Today, we will depart from El Calafate (town or airport) and travel through the typical landscape of the Patagonian steppe to El Chaltén. This ~3-hour journey reveals extensive grasslands, but also views of the Argentino and Viedma lakes and the Fitz Roy mountain range. Keep a sharp eye out and see if you can spot any of the wildlife that inhabits this area. Once you arrive in El Chaltén, you will be dropped off at your hotel to relax. We recommend taking a stroll around the town, which didn’t even exist before 1985!

We leave El Chaltén by car and follow the Río de las Vueltas to our starting point 17km away. From there, we hike along a beautiful trail through the lenga forest, following the Río Blanco (White River) towards the Poincenot campsite.  

Along the way, we will stop to learn a little about the flora and fauna that is characteristic of the Patagonian Andean forest and also visit the beautiful Piedras Blancas (White Rocks) viewpoint. Here we will see the Piedras Blancas glacier and its associated glacial features, including the erratic boulders and lateral moraines left behind as the glacier retreated over the last few decades. We will have many different views of the Fitz Roy mountain chain as we make our way towards our final objective for the day - the magnificent Laguna de Los Tres. This unforgettable location has the best view of Cerro Fitz Roy - and one of the most impressive vistas in all of Patagonia.

When we arrive at the viewpoint, we will find a spot out of the wind to enjoy our lunch, then begin our descent towards El Chaltén.

Today we will hike another of the classic trails of El Chaltén. The Cerro Torre trail brings us close to one of the most beautiful mountains in the area, and one of the most challenging for climbers around the world! We won’t be climbing, of course, but you will gain an appreciation of the skill required and difficulty involved for those who do attempt it.

The hike has several beautiful viewpoints along the way. We will reach the first of these, Cascada Margarita, after 30 minutes of a steady uphill trek. From here, we have our first complete views of the chains of mountains. We will continue ascending to reach the primary viewpoint of Cerro Torre. This is the highest point of the trek, and offers incredible views of the whole of the Torre valley, including Cerro Solo and its Grande glacier. We will take a rest before entering the Torre valley itself.

The next section of trail sees us hiking alongside the Río Fitz Roy and through a forest of Lenga trees until we arrive at the D’Agostini campsite. From there, the trail leads us up a large glacial moraine to one of the best views near El Chaltén – an uninterrupted view of the Torres mountain chain across the impressive Lake Torre. We will have our lunch here, taking in the views of Cerro Torre (the highest peak), Cerro Egger, Cerro Standhart (the mountains on either side), and the Aldeas mountains in the background. 

When we are ready, we will return to El Chaltén along the same trail, and head back to El Calafate. We can drop you in your hotel or at the airport.