Early in 2026 I took a trip to Patagonia with a group of fellow photographers. The photographs that I am sharing here were taken towards the end of a 16km trek to Chaltén (Mountain that Smokes in the native dialect, because the mountain peak is often surrounded by clouds).

Chaltén, living up to its name of Mountain that Smokes

The mountain is also named Mt FitzRoy. The name FitzRoy was given by the Argentine explorer Francisco Pascasio Moreno on 2 March 1877. Moreno was exploring Patagonia and mapping territory that was then poorly known, partly in connection with defining the Argentine Chilean frontier. He named the mountain after Robert FitzRoy, the British naval officer who had commanded HMS Beagle. There is history here, FitzRoy had taken a survey expedition up the Santa Cruz River in 1834 where he was unsuccessful in reaching its source. FitzRoy was the captain of Charles Darwin’s classic voyage from 1831-1836.

This image was a finalist in the international Motif Collective Landscape Competition in 2026.

Glacier Piedras Biancas at the foot of Chaltén

Well, that is some background. This was one of the highlights of my trip. As you can see, the scenery is breathtaking (and so were some of the climbs) but so worthwhile. The images have become a part of a theme that finds its way into a lot of my work: compared with the enormous presence and grandeur of nature, my existence seems so small and insignificant.