My second day in El Calafate I went and saw the main attraction.

Perito Moreno is the most famous glacier in Argentina; not because it is the largest but it is definitely photogenic. Named for the explore who claimed it for Argentina during a particular border dispute with Chile it is at the western end of the purposefully named Lago Argentino. It is a stable glacier, which means that it is not growing but it continues to sustain itself.

My excursion first took us to balconies that have been built into the cliffs on the other side of the lake. They offer great views and photo ops of the glacier. The morning was clear and it was very easy to see and hear when bits of ice fell off the glacier into the lake.

We then crossed the lake in a boat and hiked up the mountain that runs parallel to the glacier. Once we reached the level next to the middle plane of the glacier we put on crampons and walked out onto the ice.

The guides walked us around and explained different fractures in the ice and what causes them. The topography of the glacier changes wildly from area to area and some of that is caused by changes in the ground underneath.

For instance, about half way across the glacier towards the Chilean side sharp peaks have formed that make it difficult to cross. The part we walked on was a relatively level plain.

Different cracks in the ice yield different results: some fill with water more quickly than others, some have waterfalls and rivers running through them until the caverns below fill up.

The guide told us that the crevices with water were safer to be around than the ones without, because at least if one of us were to fall in the water we wouldn’t plunge down 20-40 meters and break a leg. We’d fall into a pool of arctic water and be easier to fish out.

What amazed me most was how many shades of blue existed within each crevice. Naturally, the deeper the crevice the deeper the blue.

We made it roughly to the middle of the glacier before stopping for lunch. After a few more hours on the ice we walked back to begin our hike down the mountain.

In a matter of minutes we went through snow, rain, and sweltering heat. On the boat ride back we were greeted with tumblers of whiskey and ice from the glacier. Needless to say no one was awake for the bus ride back.