Perito Moreno Glacier,
Perito Moreno
Personal travel impressions in stories and pictures from Perito Moreno Glacier, Perito Moreno, Argentina. Click on the pictures to enlarge, send as a free e-card, or download for personal use. You can locate Perito Moreno Glacier and navigate the world using Google Earth
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S 50° 28.296
W 73° 2.136
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Other stories:
Hidden from the outside world, not too far from the Chilean border in the south west of Argentina, lies the Perito Moreno glacier. This is one of the few glaciers in the world which is still advancing. It is situated on the shore of Lago Argentino, where the lake is very narrow. This fact has two implications. First, it means that the glacier can be observed from close by when standing on the other side of the lake. Sticking to the carefully designed paths is vital because of the danger of falling iceblocks causing enormous waves, which already have washed off several people before.
Second, as the glacier advances every year, periodically the huge ice mass reaches the other side of the lake. When this happens, the natural water flow is blocked, and when the ice mass is strong enough it is able to sustain the pressure exerted by the water in the lake upstream. This has the effect that the water coming down from the Andes mountains cannot continue its flow down to the Atlantic, and instead the level of the water in the lake rises. This process continues until, the pressure of the increasing volume of water becoming too high eventually, the ice dam starts to crack, breaks into pieces and is almost entirely washed away, sending huge icebergs downstream. This process takes around 24 hours. This is a natural happening, and unique in the world. The last time it occurred (1988), it attracted people and TV teams from all over the world to watch in wonder this truly spectacular sight.
As it is, the glacier is very impressive to visit anytime. When standing off the opposite side of the lake, one can spend hours watching and listening to the sounds coming from inside this always moving monstrous ice mass, to gigantic blocks of ice being sliced off the face of the glacier and falling into the turquoise water of the lake. The glacier is around 60 metres, or equal to a 15-floor building, high, and sometimes blocks as high as that fall into the water, causing enormous waves and floating icebergs. It is perhaps even more impressive to visit the site by boat, because then the height of the ice wall can be even better appreciated.
