ActivityEl Calafate, Santa Cruz, Argentina
Walking on the Perito Moreno Glacier
Crampons, crevasses and whisky with glacier ice
Average rating 3.0 out of 5
3.02 reviewsModerate
The boardwalks are spectacular, but nothing compares to strapping on crampons and walking across the ice of the Perito Moreno itself.
A glacier that is still advancing
Most of the world's glaciers are retreating. The Perito Moreno, 80 km from El Calafate, has been roughly stable for a century: its 5 km wide front advances about two metres a day, and every few years it dams the southern arm of Lago Argentino until the water breaks through in a rupture that makes the national news.
The boardwalks on the Magallanes peninsula bring you face to face with the 60 m wall of ice, and you should spend at least two hours there listening to it crack and calve. But to really understand it you need to walk on it. A boat crosses the Brazo Rico to the southern edge of the glacier, where guides fit you with crampons and lead you through a landscape of blue pools, seracs and bottomless sinkholes.
There are two options. Minitrekking spends about 90 minutes on the ice and suits anyone aged 10 to 65 who is reasonably fit. Big Ice is a full day with three to four hours on the ice, a steep moraine approach and an upper age limit of 50.
What to bring
- Waterproof jacket and trousers
- Gloves: the ice is sharp and cold
- Sunglasses and sunscreen
- Packed lunch for Big Ice; minitrekking ends with a whisky on the rocks
Perito Moreno boardwalks
About this story
Lucas FernándezAuthor
Andes TrailsPublisher
Reviews
Write a reviewAverage rating 3.0 out of 5
2 reviews- OBOliver Bennett1 out of 5 stars6 Oct
The route description underplays the difficulty. Two of us turned back on the second pass.
- JOJames O'Connor5 out of 5 stars5 Sept
We trekked with Andes Trails after reading this and it matched the real thing step for step. Unforgettable.
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