The trip was absolutely marvelous...even more than I expected. Patagonia is an area of remarkable diversity and wild, incredible beauty. From the steppes with their huge cattle and sheep estancias, to the vast beech forests on the slopes of the Andes, everything I saw overwhelmed me. We saw Southern Right whales, Magellanic penguins, elephant seals, guanacos, rheas, maras, CONDORS (YES!), giant Patagonian woodpeckers... all up close and personal. We stayed in tiny, charming towns, and ate exquisite food from the sea and from the ranches. In fact our Thanksgiving meal was spent on Gable Island around a campfire eating grilled hake, herb baked potatoes, huge tomatoes, and a local chocolate dessert. All the while gazing at the Darwin Range of the Andes.
We put crampons on our boots and trekked for three hours across the Perito Moreno Glacier, going up and down slopes steeper than I ever thought I would be comfortable handling. And all of this was on ice! It was scary. About half way through the trek we came upon a crude wooden table set with crystal tumblers and a large bottle of scotch. The guides served it to us over glacier ice...WOW! Icy and warm all at the same time! This trip was another one of those "adventures of a lifetime." Perhaps what impressed me most about Patagonia was the pristine quality of the area. Never have I breathed such pure air. To top off this most wonderful trip was the unexpected traveling companion, James Hubbell. If you've ever watched the show, Extreme Homes, on the Home and Garden Network, you have seen his work. He is a world-famous sculptor and artist. He has worked on palaces in Abu Dhabi, buildings in St. Petersburg, Russia, extreme homes all over the world. He was taking this trip because an old friend had died and left him some money. The friend was a great, great, great, grandson of Charles Darwin. Everywhere we went Jim painted. It was so much fun to watch, and we were in awe of his immense talent.
Thank you again, Adventure Life, for another great trip!
