Head in the clouds (2)

Hola chicos!

We're back in El Calafate now after our hiking trip to the El Chalten region. We did two 6 hour hikes through beautiful countryside, although unfortunately it was a bit cloudy so we didn't have clear views of the top of the mountains, which was a shame as they are pretty spectacular. Luckily we managed to get a peek at them when we first arrived in town, so at least could picture what we were missing!

Our trip to the Perito Moreno glacier on Monday was one of the highlights of our trip so far. It was a lovely sunny day and the glacier was beautiful, and every now and then huge (house-sized) chunks of it would break off and crash into the lake below. It made a continuous creaking and groaning sound, and was one of the most amazing sights we've ever seen. Gorgeous.

We head off on the bus to Puerto Natales in Chile tomorrow morning. The main reason for going down there is to visit the Torres Del Paine national park. The most popular trek in the park is the 5 day "W" route, although looking at the weather forecast we probably won't attempt all of it. The forecast for the next 5 days down there is rain, rain, rain, rain and rain, so maybe a day of two hiking will be enough for us! Hopefully the weather won't be so bad that it obscures the views of the Torres themselves.

We're really enjoying South America now that we've got into the swing of things. Argentina is very traveller-friendly, and a lot more people speak English here, although we (ie June) are persevering with our Spanish. We're meeting lots of fellow travellers with hints and tips of what to do. Pretty much everyone we speak to gushes about Buenos Aires, so we're really looking forward to going there. Whether we go straight there from Puerto Natales or go to the far south of Argentina first (to the Tierra del Fuego) is up for debate at the moment.

Still no photos for you to look at, as the internet is woefully slow here. Hopefully it will be better in Puerto Natales.

Hasta la vista!