El Calafate, also known as ''Calafate'', is a city in

Patagonia Patagonia () refers to a geographical region that encompasses the southern end of South America, governed by Argentina and Chile. The region comprises the southern section of the Andes Mountains with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and g ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

. It is situated on the southern border of

Lake Argentino Lago Argentino is a lake in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, at . It is the biggest freshwater lake in Argentina, with a surface area of (maximum width: ). It has an average depth of , and a maximum depth of . The lake lies with ...

, in the southwest part of the Santa Cruz Province, about northwest of

Río Gallegos Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

. The name of the city is derived from a little bush with yellow flowers and dark blue berries that is very common in Patagonia: the calafate (''Berberis buxifolia''); the word comes from the word , which is Spanish for '

caulk Caulk or, less frequently, caulking is a material used to seal joints or seams against leakage in various structures and piping. The oldest form of caulk consisted of fibrous materials driven into the wedge-shaped seams between boards on ...

'. El Calafate is an important tourist destination as the hub to visit different parts of the

Los Glaciares National Park Los Glaciares National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Los Glaciares) is a federal protected area in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. The park covers an area of , making it the largest national park in the country. Established on 11 May 1937, it host ...

, including

Perito Moreno Glacier The Perito Moreno Glacier () is a glacier located in Los Glaciares National Park in southwest Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. It is one of the most important tourist attractions in the Argentine Patagonia. The ice formation, in length, is one ...

Cerro Chaltén Monte Fitz Roy (also known as Cerro Chaltén, Cerro Fitz Roy, or simply Mount Fitz Roy) is a mountain in Patagonia, on the border between Argentina and Chile.Cerro Torre Cerro Torre is one of the mountains of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field in South America. It is located in Argentina and Chile, west of Fitz Roy (also known as Cerro Chaltén). The peak is the highest of a four mountain chain: the other peak ...

History

The history of El Calafate began in the first decades of the twentieth century. Originally, it was simply a sheltering place for

wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. ...

traders. The town was officially founded in 1927 by the government of Argentina to promote settlement, but it was the creation of nearby

Perito Moreno National Park Perito Moreno National Park ( es, Parque Nacional Perito Moreno) is a national park in Argentina. It is located in the western region of Santa Cruz Province on the border with Chile. It has an area of 126,830 hectares of mountains and valleys at ...

in 1937 that sparked growth and the building of better road access.

Transport

The 220 kilometers separating Calafate from

El Chaltén El Chaltén is a small mountain village in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. It is located on the riverside of Rio de las Vueltas, within the Los Glaciares National Park (section ''Reserva Nacional Zona Viedma'') near ...

on the other side of the

in the national park are paved, as well as the 315 kilometres to

. Other distances are: to Bariloche 1400 km ; to

Esquel Esquel is a town in the northwest of Chubut Province in Argentine Patagonia. It is located in Futaleufú Department, of which it is the government seat. The town's name derives from one of two Tehuelche words: one meaning "marsh" and the other ...

1108 km (some dirt road); Comodoro Rivadavia 959 km;

Puerto Madryn Puerto Madryn (; cy, Porth Madryn), also known as ''Madryn'', is a city in the province of Chubut in Argentine Patagonia. It is the capital of the Viedma Department, and has about 93,995 inhabitants according to the last census in 2010. Puer ...

1388 km;

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

2727 km;

Ushuaia Ushuaia ( , ) is the capital of Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur Province, Argentina. With a population of nearly 75,000 and a location below the 54th parallel south latitude, Ushuaia claims the title of world's souther ...

863 km. The town is served by El Calafate International Airport located some 20 km east of the village.

Population

In the last census 6,143 permanent residents were counted (). This represents a 20.1% increase compared with the 1991 census. However, due to the expansion of tourism, the population was estimated at over 28,000 people as of 2020.

Wildlife

Flamingos Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of wading bird in the family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas (including the Caribbea ...

are regularly visible from El Calafate congregating in the waters of

Lago Argentino Lago Argentino is a lake in the Patagonian province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, at . It is the biggest freshwater lake in Argentina, with a surface area of (maximum width: ). It has an average depth of , and a maximum depth of . The lake lies with ...

Climate

El Calafate experiences a

cold semi-arid climate A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

''BSk'') with cool to warm, very dry summers and cool to cold, slightly wetter winters. The city's extremes of cold and heat are moderated by the influence of

. The waterfront of the city is located on a large shallow bay that is often frozen in the winter, allowing residents to practice ice skating. The highest temperature recorded was on February 6, 1962 while the lowest recorded temperature was on July 27, 2014.

Attractions

El Calafate is the location of the

Glaciarium The Glaciarium was the world's first mechanically frozen ice rinkMartin C. Harris, ''Homes of British Ice Hockey'' and was located in London, England. An item in the 8 June 1844 issue of Littell's Living Age headed "The Glaciarium" reported: ...

, a museum that focuses on ice and glaciers, especially in the

Southern Patagonian Ice Field The Southern Patagonian Ice Field ( es, Hielo Continental or '), located at the Southern Patagonic Andes between Chile and Argentina, is the world's second largest contiguous extrapolar ice field. It is the bigger of two remnant parts of the P ...

Interesting facts

The most recent World Altitude Gliding record of 22,657 m (74,333 ft) was set near El Calafate on 2 September 2018 by Jim Payne and Tim Gardner in the new Perlan 2 glider (with pressurised cabin). A previous gliding altitude record of 15,460 m (50,722 feet) was set near El Calafate on 30 August 2006 by

Steve Fossett James Stephen Fossett (April 22, 1944 – September 3, 2007) was an American businessman and a record-setting aviator, sailor, and adventurer. He was the first person to fly solo nonstop around the world in a balloon and in a fixed-wing aircraf ...

and

Einar Enevoldson Einar K. Enevoldson (born June 15, 1932, in Seattle, Washingtondied April 14, 2021) was the director of the Perlan Project. He was a civilian research pilot for NASA's Hugh L. Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, California, from 1968 until ...

in their 'Perlan' high altitude research

glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...

.List of FAI world records for open-class gliders
/ref> This record has been certified by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. The town was on the path of the total

solar eclipse of July 11, 2010 The total solar eclipse of July 11, 2010, occurred over the southern Pacific Ocean. A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby totally or partly obscuring the image of the Sun for a viewer on Earth. A total sola ...

, occurring just before sunset. El Calafate was featured in the Top Gear Patagonia Special, in which the presenters drove from Bariloche to Ushuaia.

References

Notes

External links

Elcalafate.gov.ar
Official government site
Glaciarium Website
{{Authority control Populated places in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina Populated places established in 1927 Tourist attractions in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina Calafate