The mention of Patagonia conjures up images of travel to the ends of the earth. Covering one-third of the land mass of Chile and Argentina, Patagonia is dominated by the Andes, the longest mountain range on earth, running the length of South America from Colombia to the Strait of Magellan and across to Tierra del Fuego. Mountains and glaciers are clearly one of the big attractions in Patagonia, as well as the abundant and unusual wildlife. Join us for an in-depth early summer exploration of Patagonia, off-the-beaten-track on both land and sea, where we focus on wildlife, wilderness, and outdoor adventure, with an opportunity to explore several ecosystems, from the the Argentine Patagonian coast to the Andes Mountains.

Each spring, 600 endangered Southern Right whales gather in bays of the Valdes Peninsula in the southern Argentine province of Chubut, where they spend a few months breeding, calving and rearing their young before heading south to the waters off Antarctica. With an isthmus just 11 km wide, the Valdes Peninsula is almost an island, with numerous bays and lagoons. Here lies an amazing faunal sanctuary where numerous species of marine birds and mammals congregate in isolation to breed, often in large numbers, and to find shelter and abundant food in the warm and productive waters of the peninsula and the surrounding coasts.

Our kayak portion of the trip begins with a visit to a Magellanic penguin colony on the way to the Valdes Peninsula, a World Heritage Site where we gear up for kayaking and set out to explore the bays and lagoons in tandem kayaks. We establish temporary wilderness camps on desolate beaches sandwiched between dramatic cliffs, while paddling in the marine environment to observe whales and their young. Southern right whales come to these waters to breed and give birth between June and December. The whales can be up to 17 meters long and weigh 100 tons. The peninsula waters also support groups of Southern elephant seals, sea lions and orcas. With abundant resident and migrant bird populations, we are likely to encounter white-rumped sandpipers, Hudsonian godwits, oystercatchers, red knots, cormorants, oystercatchers, herons, terns, petrels, snowy sheathbills, biguas, and flamingos.

The focus of our kayak trip is undoubtedly the gentle giants of the Southern Atlantic, and our days are spent unobstrusively observing the activities of highly social cows and calves, as they feed, breach, and lob-tail (lift their tails into the air). We also have an opportunity to observe breeding Magellanic penguins and dusky dolphins. On shore, we have layover days between our point-to-point campsites to explore the vast desert steppe landscape, and walking the pebbled-beaches of the wide-open South Atlantic ocean, where we find sand dollars and oyster shells, and the bones of whales.

Patagonia at this time of the year is like arctic Alaska in early summer: the sun is warm, the days are long, and the chorus of songbirds is constant and varied. The climate is dry with strong winds. This is a place to feel the wind, the vast space, silence, colorful sunrises, and the Patagonian night sky. The Patagonian steppe embraces cliffs, gorges, lagoons, salt pits and active sand dunes covered with shrubs of quilimbay, molle, jume, coirón (stipa, poa and festuca tussock grasses. Venturing inland, we encounter wildlife unique to Patagonia: the llama-like guanaco, the Patagonian hare (Mara), armadillo, fox, skunk, owls, and the lesser rhea, an ostrich-like bird. We find marine fossils dating back million years, former native settlements and sites of historical value. We are fortunate to share this intimate experience in our small group of travelers.

Our expedition winds up with a road tour through the Peninsula Valdes Nature Reserve and an overnight stay at a traditional estancia (ranch).

The following week is spent exploring Los Glaciares National Park from El Chalten and El Calafate. El Chalten lies at the north end of Los Glaciares National Park. Beyond the town, glaciers descend from the Patagonian Icecap. The most well-known is Perito Moreno Glacier in the extreme south of the park. Daily hikes take us to the foot of Mt. Fitzroy and to see calving Perito Moreno Glacier To get here, we travel by to El Calafate. From here, we travel 215 km across the Patagonian steppes on paved roads along the shores of Lago Argentino and Lago Viedma.