Patagonia log: the final days
February, 2023
With the motto better late than never, five months after our trip to Patagonia, I finally got to work on the last few missing logs and comprised them all in one.
Day 7
Our stay in Puerto Natales was short, definitely, a place I’ll want to go back to explore more (perhaps not Puerto Natales itself, since it is a tiny city - but the “end of the world route” for sure - so much to see, so much to explore). We had breakfast at the Hotel and packed our things to drive back to Argentina, this time with El Calafate as our destination. Before leaving Puerto Natales, we quickly stopped to enjoy the breeze and sun by the water. We petted the local dogs, took some pictures, enjoyed the wind, all in an up-vibe mood and took off north.
The car ride was relatively short (especially compared to the stretches we've done so far). We arrived in El Calafate right on time for lunch. We had lunch at a restaurant and some ice cream at the Acuarela (I didn't know yet that this was the place we would return to a few times. It was also where I first heard that Calafate is a fruit similar to blueberry - here they do jams, ice creams and other products with it), and we went to our home for the next three nights - Austral Suites. The afternoon and evening were focused on editing together, sharing knowledge and relaxing.
Day 8
We could feel the trip was slowly coming to an end. But not quite yet. Today was our last photographic outing, visiting one of the region's highlights - the worldwide known glacier Perito Moreno - "one of only three glaciers in the world that grows rather than retreats".
"At over 3 miles (5 km) in width, the glacier boasts not only an impressive height of 240 feet (about 74 meters) above the surface of Lago Argentino (Argentino Lake) but also reaches a total depth of 170 meters (558 feet) below the water's surface... The glacier covers an area of 97 square miles (250 sq. km) across a 19-mile stretch (30 km) of vast expanse, with the greatest depth measured at 2,297 feet (700 meters)." (Leon, 2015)
After a good breakfast, we got the cars and drove to the Perito Moreno National Park. We planned to first stroll around the platform with a prestigious view of the glacier and then head to our booked tour of the mini trekking in the ice.
After a lovely drive through the national park, we got to the parking to visit the platform. We were not alone. As it is a place easily accessible with an inviting infrastructure and well known worldwide, we were confronted with many others wanting to see the big ice. Despite the crowd, we stuck together and focused on the photographic perspective of the visit.
I do not yet own a telephoto lens, but I wanted to explore the formations with a close-up. Ricardo, who had visited the glacier a few times before, was very kind to offer his stunning 200-600mm on the platform for that period. What a difference it made. It allowed me to explore the ice more in-depth and see formations and patterns differently than just looking at it with the naked eye. I lost myself in it - finding frames and perspectives to admire. I forgot the world around me and could have stayed hours observing that beauty.
I don't remember how long we wandered around the platform (my admiration was such that I lost track of time), but eventually, we had to rush not to miss our minitrekking appointment with Hielo y Aventura.
We headed to the meeting point location and took the boat that navigates through the glacier lake until arriving at the ice's edge. The local guides fixed the crampons on our shoes and helmets on our heads, and we headed to the quick exploration of the big white (with blue stripes) a little closer. To a certain extent, it felt like walking on the moon (not that I've done it before, but I imagine it could resemble it). A classic whisky (or water for the non-alcoholics) on the (glacier) rocks is served at the end of the roundabout.
It was a more touristy outing but still fun and a must-see in the region. It also gave us a good opportunity for photographic exploration.
It makes us reflect and contemplate how small we are in the spectrum of the planet Earth. We are sand grains in the complex ecosystem we live in. It reminds us that our non-sustainable social behaviour is not destroying the environment but our own race. With its synched perfection, nature will always recover once we stop disordering the natural system. It always has, and it always will.
Day 9
The last full day of the trip has arrived. We've seen all the photographic highlights of the trip. We've experienced the sunrises and sunsets, the mountains and the roads of this stunning region. Today the day was the beginning of closure. No major outing was on the itinerary, but instead, focusing on processing the hundreds and thousands of images we had taken during the past few days. We've done so much that it felt like we were months travelling. So much to soak in.
Leo and Ricardo presented how they approach brands, craft pitches and essential factors to consider while positioning oneself. They then took the time to support us with the editing; they shared their creative process (which was interesting to see how different each one works) and emphasised the importance of getting in the right mindset, visualising the image, and skillfully editing it.
We took a break during lunchtime and visited a cute place with vegan crepes. While enjoying our food, we also immersed ourselves in a game called Spy, where we're all detectives trying to discover who is the spy among us—a fun afternoon.
As a dessert, we treated ourselves to ice cream and chocolate at the best place in town before making our way for a refreshing dip in the freezing waters of El Calafate's lake. Although it was chilly, it felt invigorating. Half of the crew dared, and the other observed.
We returned to the Suites to warm up with a shower and got ready before heading out to dinner for our final night together. By now, it felt like we were a big family. It felt like a safe environment; we developed a fun group dynamic with internal jokes, sharing stories and moments of the trip—one that will surely be in our top experiences, those moments that will never be forgotten.
As the day came to a close, we bid farewell to Renata, the first member of our group to leave. It was a bittersweet moment as it marked the slow disintegration of our close-knit group. Despite knowing that our time together was ending, we cherished the memories made during this memorable journey.
The following morning it was time for Thiago's farewell. And just like that, one by one, our group disintegrated while each returned to their personal lives. Back to where we came from, but not as the individuals we met on the first day.
On our last day together, these were the words that summarised the experience as a whole:
A trip of 10 days with 11 people you do not know to a place you haven't visited before - an out of my comfort zone for someone who has spent the last 2,5 years travelling and photographing alone. But a thought that felt right as soon as I saw the announcement of the workshop organised by Ricardo and Leo.
Today is the last day of the trip, and these 11 strangers became friends, like a family with whom I shared unique moments that cannot even be described in words, in a place that became a giant playground for us all.
Creating images and stories and exchanging knowledge on so many levels. Scenarios and photographs I hadn't yet tried before.
It has been a trip that has marked a milestone, where I learned, stayed in awe of nature, and got inspired by the creation process, knowledge and living experiences of others—an environment where each one contributed uniquely.
And to finalize it with a golden touch, Tiago and Ricardo summarized it all in a neat video: