Mount Fitz Roy has a naughty reputation for burying its majestic head in the clouds. That said, it was no surprise Fitz Roy was MIA when we arrived in El Chalten. In fact, none of the peaks that give El Chalten its dramatic backdrop were visible that day.
When we departed El Calafate for El Chalten, we knew the forecast wasn’t good. The 10-day outlook showed like December in Seattle – a virtually unbroken mix of clouds and rain interspersed with a dash of sun. Not ideal conditions for seeing Fitz Roy, much less hiking Laguna de los Tres. But what can you do? With no control over the weather, our only option was to wait out the rains.
Waiting out bad weather is a boring business that involves endless hours spent playing cards and drinking teeth-staining quantities of tea. Cards and tea are good for a couple of days. After that, cabin fever sets in and it’s time for a change of scenery. For our change, we set off for Lago Del Desierto – a picturesque lake 33 kilometers north of El Chalten. Driving out of town, we had no expectations. With heavy cloud cover, the probability of expansive vistas was low. Nevertheless, we were going and it was good to be outside.
Despite near non-stop rain and heavy clouds, the drive was beautiful. From El Chalten, the gravel road skirts turquoise green rivers as they flow through broad valleys and lush forests ablaze with fall colors. The scenery was endlessly picturesque as the road runs through Los Glaciares National Park before passing waterfalls and shimmering lakes dotted with black-necked swans.
Unfortunately, less than halfway to our destination, our journey came to an abrupt end when the road disappeared into Lago Condor. Days of rain had stuffed Lago Condor full. Go any further and we’d need a kayak. It was the end of the road.
Fast-forward two days. Fitz Roy was still veiled behind thick clouds and we were increasingly stir-crazy. The rains, however, had lessened so we decided to give Lago Del Desierto another go. On our second attempt, Lago Condo wasn’t the problem. Rather, the Rio de las Vueltas was overflowing, submerging long stretches of road in the process. We got out to have a look. Standing in the pouring rain, it was an unsettling sight.
Unsettling as it was, we determined it was passable and continued forward, wading through long stretches of the overflowing river. On the other side, we found a cold and windy stretch of water our map indicated was our destination. We made it to Lago Del Desierto. Hardly visible, it wasn't the picture perfect spot we’d heard about. No matter. The drive alone was well worth the trip.