This morning we got the opportunity to see the Amalia Glacier, and to be honest, after the Captain’s midday announcements yesterday, I didn’t think we would get to see it at all. The weather forecast was for heavy fog and rain, and Capt Arma was apologising in advance if the fog horns ‘were to be disturbing any passenger’ (he’s adorable).
Anyway, we arrived in the channel quite early and from our cabin on Deck 11 forward (Sea Princess A212 if anyone wants to look it up on a deck plan), just under/behind the bridge – I could see from our cabin:
Pretty! The Amalia Glacier (aka the Skua Glacier) is in the Bernardo O’Higgins National Park in Chile. The glacier starts in the Southern Patagonian Ice Fields and originates at the Recleus volcano – it is actually eroding the northern slope of that volcano.
The glacier had actually retreated from the 40s to the 80s by about 8 km, and I thought our on guide expert dude said it had retreated double that since then :/ (need to confirm that). A lot of people you talk to down here are very worried about climate change. Dixie in Valparaiso was talking about severe coastal erosion over the last two decades, and Jaime in Puerto Varas was saying that they usually only have weather in the mid-20s during summer, but that the last few summers have seen them copping high temperatures of 34C! Not only that, but people are able to swim in the water in the glacial streams – which they all say was impossible when they were kids.
Cruising the glaciers is truly amazing, this one was still several kilometres from us, but while we were here, a small ship carrying around 200 passengers, the Skorpios II, came up to the glacier and went so close we could barely see if – it looked like a rock near the face of the glacier. Skoprios operates out of Punta Arenas and they do 3-night trips to come see the glaciers in this area… definitely adding that to the Bucket List.
We then enjoyed an amazing view on the way to the Simpson River National Park – which we were informed by our friend and fellow traveller, Jerry, is the fourth best salmon fishing in the entire world! Salmon up to 45kgs have been caught here – that is like, over two bags of concrete, or the equivalent of nine Alaska puppies!
This whole area is comprised of sweeping landscapes created by volcanos and glaciers. It has a very dramatic feel around every corner and you find yourself taking hundreds of photos that will probably never see the light of day. Lots of speed-landscape photography today out the bus windows as we moved through some of the most gorgeous scenery I have ever seen.
I love the colours of the glacial rivers – it has a very distinctive, blue/green/grey. I’ve only ever seen it in New Zealand, Canada, and Iceland, but it’s always so beautiful.
Denisse told me what this plant was called – but for the life of me, I can’t recall… and uncharacteristically, I forgot to write it down. I will endeavour to look it up and add it in later. (Edit: they’re fuchsias… *rolls eyes*)
Just so many beautiful views of craggy and jagged peaks, with snow capped mountains, as we moved alongside the river for a bit of a walk. Then back to the bus and we drove off towards Coyhaique (Ko-yay-kwi). The landscape is completely unspoiled, you can see why so many National Geographic covers seem to come from the pristine wilds of Patagonia, and why it is on every serious hiker’s, ‘Must Do’ list.
This is the view from a lookout that over looks Coyhaique. The enormity of it is not adequately captured, but you can get a rough idea from this panorama of how spectacularly beautiful the region is. Coyhaique is considered the ‘Capital of Patagonia’, and if all the NorthFace, Patagonia and Katmandu hiking stores are anything to go by, I dare say it lives up to its reputation.
There were cyclists and backpackers aplenty in the town and all enjoying a beautiful summer day. Coyhaique is a blend of modern and traditional architecture surrounded by the forests on every side. The Andes Mountain range surrounds you in every direction.
The ship in the pic above was swept this far inland during a tsunami, there are many ships and boats that are laying around wrecked as a reminder of how volatile the geography and the climate can be in this region – earthquakes, subsequent tsunamis, volcanos! I’m not sure how these people are as laid back as they appear to be living with these sorts of disastrous threats.
Look at this… it’s gorgeously quaint, but I can’t imagine what its occupants would think of our cookie-cutter suburbia with its manicured lawns, matching gutters and window frames, and identical driveways. So much character in this house, you almost wish it could talk; and then are immediately concerned for what it may have to say!