El Calafate: Sometimes you just have to look away

Argentina has a stray dog problem. Apparently that's because the Argentinians don't believe in de sexing as this would make the males less...well...masculine. You see, the macho culture goes right down to the dogs!

Yet unlike the mangy dogs of Bulgaria the Argentine ones appeared well looked after. It was not uncommon to see little piles of dog food laid out for them on city sidewalks and parks. Obviously they left their own little piles around the place too. Of course they were very friendly, happily chilling out with any human wandering or hanging out in their city. And surprisingly they displayed pretty good road sense which is more than I can say for most of the human inhabitants.

Unfortunately we'd been given strict orders by our travel doctor to not touch any warm blooded creature because of the risk of rabies. While we ignored that directive when it came to horses, the house cat sleeping in the bunk next to us in Salta and when picking fights with coatis trying to steal our lunch, the fluffy coats of the stray dogs mostly went without a pat. Yes, I felt very bad.

But dog poop on the footpath or rabies for that matter seemed hardly an issue compared to what we witnessed the day we were leaving El Calafate.

With a couple of hours before our bus to El Chalten we'd wandered down to Laguna Nimes - a prime bird habitat alongside the shore of Lago Argentino.

Inevitably a few of the local stray dogs had followed us from the hostel all the way down to the tiny administration building. While we went inside to pay the entrance fee, the dogs continued into the supposed nature reserve.

Picking up the loan binoculars and surveying the lagoon we could already see the flamingoes, ducks with their chicks and birds of prey. But the peaceful scene was quickly disturbed by the stray dogs who had made it through the boggy grass and jumped into the water.

Chased down by the dogs the flock of flamingoes took flight in a pink cloud while other birds swam frantically out of the way. Shocked we pointed out to the administration officer what was happening to which he shrugged, acknowledging that they had a bit of a stray dog problem. The solution was to fence the area, but that project was only partially complete.

Most of the birds had moved away, but those with chicks were struggling to find a safe place. The dogs were chasing them down separating the family. But that wasn't all. Slowly the chicks were also disappearing until there were none left. Tears filled my eyes and I couldn't look any more as the guys seethed at what appeared to be a lack of interest in preserving the wildlife unless there was a financial gain.

That scene reminded me of another place in the north of Argentina where we'd spent the day, but were so disappointed we didn't mention it. We'd left with just this photo of Corrientes which shows nothing of the sadness we'd felt that day.

There in tiny public zoo, we'd seen depressed monkeys in enclosures so small that they would have more appropriately housed a large bird. In the same repetitive pattern the monkeys would frantically climb along bars from one side of the cage to the other and then back again. For as long as we'd stood there horrified watching them they just kept going.

So we were delighted when at the parks administration in El Chalten the passionate rangers enthusiastically told us everything we needed to know about walking in the northern section of Parque Nacional Los Glaciares. Not only did they care enough to emphasise our role in preserving this pristine environment but they were very encouraging of getting off the tourist trail and to the more remote parts of the park. Admittedly I thought that was as a result of Hannes' travel beard which made him look like a well seasoned hiker.

And on top of the rangers enthusiasm, the glimpses of Fitz Roy from the bus had certainly got us excited in anticipation of the next 4 day hike.

I'm sorry, I tried to write a blog post, but the view was just too distracting!

 

Iguazu

We arrived at Puerto Iguazu, the town just outside the falls first thing in the morning after a second night on a bus and it was overcast. Iguazu Falls are apparently best seen on a sunny day when the rainbows and butterflies come out so it seemed like we'd have to go the following day when the forecast was supposed to be better.

It was probably a good thing. With flagging energy levels we walked to the point where the borders of Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil all converge. The humidity was very high despite the cloud cover, so we just sat on a bench looking at where the river diverges. Between the forest on either side of the river there was a concrete marker painted in the Uruguayan colours on the left side of the water and Brazilian colours on the right.

The following morning the sun was shining so the trip to Iguazu Falls was on, with the expectation of seeing many rainbows and butterflies. Just inside the entry gates we spotted a toucan eating the seeds of a tree right next to the path. It was sitting low enough to get clear views of it's multi coloured beak and even as the tour groups gathered around it seemed unfazed. I was sure that this would probably be one of many that day.

I'm not sure if there is supposed to be an order to view the falls to increase the viewing pleasure, but our goal was primarily to keep away from the crowds that were steadily filling through the entrance. There are three main circuits, an upper one, a lower one and the walk out to Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat).

We started along the top where from each lookout we could see most of the falls. Each lookout was located right where the water cascades over the edge into the river below, sending up a plume of mist and cold air. The roar was loud enough to drown out the sound of the scenic helicopter flights circling on the Brazilian side.

All along the cliff edge and down below we could see the little platforms jutting out, enticing us to explore. But we didn't need much encouragement to walk along the board walks poised over the fast flowing river that just a few metres further plunged over a cliff edge. Believe me there was a lot of talk of movies and cartoons that show just this point when you realise you've taken the wrong turn down the river and a fall is just up ahead.

The lower circuit was even better. We saw a few of the smaller falls with the amount of water you usually find in Australia in the height of summer before coming face to face with the main part. Located about half way up the cliff, a walkway jutted out to about 3 metres from the water. From above I wondered why no one was walking out to it, until we got there. After just a moment we were soaking wet. But standing there, I felt alive. The rush of water was deafening, the sunlight reflecting off the water blinding and the turbulent air that whipped the grass all around took our breath away. A rainbow was visible in the mist down below.

Just down the path on another section of lookout, an orange butterfly landed on my shirt and tagged along as we walked down towards the river.

Returning to the visitor area we found a nice, shady bench to rest for a moment. As I waited, a bag with lunch in it by my side I spotted a lone Coatis. It was very cute and totally disinterested in me despite having a reputation as food beggars. Excited, Jeff started snapping photo's but it was walking away very briskly. Then I heard a noise behind us. On our picnic bench another Coatis was advancing on our food bag at lighting speed while two more were coming out of the bushes. I grabbed the bag at the same time as the Coatis and we had a tug of war, my hands winning out against it's claws on the plastic bag.

The best place to see butterflies is at the start of the walk towards the Garganta del Diablo. Along the train ride there, swarms of yellow butterflies filled the air and at the station more sat in muddy puddles.

Lonely Planet likens standing on the edge of Garganta del Diablo to what European sailors must of imagined the edge of the earth would be like. All around there's the pounding rush of water and the wild wind that sometimes drives the water straight at you.. You look down, but you can't see the bottom thanks to the mist that rises from the violent drive of water. And then you think 'Holy Cow! I'm standing on the very edge of this giant, powerful waterfall. They must have had a hell of a time building this platform.' Yet there in the distance I could see the outlines of people on the platform on the Brazilian side of the falls. Right then and there it seemed clear who got the better view!

 See on the far left side of this photo where people are standing!

Our final activity in the park was an easy walk to another waterfall that seemed so puny in comparison it didn't even get a photo. But along the way, I spotted another toucan, that was grunting just like a koala, while hopping along and scrapping it's beak on a branch. Further along a furry animal sat on the path. It didn't have a tail like a Coatis and it hopped away before we could take a photo for identification purposes.

Billed as 'one of the most awe-inspiring sights on the planet' Iguazu Falls is certainly impressive. But we both walked away thinking that we'd imagined them to be a little bit bigger with some more 'je ne sais quoi'. We didn't go back to the Argentinian side on the following day and decided that the hassle of getting to the Brazilian side thanks to visas, currency exchange and park fees wasn't worth it. After all, you couldn't get closer to the Garganta del Diablo unless you jumped in!