summer population 6000. then a federal president elected from the area and a current president from rio gallegos began a series of economic development projects for the region; roads, waterworks, airports, etc.
today there is a year-round resident population of 9000 and they are expecting 20k in the next five years. it is an economic and tourism boon, there is no wonder why everyone here is smiling.
to the park (argentine entrance fee of eight pesos waived due to national holiday, foreign nationals pay $40).
the glacier was increadible. tam and i walked the grounds and viewpoints with terminal grins across our faces. a wall of ice spanning nearly a full kilometer across its face and winding twenty-five kilometers up into the andes. the glacier moreno has the interesting characteristic of creating an ice dam across two lakes and periodically collapsing on its retreat as the water pressure on one side blows the dam out in a cataclysmic affair. we happend to be there as the passage was closed, the water on the southern arm of the lake some 6 meters below normal.
the town itself was an unremarkable business center and port. we lunched and tried to arrange the evenings accomodations via the interweb since we would be arriving at calafete in the wee hours.
unsuccessful, we did arrive at calafete with no reservations and humped our packs around to several hostels (closed) and hotels (full), finally landing at the hotel cerro cristal for a room with a split bed and a well needed sleep.
out and about calafete in the morning and afternoon hours. it is a small mountain town at the southern gateway to the glacier parks. the place reminds me of tahoe without the hummers.
there are a great many travelers from all over the world here and i am feeling the bite of lost opportunities. earlier encountering a late twentysomething woman at the hostel traveling on an open ended ticket after finishing her masters degree. i am beating myself over spending the last year in portland with no job, no ambition, and no prospects. in many ways, perhaps a big pot รณ lost opportunities.
...and then, to finally be here in this natural wonderland and only two days to explore it! sacrilege! blasphemy!
in any case, we sit in the streetside cafes and stroll the shops, whiling away the hours in the southern sun. it is not bad, really, and tam wonders why i spend so much time in a state of dissatisfaction. i suppose i am my own worst critic.
-------------------------------
6 january
we made the 80km trek to glacier moreno in the morning clouds, minor off and on drizzling. on the way up, we got the economic low down from our english speaking guide.
ten years ago, calafete was a small and occasionally traveled mountain village frequented by the hardiest of travelers. winter population 900, summer population 6000. then a federal president elected from the area and a current president from rio gallegos began a series of economic development projects for the region; roads, waterworks, airports, etc.
today there is a year-round resident population of 9000 and they are expecting 20k in the next five years. it is an economic and tourism boon, there is no wonder why everyone here is smiling.
to the park (argentine entrance fee of eight pesos waived due to national holiday, foreign nationals pay $40).
the glacier was increadible. tam and i walked the grounds and viewpoints with terminal grins across our faces. a wall of ice spanning nearly a full kilometer across its face and winding twenty-five kilometers up into the andes. the glacier moreno has the interesting characteristic of creating an ice dam across two lakes and periodically collapsing on its retreat as the water pressure on one side blows the dam out in a cataclysmic affair. we happend to be there as the passage was closed, the water on the southern arm of the lake some 6 meters below normal.
we stood and watched from the hills above as great sections of ice shed off of the monstrosity, crashing into the lake with furious cacophany. the ice then rolling slowly, tumbling in the water to find equalibrium. the sounds of the place are increadible. cracking and popping, explosions in the distance echoing up the valley. i wish to describe it as unearthly, but of course the pallet of sound is entirely of this earth. the sounds of battle, seemingly... crack, pow, groan. an ongoing conflageration between elements and physics. mass, pressure, inertia. water, sky, rock. temperature. gravity wins, retaining title of master. creator and destroyer.
i have returned to calafete to a streetside cafe having just had a beer and a cou-ple of empanadas. a van just went by, blasting its stereo. a couple of large home stereo speakers strapped to the roof. strange.
posted by warpup at 4:21 AM
Stumble It!
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home