We had a 6-hour bus ride that started in Puerto Natales, Chile. Crossing the border into Argentina involved checking passports before driving through the endless steppes of Argentina, nothing but tufts of grass and low shrubs as far as you could see. Our destination was El Calafate, which from the map where we crossed the border, it didn’t look that far… as the crow flies. In a bus, however, there was only one road to take. The route was kind of like a triangle on its point. On the left side, there was no road; so we had to take the right side heading northeast, then head west. Anyway…

We had picked up another tour guide at the border. Sebastian kept us entertained with his stories and anecdotes along the way. At an intersection we stopped at a memorial of sorts to Gauchito Gil, a legendary character of Argentina 's popular culture who lived during the mid 1800’s. Long story short, he had fallen in love and had an affair with a wealthy widow. Her family was suspicious, accused him of robbery and tried to kill him. To escape, he enlisted in the army during a war. When the war ended, he returned as a war hero. The army forced him to reenlist, however, so Gil deserted and became an outlaw. Following his desertion, he acquired a reputation as a Robin Hood figure, for his efforts to protect and help the needy, the poor, and those who suffered in extreme poverty. Many locals stated that "Gauchito" Gil had miraculous healing powers and the ability of hypnosis, and that he was apparently immune to bullets. Click/tap Gauchito Gil for the rest of the story.

When we finally reached El Calafate, we checked into our hotel. It had been a long bus ride and Peggy and I were anxious for some activity. So we went for a walk to the Laguna Nimez bird sanctuary and saw…

Quick Photo Links: Birds of Laguna Nimez