El Calafate Adventure Tours and excursions.

Many tour operators and agencies in El Calafate offer excellent tours to explore this picturesque part of Patagonia. It was very difficult for me to decide which tour to take but I finally settled on the El Calafate 4×4 Off-Road Tour. It sounded like a great adventure and promised to show me the best views of the landscape.

What to see on a El Calafate 4×4 Off-Road Tour?

As the name suggests, it is an off-road tour that takes you deep into the heart of El Calafate. The tour guide picked me up bright and early from my hostel. We had a lot of ground to cover during the 3-hour tour. The first leg of the 4×4 adventure took us through the El Calafate Mountain Park.

The famous Calafate Balcony.

Our first stop greeted us with a spectacular view of the Argentine Lake and sights of El Calafate. This is the famous Calafate Balcony. We could see snow-capped mountains and parts of the lake. Behind these mountains were the glaciers. The guide pointed out that this is the point where the glaciers accumulate near Boca del Diablo or the Devil’s mouth. This makes up the narrowest part of the lake.

The view is breathtaking.

Visibility can be poor at times but on a clear day you can see parts of Mount Fitz Roy and Mount Torre close to another picturesque town, El Chalten. Condors can be seen flying overhead and the view is breathtaking. October to April offers the best view of the Argentine Lake or Lago Argentino and the Andes Mountain range.

Famous rock formations.

It was time to make our descend to the El Laberinto de Piedras or The Stone’s Labyrinth. This region is famous for the rock formations and fossils that is more than 85 million years old. They date back to the Cretaceous period. We stopped here for a quick snack and photo opportunities. Most impressive were the rock formations that looked like Mexican hats.

Many bird species can be found in this area and we had an opportunity to feed them with bread crumbs. It was time to continue our descend to El Calafate. The El Calafate 4×4 Off-Road Tour comes highly recommended. Many of the places can not be seen when hiking on foot in one day.

It is important to keep in mind that due to weather conditions this areas are not accessible during winter months. Many of the roads close due to snow.

Included is a Youtube video with photos that were taken on this tour.