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Patagonia is one of the most beautiful destinations for those like me who love landscapes, infinite skies and nature. Patagonia seen in the autumn is a spectacle of colors, this is probably the best time to visit it. I decide that the next destination is just a photographic trip to Patagonia.
After the excellent experience in New Zealand I decide to take a photographic journey again. The type of photographic journey I made in New Zealand is very interesting and I liked it very much, so I want to repeat the experience in another part of the world.
In this type of travel the participants are 6, 8 or at most 10 people. The trip is specially designed to see the places we visit in the best light conditions and we can afford to wait in admiration of these unique landscapes even for hours waiting for the best light. As you will understand, this way of traveling is very different from hit and run tours with dozens of people who today make up a large part of the tourist offer. Once I tried it, I immediately fell in love with this travel philosophy.
The group is made up of about ten people and therefore we have two professional photographers who accompany us. Our two photographic tutors (Andrea and Fortunato), true experts of the destination, made us admire every aspect of Patagonia in autumn. Spectacular sunrises in front of the Cuernos del Paine and in front of Monte Fitz Roy from the Capri Lagoon. But with the great variability of the climate in this part of the world, every moment of the day can offer incredible lights and amazing shows!
THE ITINERARY
The trip took place in the first half of April. The weather we had was good. Sometimes it rained, but never more than a few tens of minutes. The wind, which is usually incessant during the summer, is much less powerful and present in autumn. The skies for the photos were many.
My photographic trip to Patagonia started from the Chilean city of Punta Arenas where we arrived after a stopover with plane change in Santiago de Chile (NB: at Santiago airport you have to collect your luggage and check in again for the internal flight to Punta Arenas). The two professional photographers who accompanied us throughout the trip were waiting for us at Punta Arenas airport. Once the luggage was loaded on the two off-road vehicles we left for Puerto Natales where we spent the first night.
TORRES DEL PAINE
The trip is well structured with excellent times to visit the wonders of this spectacular part of Patagonia. We spend the first four nights in the Torres del Paine National Park.
We visit the Salto Grande, a beautiful waterfall, and walk the path up to the Mirador Cuernos and the Nordernskjold lake. Then we dedicate a sunset to Lake Gray along the path up to Mirador of the Lake Gray.
We make a spectacular sunrise on the small island where the Pehoe Restaurant / Hosteria is located. Another less fortunate sunrise is near the Explora Lodge and Salto Chico. We photograph the guanacos with the rainbow behind them along the road to the Puente Laguna Amarga, shortly after the Laguna Larga. Once in Puente Laguna Amarga we admire the Torres del Paine. We watch a sunset from a panoramic point above the Rio Serrano.
MONUNT FITZROY AND CERRO TORRE
Three nights are spent in El Chalten. Along the road, at sunset, a hundred kilometers away from El Chalten, we see the silhouette of the Fitz Roy. But the next day the clouds cover the mountain undisturbed. The first day we can’t see the mountains, we can only imagine them. But the next day during the excursion to the Laguna Capri after hours of waiting, the Fitz Roy shows itself in its immensity.
We visit the Canyon of the Rio de las Vueltas twice, and on one occasion we are rewarded with a sublime sunset. The colors of the vegetation are spectacular during the short excursion to the Chorillo del Salto waterfall. The vegetation has colors that vary from bright red, to yellow, to green, to ocher, to brown …. a riot of colors. With a short walk we visit the Mirador de los Condores and see some of these huge birds flying.
The most beautiful day is undoubtedly the excursion to the Laguna Capri. We leave early in the morning, still dark, we climb about 400 meters in altitude, illuminating the path with our torches. We arrive that it is still night on top and we go down to our observation point in front of the Laguna Capri. Clouds cover Fitz Roy, but the rest of the sky is clear. The sunrise comes wonderful, but the mountain is always hidden by clouds. We wait a few hours and the Fitz Roy appears in a show that cannot be described, which must be lived and admired in silence.
PERIOT MORENO GLACIER
We spend one night in El Calafate. In the morning we visit the spectacular Perito Moreno glacier. On this occasion I am fortunate to film the collapse of a part of the glacier. But the thing that surprised and impressed me most are the noises of the glacier: deafening sounds that seem like the noise produced by a steel cable that is breaking. Squeaks caused by the enormous pressure to which the ice is subjected. Noises that truly convey the idea of the power of this spectacle of nature.
On the culinary side in El Chalten we recommend “La Waflería” with spectacular waffles …. While in El Calafate do not miss a stop in the “Acuarela” ice cream shop on the main street. In Argentine Patagonia you have to taste the “Cordero Patagonico”, we ate it in El Calafate.
We spend the last night in Punta Arenas.
FINAL CONSIDERATIONS
The trip is spectacular I recommend it to all lovers of photography and not. The photographers are excellent professionals and connoisseurs of the places. They dispense their knowledge of the place and photographic techniques and the group where everyone shares the same passion are very important pluses.
Tips: Just a small note: I would have preferred to visit the Perito Moreno glacier on the afternoon of the penultimate day. That is, leaving early in the morning from El Chalten. Instead of at morning of the last day to avoid having to make the whole journey from El Calafate to Punta Arenas (including the border) in the afternoon and arrive very late (almost midnight) in Punta Arenas.
If you want to know more about the places visited in the itinerary in Patagonia visit the pages under the category Argentine Patagonia and Chilean Patagonia. In my YouTube channel in the Argentina and Chile Playlists you will find videos and photos of the photographic trip to Patagonia. Also after this trip I left alone for a week to explore Easter Island. Here you will find descriptions and photos of Easter Island.
