Walked from El Chalten to Laguna Torre through beautiful countryside, partly along the Rio Fitz Roy and past waterfalls and streams. Amongst other birds, watched 2 bright red headed woodpeckers go about their pecking. Stopped for a snack at the lake, watching bits break off the icebergs and crash in to the water. Walked around the lake to the Maestri viewpoint for a closer view of Glaciar Grande and the surrounding snow covered mountains, listening to the claps of snow drifts. Luckily our lunch stop coincided with the clouds lifting to their highest over Cerro Torre such that we could nearly see the top of the jagged peaks, a sight apparently not overly common. Heading back, arrived in El Chalten 8 hours after we set off. A beautiful walk in lovely weather (for Patagonia anyway - we can turn a blind eye to the at times chilly wind). We rewarded ourselves with a happy hour ale at a lively bar - the first actual pint seen in nearly 3 months.
With the Argentine sea and the Atlantic separating us from the nearest firework display we retreated to our hostel and readied ourselves for a deep country air induced sleep.