Patagonia in March

[chicken]

Hi there,

I'm thrilled to spend 4 weeks in Patagonia, starting on the 2nd week of March.

I love traveling off the beaten track and the vast expanse of Patagonia should offer plenty of that. However, browsing the travel guides and coffee table books I found very little information about scenic locations outside the usual suspects (Torres del Paine, Perito Moreno Glacier, Mount Fitzroy, Lake District). "Boring" to "impressively empty" is about all information you get about the landscape inbetween the main sights.  

Do you have some suggestions for the casual landscape photographer?

Starting in Trelew, Argentina, the current plan is to make a swift drive down the east coast, probably all the way south including Tierra del Fuego, and then strolling up along the Andes. We will drive a high clearance pickup camper, so remoteness is not an obstacle.

Thanks in advance for all your ideas.

regards
Adrian

[nathanm]

Here are some suggestions.

There is a good dinosaur museum in or near Trelew

Peninsula Valdez is a terrific wildlife place.  In March you should be able to see an amazing specticle - orca (killer whales) will beach themselves to drag seal pups away.  I have not photographed it myself (wrong time of year) but have seen it in nature documentaries.    There are also penguins and the seal colonies themselves.

Lake district is very pretty alpine lakes and mountains.   The areas near Bariloche are  not as dramatic as other areas.   Your profile says that you are from Switzerland - so you have some similar areas close to you.   So much so that you may want to spend less time in that area.  

Los Alceres national park has some amazing trees and landscapes.

Chalten is near Mount Fitzroy, which is often obscured by clouds but is well worth seeing (along with surrounding mountains).

Perito Moreno glacier is a great glacier.   There are also backcountry hikes in that area that are very nice.

Torres del Paine is my favorite place in the whole area - it is just incredible.  There is great wildlife as well as great landscape.  The weather can be challenging so spend enough time that you can get what you want.

Chile has some incredible scenery in the fiord area - starting at Puerto Natales, Bernardo O'Higgins National Park and going up the coast to the island of Chiloe.   However it is not that easy to visit - only a few places you can access by boat.

The mountains in Chile are also pretty amazing and there are a bunch of national parks Conguillio, Alcere Andino, Nahuelbuta.  In general they are not very well developed for tourism, and I have not been to them.

[chicken]

Thanks for your inputs.

We planned to visit Peninsula Valdez (especially as it's just around the corner from Trelew). Would be spectacular to observe Orcas from the sea-shore.

regards
Adrian

[Sune Wendelboe]

Hi.

I was there in April 2006. The road between Torres del Paine and Perito Moreno is EXTREMELY empty, vast expanses og rolling plains, but that does yield some photos though.

But the road from Torres del Paine to Punta Arenas is something else. Winding through the mountains continuing through the low forest. The most magical scene I've seen for many years was when I stopped my car at a blue autumn lake among yelow/red/green low moss over grown trees. Streching my legs trying to see the photo - two bright green parrots flew by very close. I was wearing gloves and feeling the crisp autumn air in my lungs and I started to realize how different yet similar this world was from the Northern Europe I know so well.

Pink flamingos in the blue lake, true autumn woods around, parrots?, spider webs and dew. vast expanses and plants were familiar but still essentially different from all I've seen before. Drove to the beach and found the smell to be the same familiar tempered zone ocean smell as in Denmark, but the shells, the kelp, the grass, the gulls were all different..

It's a parallel universe to the northern hemisphere seperated from us by the huge tropical region.

I can recommend doing that strech of road very slowly, I'd like to move there, so  much nature, so deserted and peacefull.

A bit like Alaska, but soo different.

Sincerely
Sune Wendelboe
www.globalphotographic.net

[chicken]

Hi Sune,

Thanks for your firsthand report. Your gallery surely has some great shots from your trip to Patagonia.

I find your comparison with northern hemisphere landscapes very helpful (and intriguing).

Now I only need someone reporting from the blind spot between Mount Fitzroy and Bariloche. :-)

regards
Adrian

[neilsutherland]

Hi Sune,

Thanks for your firsthand report. Your gallery surely has some great shots from your trip to Patagonia.

I find your comparison with northern hemisphere landscapes very helpful (and intriguing).

Now I only need someone reporting from the blind spot between Mount Fitzroy and Bariloche. :-)

regards
Adrian
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=100458\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Adrian

There are not many tourist destinations on this stretch until you reach the area round Esquel, which is well worth spending some time in and around. However before you reach there, and if you have time, you might want to take a little known detour into Chile, by taking the Paso de Roballos through to Cochrane. You take a side road a few miles north of Bajo Caracoles (very expensive fuel and a bit of a dump.) From Cochrane, you can take a very spectacular road north to Coyhaique and then back into Argentina. Hard work on poor roads but a great trip if you have a good vehicle. Photo opportunities are where you find them, and the weather can be a bit variable. Expect some snow in March.

Have a great trip - it make Europe feel very small.

Regards

Neil

[sergio]

Mt. Fitz Roy is must. But be prepared for very long hikes.

[chicken]

Thanks Neil, that gives me a few more ideas (and I start doubting that 4 weeks is enough to seriously explore all the corners   ).

regards
Adrian

[Mort54]

Sune Wendelboe
www.globalphotographic.net
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=100227\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Hi Sune. You have some wonderful landscapes on your site. I noticed that you use SmugMug for customer print order fullfillment. How do you like their prints and service? Are your customers generally happy with the prints they get? And how difficult is it to get correct color and exposure in the prints (I use a color managed work flow, but some print places are better than others)? I've been considering using them in the same way you are, and have posted on varioius forums seeking feedback on their service.

Thanks,
Hans.

P.S. I'm heading to Torres del Paine next February and loved your shots from the area.

[Davidlu]

If it helps: You can visit my homepage for some photos i've taken at the patagonian Rregion..
just herej ...

[chicken]

Back from Patagonia and already longing for going back... thanks for all your helpful inputs. Besides the usual suspects (Torres del Paine, Perito Moreno Glacier, Mt. Fitz Roy and Cerro Torre) I really enjoyed exploring the steppe/badlands landscapes inbetween the major sights. I also can HIGHLY recommend the remote Perito Moreno National Park, Ruta 40 and Carretera Austral.

What completely surprised me was the steppe covering the eastern 2/3rds of Patagonia. In many places it resembles south-eastern Oregon / northern Nevada, only that it's vaster and even less populated. The image below is from the Bosque Petrificado José Ormaechea near Sarmiento, a provincal park in the middle of nowhere.



regards
Adrian