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Author Topic: Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text  (Read 3341 times)

leeonmaui

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Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text
« on: April 30, 2013, 10:46:24 pm »

Aloha,

After years of wanting, and months of planning, after 37 hours of taxis, planes, airport lounges and buses; I am alone in the dark and rain at the trail head that leads from El Pilar to Poincenot camp, the shorter and supposedly better way into into Fitz Roy valley if your carrying in a load. Its about a 4 mile hike, with an elevation gain of 1200 ft. Normally this hike would be a breeze for me, today it will be a 5 hour test of will, as I am carrying in all my supplies for a 9 day stay at poincenot base camp in Fitz Roy valley Argentina. At home I stopped weighing my pack at 90 lbs, my best guess is it tipped the scale at a little over 100 lbs.

There are many ways to get down to Calafete, Argentina the last airport en route to the Argentinian side of Patagonia. Be prepared to have delays, miss flights and take things in stride, keeping your itinerary a little flexible and open makes sense, if you have a bit more time, a couple of days in Buenos Aires might be enjoyable as well. If you plan your flights from Buenos Airies to Calafete too closely, you might not make it, as many of the flights leave from a completely different national airport and clearing in, getting your bags and transiting to the national airport will take at least 3 hours, and that's if it goes smoothly. From Calafete, there are many buses or shuttles to El Chalten; a very nice little village, with accommodations ranging from budget hostels to very nice luxury hotels. Anything you need is there, from mountaineering and camping gear, either to rent or buy, guides, tours, or supplies can be found in El Chalten. It is billed as; the trekking capital of Patagonia, and its a title which can be worn reasonably well. The people seems fairly friendly and helpful. All in all El Chalten is surprisingly prepared to assist you with anything you need (except camera gear!), and I can say well done Argentina! And a big thanks for your apparent warmth and hospitality!

I left my Pack by the closed for the season Hostel of El Pilar and sorted out the trail, I was not keen on false starts carrying the beast of a pack. Its April 6th, the start of what I hope is peak fall colors, it's 35 degrees, and blowing about 10-15 kts with on and off again light rain. Having sorted out the main trail, I shouldered my gear and headed in.

Patagoina is vast. I always feel I am better off finding an area of interest and working from that area. Getting some quality time in one area rather than constantly moving from place to place, seems to get me more of what I want; which is making pictures and less of what I don't want which is planes roads, hotels and time wasted in transit. A bit of research will reveal great locations in both Chile and Argentina, but to To me Fitz Roy valley located in the vast Los Glaciers national park Offered nearly everything I wanted within a reasonable distance. I felt I could get the lay of the land fairly quickly and get an idea of promising locations that could be reached easily from the base camp at Poincenot. You could just as easily stay in El Chalten and do day hikes into the valley, Its relatively quick and easy to get up to some nice morning locations from El Chalten, especially in the fall when the light does not kick off until after 8 AM - The trail in from El Chalten is easy but its no joke, your going to go from 1200 feet elevation to 2400 feet of elevation in pretty short order, do some conditioning before you come here, you'll be glad you did. The trails are pretty well defined and easy to follow even at night with a headlight. There are no dangerous mammals to contend with nor snakes. In summer the wind is an issue, less so I found in fall. Although one frigid night my thermometer sat at -10 degrees, the weather was a mild mixed bag of rain, overcast, sunshine, light snow and torrential downpours. I hoped to get a couple of days with good light, but honestly I found with the exception of one day, of fairly constant rain, any light is worth shooting in in the valley, its that good! I did get a couple of days with excellent light, its definitely better in the morning, with pretty typical cloud cover moving in in the late afternoon, or just the opposite! LOL
I was after mainly fall colors and snow covered peaks ablaze with light. But the area is much more than that, there are a number of Glaciers and ice fields within a short hike, guides can also get you further up in the mountains, there are a good number of small lakes and a few pretty big ones close by.
The fall colors are pretty awesome, I guess I missed peak by a few days, but that's a bit tough to call, as it varies from season to season. I was there from April 6th till The 16th, and I noticed a continual progression to better color nearly every day, my guess is the colors peaked in the week after I left.
Which is inspiring to imagine as it was gorgeous when I was there.

Moving at a snails pace up the trail from El Pilar into the valley through the fairly dense Lenga forest, I gained altitude one slow step at a time, pre-dawn light began to illuminate the trail a little, I was not even close to where I wanted to be and I knew that if it came; I would miss the legendary morning show of Fitz Roy ablaze in the morning light.

 At a tad over 11,000 feet Fitz Roy peak and its lesser neighbors tower over the valley catching the morning light well before the valley floor. This is the big show, and the yearned for Iconic shot. I suspect it pays to be completely self sufficient with your camera gear, I saw no indications of any outlet for photographic equipment in El Chalten, with the exception of memory cards. Bring all your lenses if you can, there is lots to shoot at any focal length, I shoot with primes, but a guess a few nice zooms would be handy, if you are so inclined to use them. If you like natural macro work, you'll be in heaven! wide angle heaven again! I use circular polarizing filters on all my lenses and these served me well yet again. I use grads as well, they can come in very handy down here, lots big dynamic range to contend with at times. Bring lots of batteries and film/cards, you'll probably shoot more here then normally as the opportunities are everywhere. A Back up system, certainly worth considering given the effort needed to get down here. A sturdy tripod is a must of course, if your gear is sensitive to cold or moisture you might have issues here. Plan for crap weather and hope for the best, wool base layers, good solid boots, and a hard shell outer are really mandatory, for extended stays. Hiking up into the further reaches will get you out of the tree line and can put you into some pretty serious weather in no time.
Day hikes from El Chalten will require lighter gear, and less preparation, for sure and there is something to be said for that as well. There is also something to be said for ending the day at La Tapera restaurant in El Chalten, (which I would highly recommend, I can say I had one of the finest meals of my life there!) and sleeping soundly in a warm bed, and getting up and going back in to the valley early the next day...

Three hours shy of my destination, light curled over the horizon and blasted the now clearing skies, the kaleidoscope of colors was painful to watch as I could make nothing of it, being nowhere near anything to shoot, I consoled myself with the thought, If its that good once, today, it will come again when I'm ready. Slightly before noon I arrived set up my tent and camp, and  collapsed on my sleeping pad, knowing after a little rest, I would be ready to truly start my adventure!

Poincenot Base camp sits up against the true peaks of the valley, its free, its safe and its out of the wind, in fall it was never too densely populated and
few nights I had it completely to myself. It's a nice location to work from. Camping is allowed, as well in a couple of other locations around the valley.
Fresh clean water is a few steps away and is perfectly safe to drink, unfiltered right from the stream. It is somewhat protected from the elements, at night on a few occasions the wind would roar through the trees above my tent  with such force and density it was a little hard to believe my tent would not be swept away by the giant winds; sounding like giant semi-trucks moving down a rain soaked road at high speed, a singular sound to be sure, and my tent would do little more than breath slightly in and out with each passing.

In my humble opinion, Fitz Roy Valley is one of the finest and most diverse areas for photography I have ever seen, I was amazed, inspired and humbled by the grandeur and  beauty of it. As I sit and wait for my proofs from the lab to come back, and reflect I'll just say; hell yes, I will go back!
« Last Edit: May 01, 2013, 06:22:33 pm by leeonmaui »
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Praki

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Re: Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text
« Reply #1 on: May 01, 2013, 08:23:26 am »

Outstanding images and text to accompany them. Perhaps they are posted in the wrong location? Surely more people would have commented on the images.  These images need to be seen by more people. Was there a reason that you went by yourself and not on an organized tour for photographers? From your description the trip looks both arduous and a bit dangerous. I really enjoyed the images and description. Thanks.
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leeonmaui

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Re: Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text
« Reply #2 on: May 01, 2013, 05:37:18 pm »

Aloha,

Thank you for your kind words.

Los Glaciers National Park, is a national park, although I guess there is some chance of a mishap, the danger level in the valley is very low, if you are prepared. There are pumas around but, the chances of a negative encounter with one are slim to none, unless you are a rabbit, Axis deer or field mouse.
The Glaciers can be extremely dangerous to be sure, and proper experience, equipment or a guide to help you is highly recommended, and even required in some parts of the park. you can hike in and leave the park boundaries, where the topography becomes much more rugged, and you and/or your companions will be much more dependent on yourselves. Some of the river crossings are not to be taken lightly as the water is very very cold, the current swift, and the bottom rocky. But really I felt completely safe the entire trip. My big concern was theft, and I neither had any problems nor heard of any problems from other people, I left very valuable gear in my tent and had no issues.

There is of course the aspect of Arduousness to be considered, the effort and expense, the physical will and ability needed for the undertaking, all this should be considered. Its good to know your limits and boundaries, its great to step out of them or surpass them as well. The cold and adverse weather can play on your enthusiasm, but bending your resolve around this only heightens your sense of purpose and determination and makes each step on the way to your goals that much more enjoyable. Hey- if it was easy you would see kids out wandering the trails, oh wait I did see kids out there! :-)

"The Masi do not fear the lions, it is the lions that fear the Masai"- Masai Proverb
"I do not fear the canvas, the canvas is afraid of me!"- Salvidor Dali

I have never gone on a photographic tour, and can't imagine doing so. I much prefer to be  on my own schedule, engulfed in the environment and my own thoughts. I imagine it would be torture for anybody that would go with me as well. I am prone to stubborn habits of waiting out the light, (which 99 times out of a 100 is pure folly!) and just hunkering down and watching the day unfold at a location. If I am quiet enough and still enough, nature will forget me there or at least ignore me, and go on about its day. For me the creative endeavor is a solitary and very personal process.
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dreed

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Re: Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text
« Reply #3 on: May 11, 2013, 08:16:43 am »

Patagonia seems to have a lot of potential, between places like this and those over the border in Chile (I've been looking at "Torres del Paine.")

What is like for someone that doesn't speak the local language?
Or to be more precise, if you only speak English is it tourist friendly?

Is it easy to hire a car and get around by car?
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leeonmaui

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Re: Patagonia, Fitz Roy Valley- The way in, text
« Reply #4 on: May 11, 2013, 05:06:13 pm »

Aloha,

I did a lot of research prior to choosing Fitz Roy valley.

I to was thinking of hiring a car, seems like it would be no problem, but; crossing the boarder between Argentina and chile requires your rental company to do extra paperwork, look into it very thoroughly, and double check and follow through on the paperwork needed, get full max total insurance that cover freaking everything. Roads I saw seemed pretty nice.

From everything I gathered; Chile is more expensive and the distances are greater on hikes.
While camping in Poincenot base camp I talked to a number of people who were blown away by Fitz Roy valley, compared to Torres.
I'm sure there is something to be said for both places, and its also depends on time....

I think you would be fine not speaking Spanish, mine is pretty limited and it was never that big a problem.
Everybody I met was wonderful and really seemed please to help however they could, very warm and friendly.

El chalten is first rate!!!! and getting better, the are building out some really nice infrastructure! and with the exception of camera gear, you can buy or rent anything you need or get a very wide variety tours. food is yummy as well! easy day hikes into the most amazing landscapes!

Don't worry, wherever you go down there you won't regret it or be disappointed, just go! :-)
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