Did you know that Patagonia is an ancient Spanish word meaning "MAGNIFICENT" ??

Well, actually it is not... but it should be.  It is unfortunate that I am not able to share photos of this place at this time.  I am trekking and therefore cannot afford the weight my computer would add to my pack.  So... I will use "theatre of the mind", as we call it in radio, to recreate the images and experience for you:

Imagine the crackle of lightning, followed by the big boom of thunder.  Picture a block of ice the size and shape of a massive church steeple toppling over into the lake, its ripple flipping the ice floating in its wake.  The cracking and moaning of the glacier is as surreal as its very visible blue glow.  This is Perito Moreno Glacier in Patagonia, near El Calafate, Argentina, in “Parque Nacional de Los Glaciares”.  Today I trekked about 2 kilometers on the glacier.  From the boat that transported us there, and the stairs/balconies across the lake, I saw stunning images of this massive earthly creation.  It is one of the only glaciers in the world that is actually growing.  Although in the summertime (which is now, here in the Southern hemisphere) it is melting by the minute, that glacial melt only strengthens the base which is attached to the rock below.  I was told that the snow we were trekking on today is 300 years old. And that in the winter there will be an additional vertical kilometer of snow/ice in the exact location where we stood.  Truly incomprehensible!!  From far away it looks hard and solid, but as I walked on it today, my crampons digging into its surface, it was like walking through a huge ice chest.  Watching some guys scaling the glacier with pick-axes and security ropes, I was tempted to take my ice trekking to the next level. But I'll save that challenge for next time.  Tomorrow I leave for Chalten, which is located on the southern end of the same national park and the base from which to hike the peaks of Fitzroy and Torre.  These trails are well-marked and doable on your own.  As this is “high season”, I expect never to be alone for very long. After Chalten I will return to El Calafate en route to Torres Del Paine National Park for a 5-day trek. For now I am planning to spend each night in a “refugio” along the trail (basically, a cabin with bunk beds and a kitchen).  It's crazy because, where I was today is just 30 kilometers “as the crow flies” from Torres del Paine, but the mountains and glaciers make it a 3 ½ hour round-a-bout bus ride. I am excited about TDP, considered by many to be the best trekking in the world.  Only the weight of my day pack (carrying my shell/coat, camera, water, sleeping bag, food, garbage and as little else as possible) concerns me, as I will carry it as I hike 5-10 hours each day.

Reflecting on the trekking that I have done and am planning to do, it occurs to me that I thrive on a variety of things when I travel. No doubt the cultural immersion is what gets me going and brings me back... but it's also the thrill of facing and overcoming challenges!  Be it scaling a mountain or finding/communicating my way through a foreign city, I love the anticipation that morphs into nervous energy, definitive choices and eventually... accomplishment. It's a sense of fulfillment that is hard to describe, or replicate. 

I expect to be off the grid for the next week or so, but will return with stories and photos to share.   Cheers!