What a hike -- 5 days and about 70km in the mountains with a tent, sleeping bag, food etc... I have not done anything like this in years -- maybe never (most of my camping has been either in one site with day hikes or using a canoe) -- but it was fun. Great people, beautiful place, and no lack of strange things to make us laugh. I did the ´W´ backwards -- the better way.The first day is is a trek up the west side of the W to the Grey Glacier. The Grey is smaller than the Moreno, but it is still very impressive, and we camped near it, so we got to see it at sunset, and to listen to it as we went to sleep. This first hike started after a 30 minute boat ride at about 12:30 and took about 5 hours total, including side trips to see the glacier and photo/snack stops.
The second day we got up early because there was a lot of hiking to do. We had to hike back down to where we had started the first day and then hike for 2 more hours across to the next camp and the bottom of the middle line of the W, called Valley Frances. In the early morning there were some amazing sights as the sun crested the mountain peaks.
This day was made more interesting when Sally and I stoped at the guards hut to use the bathroom (it was closer than the refugio). We asked if there were bathrooms, and went to the bathroom. By the time Sally got out of the bathroom the guards had placed 2 plates, cups and forks on the table for us and ´invited´ us to lunch. Which was very fun -- and was much better than our cup-a-soup. They then told us that their boss had left the day before, so we sohuld stay and party with them that night. They even promised us massages and to carry our packs the next day if we stayed. Alas, there was a lot of hiking left and so we did leave their entertaining company and complete that day´s journey. As we arrived at the camp (campo italiano) we came across this reassuring sign and bridge.
The 3rd day is spent going up the middle line of the W, which is a very beautiful valley, but really hard on the knees, so I didn´t go all the way up. Instead I took it easy that day (1 hour up only), since there were still 2 more hours of hiking to the next campsite with the big bag. The valley was also our first experience with the amazingly strong winds in the park. They can literally pick people up off their feet.
The 4th day is the hardest hike to the base of the Torres; the 3 towers that the park is famous for. We hiked for aout 6-7 hours, the 2nd half of which was uphill, the 1st half varied. We had to cross a crazy river, that had no bridge -- even though many piddly rivers had bridges (some of which sould barely be called bridges). The views in the park were spectacular as always, especially with the fall colours.
The 4th day ended with a scramble up to see the towers. Now it is important to note that it is always a scramble up to see these, but it is much more so if you don´t follow the path. All paths in the park are marked with red spray paint in lines or dots or arrows on trees or rocks. This system works rather well, and most of the time is very easy to follow (especially since most of the paths are simply the line of trampled earth. However in the rocks you really have to look for the dots -- and we didn´t. We simply looked up -- we knew the look out was above us -- so we went up the ´hill´. The only problem here is that the ´hill´was more like a giant rock pile in which only the largest rocks were secure, which led to many small rock slides, and a scary climb. When we got to the top we realized that we were in the wrong place -- we knew the climb should not have been that hard. However the view from there was amazing. We slid down to the correct viewpoint and followed the dots down :)
The second day we got up early because there was a lot of hiking to do. We had to hike back down to where we had started the first day and then hike for 2 more hours across to the next camp and the bottom of the middle line of the W, called Valley Frances. In the early morning there were some amazing sights as the sun crested the mountain peaks.
This day was made more interesting when Sally and I stoped at the guards hut to use the bathroom (it was closer than the refugio). We asked if there were bathrooms, and went to the bathroom. By the time Sally got out of the bathroom the guards had placed 2 plates, cups and forks on the table for us and ´invited´ us to lunch. Which was very fun -- and was much better than our cup-a-soup. They then told us that their boss had left the day before, so we sohuld stay and party with them that night. They even promised us massages and to carry our packs the next day if we stayed. Alas, there was a lot of hiking left and so we did leave their entertaining company and complete that day´s journey. As we arrived at the camp (campo italiano) we came across this reassuring sign and bridge.
The 3rd day is spent going up the middle line of the W, which is a very beautiful valley, but really hard on the knees, so I didn´t go all the way up. Instead I took it easy that day (1 hour up only), since there were still 2 more hours of hiking to the next campsite with the big bag. The valley was also our first experience with the amazingly strong winds in the park. They can literally pick people up off their feet.
The 4th day is the hardest hike to the base of the Torres; the 3 towers that the park is famous for. We hiked for aout 6-7 hours, the 2nd half of which was uphill, the 1st half varied. We had to cross a crazy river, that had no bridge -- even though many piddly rivers had bridges (some of which sould barely be called bridges). The views in the park were spectacular as always, especially with the fall colours.
The 4th day ended with a scramble up to see the towers. Now it is important to note that it is always a scramble up to see these, but it is much more so if you don´t follow the path. All paths in the park are marked with red spray paint in lines or dots or arrows on trees or rocks. This system works rather well, and most of the time is very easy to follow (especially since most of the paths are simply the line of trampled earth. However in the rocks you really have to look for the dots -- and we didn´t. We simply looked up -- we knew the look out was above us -- so we went up the ´hill´. The only problem here is that the ´hill´was more like a giant rock pile in which only the largest rocks were secure, which led to many small rock slides, and a scary climb. When we got to the top we realized that we were in the wrong place -- we knew the climb should not have been that hard. However the view from there was amazing. We slid down to the correct viewpoint and followed the dots down :)
The last day was a fairly quick and easy hike down, followed by all of us who met on the trails getting together for a good feed in town mmmmm steak and salmon.
This is Lake Argentina, the biggest in Argentina, it is attached to the glacier, so there are little icebergs floating in it that look like ice cubes :)
At the glacier we went on a hike to get close and watch it. Then we went on a boat tour and finally we went to the observation platforms. The Moreno Glacier is the only one in the world (take this statement with a grain of salt -- as it is a claim made by a tour guide -- and those are not always true) that is neither growing nor shrinking. It loses as much ice as it adds each year on average. It is quite impressive. It looks blueish, especially in areas that have newly broken off because of all the minerals that are trapped in the ice. After a chunk breaks off the oxygen in the aire oxidizes the minerals and the glacier looks whiter. The lines of dirt are from blowing dust and dirt from the mountains.
Next are pics from our hike up to the glacier. Sally and I are together in and Lu is petting the Saint Bernard. 
Ushuaia was a great place to relax. We ate lamb 4 nights of 5 and it was delicious! They are well know for their lamb in this part of the world, and for good reason. 
I am staying in possibly the best hostel I have been in yet. It is really nice. There is a large kitchen, with 2 stoves, 2 big sinks, 3 friges and tons of space, the bedrooms are comfy -- I even have a big bed in my dorm and there are down duvets on the beds! On top of that there is a clibing wall, internet, ping pong and all sorts of other stuff.
The people are also great. We have been having lots of bbq´s and just generally having fun hanging out. This has been a very relaxing stop on my journey -- which I think I needed. They also have a dog that reminds me a lot of muffin -- except black. She had five pups, but only 2 were left when I got there and by the time I left all of them had been given away.
Bruno (Brazilian) has a friend who asked him to bring back a llama from his travels. He was going to get a toy when he found this llama fetus -- so he got that instead-- bit gross. You can also see Sally and Indra admiring the fetus.
It hasn´t all been relaxing doing nothing of course -- I have done a couple of day hikes. On Saturday I hiked a small mountain called Cerro Campinario with Hailey (Aussie). It was an easy 30 minutes up and then we caught the chair lift down. At the top I got to see a monkey puzzle tree -- they are cool looking.
Then from the bottom we walked for about 2 hours to come to Colonia Suzia. It was once a Swiss colony in Argentina; now it is a tourist attraction. The views that day were beautiful and we had a great time.
Today, Tuesday, Sally and I got up early (9:30 am) and headed out to a chairlift that is on the edge of town. 
The view over the lake from the top is excellent, and then you get to slide down the mountain on sleds, in a concrete slide -- good fun.
From there we went to the best chocolate shop in town and indulged in a couple of pieces, mmmmm. (Life here in really hard)
