EL CHALTEN

At the northern tip of Los Glaciares National Park, at the foot of the Mt Fitz Roy massif (3.405 m above sea level) and the Mt Torre massif (3.128 m), the little village of El Chaltén may be found, Argentina's youngest town, founded on October 12, 1985.

This city numbers only over 40 families and some 300 inhabitants and, during the southern summertime, which is the best time to visit this area, its population increases, and its visitors come to blissfully contemplate the splendid views of mountain peaks, giant massifs and permanent ice fields.

The roads to El Chaltén from Calafate include Provincial Route N° 11 (in the northern part of the area), National Route N° 40, and Provincial Route N° 23.

These are some 220 kms of roads that offer supernatural views of glaciers, hidden lakes, livestock farms, Lake Viedma and the intense presence of Mt Fitz Roy.

This mountain's unmistakable profile is always capped with a cloud, mistaken for volcanic fumes by the Tehuelche Indians, whence they called it Chaltén (meaning "volcano").

El Chaltén is one of Argentina's major climbing sites. It is also an ideal place for horseback and foot trekking, as well as sailing, and for communing with nature in all its beauty. It has a wide tourist offer. A mere 32 kms away one can visit the historical Lake of the Dessert.

Marked pathways enable visitors to access easily the high mountain scenery. Tours depart for Lake Torre, Blanco River, the Fitz Roy Base Camp, Lake De Los Tres, Lake Capri, Chorrillo del Salto, etc.

Most of the excursions run off from the village, and one does not need to be an authority to use the clearly-marked tracks. However, if one leaves the prearranged path, there is a risk of losing one's way amid all the magical views.

The granite spikes of Torre and Fitz Roy peaks give an imposing and spectacular panorama when together with the Viedma, Upsala and Moyano glaciers that empty into Lake Viedma, 106,000 hectares in area.

TREKKING IN EL CHALTEN
Thanks to the remarkable variety of trekking tours and other activities it has to offer, the ambitious little Santa Cruz village of El Chaltén has earned a name as the Argentine Trekking Capital.
Its trekking offer is a multiple one, although pathways have always been planned with the two major peaks of the region in mind: Mt Fitz Roy and Mt Torre.

Before you start, choose a route you can manage, let the park ranger know what time you are leaving, take the Trekking/Climbing registration with you, and during the walk never go away from the marked pathway, nor try to find short cuts.

When selecting a trekking route (for the short option), Lake Capri is a possible destination. It has alluring campsites near the lake and affords a splendid view of the whole of Mt Fitz Roy. Another option is to visit Chorrillo del Salto, a waterfall somewhat over 15 m in height, in the last stretch of the De las Vueltas River (Winding River).

If you are looking for a longer route, you can select any of the two tracks that fork out from El Chaltén: to the base of Mt Fitz Roy and to Lake Torre.

On the road to Mt Fitz Roy, the itinerary starts at Madsen camping ground, from where one descends to the valley of Chorrillo del Salto, a wind-eroded plain. 3 more hours of trekking are needed to get to Blanco River and eagerly lay foot on the Fitz Roy base camp. 2 more hours of trekking will take the traveler up to Lake De Los Tres -at the foot of the mountain-, where an outcrop affords a privileged view of Sucia Lagoon (Dirty Lagoon) and the glacier that forms it, some 300 m below.

The trek to Lake Torre departs from Blanco River camp and lasts around 4 hours, if one takes the southern short cut.

After crossing lenga forests, one reaches the lake, full of icebergs broken off the Grande Glacier, and is immediately struck by the panoramic view of the Torre and Mocho mountains and the Egger y Standhardt freestanding rock spikes.

Many different excursions allow one to appreciate the beauty of the local flora and fauna, lakes, cascades, rivers formed from melting glaciers and, of course, the mountains. All these landscapes, with their forests of lenga and ńire are overrun by species aboriginal to this area: hares, red foxes, pumas and tawny eagles.

Lodging at the local estancias (ranches) is one of the options offered in this village, and this is a good chance to learn about the and share their way of life. The main happenings in this area are horseback trekking, mountain biking, bird watching and four-wheel motorcycling, among many others.

El Chaltén is a "must" for mountain climbing and trekking aficionados: the Chorrillo del Salto cascade, Mt Fitz Roy and Mt Torre all have walkways or climbing slopes. Lastly, there are some excursions that though not as impressive are just as beautiful, such as the lakes "Del Desierto", Viedma and San Martín.