Ice trekking on Viedma

Thursday, December 23, 2010

A perfect day in El Chalten!  After arriving last night to the clouds, it was exciting to wake up to a clear sky.  Kate and my room was so hot that I had trouble getting ready with all my layers and basically waited until after breakfast to get fully suited up.  (It might have been clear, but it was still cold.)

We got picked up in a shuttle bus at 8:10am and drove to the lake.  The driver was kind enough to stop at a couple viewpoints where we could clearly see the Fitz Roy range and Cerro Torre.  Absolutely stunning, and amazing the difference from just 14 hours prior.

A boat took us across the lake with fantastic views of the surrounding mountains and Viedma glacier wall.  On arrival, our guides took us (me, Sarah, Louise, Richard, Monica, Keith, Ted, Nick, Steven, Vince, Robyn, Terry, Ally, and a couple other random people) on a short hike up the smooth rocks, which have been carved by erosion, to see the face of the glacier rising 30-40 meters out of the water, and up to 100m below the surface.  My rented boots seemed to have a good grip on the smooth surface.

First look at the glacier

We walked along more rocks to the point where the ice started and then sat down to have the guides put on our crampons.  Our female guide showed us the proper way to walk in the crampons on the ice, especially up and down slopes.  “Trust in your crampons.”  Those things are fierce looking and have quite a grip.  Once everyone was geared up we started off in a single file line.

The glacier is constantly changing and our guide pointed out some new crevices which were not there last week.  Every trek is different because they have to investigate the safety of the route.  It was incredible being on the glacier looking into the crevices and seeing up close all the points and edges of the surface.  In some places the ice was bright blue (from the lack of oxygen) while other bits were dirty from the sediment.  On either side of the glacier where the mountains and behind was the lake. 

We trudged around a good couple of hours navigating various paths on the glacier.  A few places were so steep that the guides aided our step.  I didn’t mind the up and down, but walking on a slant with one foot higher than the other was a real uncomfortable challenge.  Terry fell down and started slipping down the ice, but a guide appeared from nowhere to catch him.  Our three guides were extremely helpful.

At the end of our ice trek, we removed the crampons and walked into an ice cave below the surface of the glacier.  It was quite wet inside as the glacial ice melted into little puddles below.  The blue color of the cave could not be replicated.  When we came out on the other side of the cave we were served Baileys on glacier ice.  The icing on the cake, or maybe the cake on the ice, after a perfect morning on the ice.  We really had perfect weather for the excursion.

While we waited for the boat to take us back, we opened our bag lunches.  Nick and I shared a mix of cut of meats and cheese.  Last night at dinner I purchased a brownie that I saved for dessert, however, when I bit into it I discovered there were nuts.  Sarah told me that I looked so disappointed (guess my face is an open book, I could never play poker) when I realized.  I was definitely disappointed, but I gave the brownie to Nick instead.

When we returned to town, after the boat and van rides, I took my shoes back to the shop and walked to the front of town for a hot chocolate.  Kate and I then baked in our room for a couple hours before going to dinner with Sarah at Patagonious.  We left a 7pm, which was amazing given how many meals have started after 8.  It was a girls night out but Sameena didn’t join us because she’d met someone else to go for dinner with.  The men (Nick, Ted, Vince and Steven) eventually came in for pizza, but they respected our privacy and left us alone.  Two guys came in playing awful music (one with a guitar, one with a flute) and Terry and Robyn and Nick (who were there as well) purchased a CD.  The three of us thought they were crazy.

After a lovely dinner we walked back to the hotel, through the howling wind and slight rain, for an early night in.  Tomorrow we’re up early for a walk in the national park.