LOS GLACIARES NATIONAL PARK

Positioned in the southwestern tip of the Argentine province of Santa Cruz, and covering an area of over 600.000 hectares, "Los Glaciares" stretches from the wind-swept steppe in the east to the Andes Mountains in the west, which mark the frontier and natural boundary between Argentina and Chile.

Stretching over 350 km from north to south along the Andes Cordillera, "Los Glaciares" includes a National Reserve of almost 180,000 hectares. Its 47 glaciers are the major attraction of the park, namely Marconi, Viedma, Moyano, Upsala, Agassiz, Bolado, Onelli, Peineta, Spegazzini, Mayo, Ameghino, Moreno and Frías; all of them belong to the Atlantic basin.

There are also 200 minor glaciers, autonomous from this ice field.

Although apparently immobile, these glaciers never stop, causing the ice on the front edge to break into big chunks which fall into the water and float away as icebergs.

Los Glaciares National Park was created in 1937 with the purpose of protecting a immense area of continental ice and glaciers from harm or destruction. The pictures of this unique place are enough to feel its charismatic beauty.

In 1981, UNESCO declared these glaciers Natural World Heritage Site due to their magnetism, scientific interest and endangered wildlife. Its main attraction is Perito Moreno Glacier which empties its ice into Lake Argentino.

The Park donates a grade of communion with nature which has almost no parallel elsewhere in the world. The excursions offered include trips along lakes and rivers, through forests and over hills, as well as treks and boat trips where the traveller can get spectacular views of the magnificent glaciers.

As a result of the thawing of this huge ice, two lakes are formed: Lake Argentino and Lake Viedma, which in turn empty all their waters into the Santa Cruz River. This river flows eastwards across the province of Santa Cruz and right into the Atlantic Ocean.

To the north lies Mt. Fitz Roy which regally overlooks all the surrounding landscape and is part of a superb mountain range.

The park is home to a varied wildlife, including some endangered species such as the huemul, the hullín, the pudu (miniature deer), the guanaco, etc.

Once inside the National Park, on the edge of Lake Argentino, there is a tourist complex that includes a camping ground, two restaurants, a snack bar and restrooms.

There is no doubt that the principal attraction is this Patagonian ice field whose ice sheet is the second largest in the world after Antarctica, covering an area of about 2600 km2 which amounts to 30% of the sheltered area in the Park.

THE MOVING GLACIERS
This remarkable southern marvel has unusual characteristics: unlike other glaciers that are formed at 2500 meters above sea level, these ones are formed at 1,500 meterst above sea level and slide down to 200 meters above sea level, thus offering unique access and sights.

Lake Argentino is the meeting point for both colossal glaciers: Perito Moreno and Upsala.

The well-known Perito Moreno Glacier owes its popularity to the continuous movement of its ice masses a result from a cyclical forward and backward pattern. In this way, pieces break off its front which is 5 km wide and 60 mt above the lake level.

This unanticipated and curious passage brings about the accumulation, fracture and breaking-off of tremendous blocks of ice. With titanic noises, these blocks break off and float away as icebergs along the Témpanos Channel (Iceberg Canal).

The gradual breaking off and subsequent lake leveling becomes a breathtaking sight which can be witnessed every 3 or 4 years.

Opposite Perito Moreno Glacier, in the Northern Arm of Lake Argentino, is Upsala Glacier, with a dimension of 50 km long and 10 km wide.

In the northern area of the park leys a mountain range whose tallest peaks, Mt Fitz Roy (3405 mt) and Mt Torre (3128 mt), boast the greatest diversity of granite in the Andes.