What can you imagine when you hear about such a thing as a national park? There are many beautiful and unknown animals and plants, a large territory where you can walk for hours, etc. But it is difficult to imagine that the Los Glaciares National Park, which is located in Argentina, is one continuous glaciers covering an area of several thousand kilometers that are amazing.
Location
In the southwestern part there is a province such as Santa Cruz, which is located on the border with Chile. It is here that the Los Glaciares National Park is located, which means “glaciers”. It consists of two parts: a park in the west and a nature reserve. The latter takes up the bulk. The reserve consists of three parts, each of which has its own name: Viedma, Roka and the East.
History
In 1937, a national park was founded under the park creation program. Today it is the largest nature reserve in Argentina.
Archaeologists at one time found here dinosaur bones and the remains of ancient people. But what time they lived is not yet established.
In 1981, this place was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Although until that time, the territory was changing. Its area became smaller and smaller, because part of the territory was given up for household needs.
The main and first goal of creating the Los Glaciares National Park in Argentina was to protect mountain landscapes in the south of the Andean ecosystem. Mountain ranges reached heights of more than 3 km. Additional tasks that the creators of the park set were the protection of the Magellanic and southern beech forests. Living creatures in need of extinction also needed this (South Yang deer, duck, Nanda (large bird), armadillo, cougar and others). Their number is declining, including due to poaching.
One of the main tasks that follows from the name, in addition to protecting animals and plants, is the preservation of continental glaciers.
What you need to see in the park?
National Park Los Glaciares 80 years shows tourists all the beautiful corners of Argentina. Here you can see forests, lakes, amazing animals and plants, as well as glaciers, each of which is important not only for the country, but also for the world, as a storehouse of fresh water.
- Perito Moreno . This is not the largest glacier in the national park, but the most popular among tourists, because you can approach it closest and enjoy this immense ice floe. It was named after the scientist, has a height of up to 60 meters, the surface area is more than 257 km 2 and has a length of more than 30 km.
- Mount Fitzroy . The second popular attraction of the Los Glaciares National Park, it was also discovered by the scientist Francisco Moreno, in whose honor the glacier was named. You can climb the mountain of different heights along the paths, each of which has its own difficulty. For example, the Laguna de los Tres route, where the trip can take up to 10 hours, but it's worth it. Especially if a person is prepared for hiking and can withstand such a long walk.
- Lake Argentino . To best see this largest lake in Argentina, you should book a tour that starts from the Uppsala glacier, then the route passes through Onelli Bay, and along the path you can reach the lake of the same name.
Useful Tips
As mentioned above, Los Glaciares National Park is located in the south of the country. The nearest village from which you can get is called El Calafate.
Each tourist chooses what time of the year to go to this place, because it is beautiful both in summer and in winter, when you can still do winter sports.
The only difficulty is the road. You can only get to the park by air, or rather from the airport of El Calafate, take a plane that arrives from Buenos Aires, or fly from Ushuaia to Bariloche by Aerolineas Argentinas.
You can cover the distance from Buenos Aires in 3.5 hours, but it is better to purchase tickets in advance. After all, prices are constantly changing and can grow two or more times. The cost of the flight can cost 150-200 US dollars.
Los Glaciares National Park: photos and curious facts
You can see thousands of photos and videos, but they cannot convey the whole atmosphere. Therefore, when traveling to Argentina, be sure to look at this unusual place.
Here you can not only take walks, but also engage in winter sports, go on a water excursion, and climb the mountain and glacier.
In addition to the beautiful scenery, you can see the glacier museum in the city of El Calafate. It is interesting that this city appeared 10 years before the creation of the park, and sheep had to be processed in it, but thanks to the park, this city became a popular tourist destination.
Another curious fact is that the Perito Moreno Glacier was as far back as 750 meters from the coast in 1900, but in more than 20 years when the park was opened, it almost came close to the coast. But sometimes (this rarely happens) he reaches the opposite bank and tears Lake Argentino in half.