Live the Patagonian essence
11 Days / 10 Nights
Buenos Aires - El Calafate - Patagonia
USD 3499
On this trip you will discover unforgettable landscapes such as forests, lagoons and hidden glaciers. You will be part of the deep Patagonian life: riding from outpost to outpost. Get away from civilization and allow yourself, for 4 days, to become a part of the landscape but also of patagonic life. A riding experience surrounded by immensity. Participate just for someday in a ranger’s life, in communion with the countryside, or of those pioneers and adventurers who were part of this area’s history. Magnificent views of the Hidden Glaciers Frías, Gorra, Grande and Dickson will be obtained during the trip. A combination of horse-riding, hiking, and rural life that may, on certain dates, coincide with big cattle or sheep drive or work in the corrals, thus adding another ingredient to the mix.
Arrival at Buenos Aires airport and transfer to your accommodation.
This excursion transmits the emotion of a multiple Buenos Aires. We will get to know the symbol of our city: the Obelisk. We will go through squares like Mayo, San Martín and Alvear. Avenues: Corrientes, De Mayo, 9 de Julio, among others. Neighborhoods with history like La Boca and San Telmo, sumptuous like Palermo and Recoleta, modern like Puerto Madero. The parks Lezama and Tres de Febrero, and commercial and financial areas and the Football Stadium.
We suggest the following optional tours:
Transfer to the domestic airport for your flight to El Calafate. Arrival and transfer to the hotel.
The tour begins in the morning, departing from the city of El Calafate. After a journey of 80 km we arrive at the viewpoint area, with walkways and balconies facing the Perito Moreno Glacier. The walkways have viewpoint balconies on different levels, which allow varying perspectives of the impressive glacier and landscape. The viewpoints are connected by ramps and stairways which can be walked during the excursion. The excursion is complemented with a short navigation of 1 hour. This excursion allows for an up-close view of the glacier. The boat navigates within 300 meters of the glacier.
We suggest the following optional tours:
Transfer from the hotel to Nibepo Aike Patagonian Ranch to start the adventure.
Morning ride to start climbing up the mountain range Cordon de los Cristales, which lies behind the Hostelry. The higher we go, the more clearly the lakes stand out, Brazo Rico and Sur, Lago Roca and Cerro Frías, as if it were all a model.
Once we reach the clearing, the track plunges into the Patagonian Andean woods. We pass between lenga trees and guindos [Magellan beeches], riding along old tracks where the great sheep drives used to pass. We reach a little clear land, where cows graze. There, La Rosada outpost is the home of the “puestero”, who is in charge of cattle and carries on the legacy of traditional rural production. He knows every single corner of this part of the land and he can count the cows with just a glance.
If one had escaped, he would bring her back within a couple of minutes. There, we have first ranch lunch. By the afternoon, we reach an historical point: the International Milestone that indicates the end of the estancia and the end of Argentina. The sensation to be at the very frontiers of Patagonia is unique. It is the south of the south: wind blows and the flag waves.
The landscape and its calmness never end. Free time to explore surroundings. Dinner and night at La Rosada outpost.
On coming out of the dense woodland the way opens out into the Valley of the Río Cachorro. Notros [Chilean firebush] and Calafate bushes here are unusually tall.
We start descending towards the lower land until we come to the riverbed. Surprise views of the Frías glacier appear at the bottom and the granite needle called “el Dedo del Cesar” [Caesar’s Thumb].
Riding between rocks and pasturelands and avoiding the marshlands, we reach the corrals of the Río Cachorro outpost where the rangers might be working with the livestock. After a picnic lunch we continue on horseback to Laguna 3 de Abril (3 de Abril Lagoon), a habitat of flamingos and black-necked swans, kaiken [upland goose] and steamer ducks, as well as of numerous salmonidae.
Passing the lake, we come to the outpost, and after unsaddling, there will be time to enjoy the surroundings and the cosiness of the refuge. A wood-fired stove and a brick and clay oven, with the gentle light of the lantern, passing the mate round, the evening meal will be prepared while tales of adventures are shared. The outpost has a room with 3 bunk beds and a room that serves as dining room and kitchen where there are another two benches that turn into beds. Basic facilities. Evening meal and overnight at the Puesto Laguna 3 de Abril.
We leave after breakfast, riding south to the Balcony of the Glaciers. The track runs parallel to the Southern Arm of Lago Argentino.
A little before arriving at the head of the lake, we leave the horses grazing to go up on foot to a viewing point even higher up. From there we will have a panoramic view of the Southern Arm, Laguna Corazón and of the Lago Frías, with glimpses of the Hidden Glaciers Gorra, Frías, Grande and Dickson in the distance.
We walk to the beach at the head of the Southern Arm. From there we cross a large pasture, a pristine area. An erratic stone of more than 20 meters in height will be the next goal. It is impressive to stand in front of such a huge rock, marked by the force of the glaciers advancing and receding. The footpath starts to run alongside the lower Frías River. Here we will find traces of the area’s livestock rearing past, a hanging bridge over 100 years old, destroyed by the great flooding of Lago Argentino in 1937.
The way passes through dense woodland getting as far as discovering Corazón Lagoon, with crystal clear waters where the deep blue contrasts with the green reflection of the woods. The water is so crystal clear that it is possible to watch the trout swimming between the rocks. We pause for lunch. A place sheltered from the world. Whoever wants to will be able to carry on a bit further clambering over some stones that prove fairly awkward for crossing, in order to get to the southern end of Frías Lake, the natural border protecting the glaciers hidden in the mountains further south.
In the afternoon we return to where the horses were left in order to ride back to the Puesto Laguna 3 de Abril, where the night will be spent.
The return route begins riding along the shore of the lake until we reach the main buildings of the estancia, about 18km from the refuge. We will arrive in time for lunch with a typical Patagonian lamb roasted at the stake over charcoal embers, which will be ready just as the riders arrive. After lunch, regular transfer service back to El Calafate.
Transfer to the airport for your departure flight to Buenos Aires. Arrival and transfer to the hotel.
Transfer to the airport to board your return flight.
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