Paul and Christine's Journey to Anywhere: Laguna Esmeralda and Lago Fagnano

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

On January 9 we headed out for a hike to Laguna Esmeralda. It was a bit of a dreary day but still very enjoyable. Along with the guide, there was an older couple with us from Switzerland walking with us.

In the beginning, everyone was very careful to try and not get too muddy

It's a magical forest

Tracking wolves - ok, not really

So green

And lush

I want to go on more hikes like this when we get back to the States!

That way to Laguna Esmeralda

It's getting muddier

I'm always lagging behind

Dandelions

Not the bridge to Terabithia

Too bad it was overcast

But it was still pretty

The work of those darn beavers

Paul is enjoying the walk

Close up

Hang loose?

It was quite cold, if you can't tell

Super green

Just doesn't quite capture the beauty

This is called old man's beard

And so is this

ALWAYS hiding from me

Look at the colors

We're sinking into the peat bog

Pretty scenery

Stream

Um, Paul's shoe got a little muddy

He's always giving me the look of, "hurry up, what are you doing over there?"

I guess we were walking pretty slow because a big group walked past us

We have to walk back this way too

We made it to Laguna Esmeralda!

So pretty

I'm glad we also got to see it from above

This Chimango Caracara was watching us (Paul is a bird expert now)

Our guide brought small sandwiches and tea for us so we ate, enjoyed the view and then headed back.

It got colder and started to rain a bit more on our way back

I should have packed away my Canon...

But I didn't...

Super red!

Dirty

Still enjoyed the walk back

I'm a bit muddy too

Paul no longer cares about getting muddy

Can you tell?

Hike completed - muddy shoes/pants and broken Canon : (

I didn't realize how much it was raining and when we got back to our hotel room, I checked the camera. Turned it on a couple times (yes, I know now I shouldn't have) and it worked but wasn't working right. Anyway, I went to the local camera shop to see what they could do but by the time I brought it to them, it wasn't even turning on. The guy there said I probably shorted the circuit board...yup, I killed it. I will be sending it to the factory service center when I get back home...lesson learned.

So, the next day, we headed to Lago Fagnano in a 4x4. We stopped at a few places for photos along the way.

Over looking of the area we hiked yesterday

Peat bog valley

Where's Bob Ross when you need him to paint some happy trees?

Panoramic

Lago Escondido

Patagonia!

The 4x4 we were in - not very comfortable

Another shot of Lago Escondido

In 1945, 50 male and 50 female beavers were brought from Canada for their fur but because it didn't get as cold,
the fur wasn't thick enough to use commercially

And without any natural predators, the beavers found their paradise - they are a huge
problem in Ushuaia now with more than 100,000 beavers in this area tearing down trees!