What to wear at the Perito Moreno Glacier: the full list

Almost every question about clothing at the Perito Moreno Glacier comes down to one misunderstanding: people assume they need to arrive with mountaineering equipment. They do not. The technical half of the day belongs to the operator, and the listings are explicit about it.

What the operator supplies. On the six listings that put you on the ice, the crampons are part of the ticket. $450 names ice walking crampons alongside the boat ride and the visit to the footbridges. $520 states it as all necessary equipment with a guide. $588 lists hiking equipment for its 12-hour day, together with the sailing in front of the wall, the guided forest trek and the walkways. $117 names a trekking guide and a hiking guide, and $399 describes the hike itself as walking with crampons, at one guide for every ten guests. The gear is fitted at the glacier, by people who fit it every day, and it is not something to buy, hire or carry across a continent.

What you bring. Clothing, and the boots underneath it. This is the part no operator can cover for you, and in Patagonia it is the part that decides whether the day is comfortable. The principle is layers rather than one thick coat, because you will be moving between very different conditions inside a single tour: a heated vehicle on the drive out of El Calafate, a sheltered forest path, exposed balconies facing the water, an open boat deck on Brazo Rico, and for some of you the surface of the glacier itself. A single heavy garment is wrong in at least three of those places. Three adjustable layers are right in all of them.

Layer one, the base. Something close-fitting that moves moisture away from your skin. It matters most on the trekking days, where you are walking with crampons and will warm up more than you expect, then stop and cool down at every viewpoint.

Layer two, the warmth. A fleece, a light down jacket or a thick wool layer — whatever you can take off and stuff into a day pack when the sun comes out on the boardwalks, and put straight back on when the wind returns. This is the layer you adjust most.

Layer three, the shell. Windproof and water-resistant, with a hood. If you bring only one thing from this page, bring this. The balconies at the glacier are built on an open slope facing the water, and there is nothing between you and the wall. The open deck on a cruise is the same story with spray added. A shell turns both from something you endure into something you enjoy.

Boots. Sturdy walking boots that cover the ankle, with a firm sole. This is not a style preference: a crampon is a frame that straps onto a sole and needs something rigid to grip. Soft trainers and canvas shoes do not hold one well. Walk the boots in before the trip rather than opening the box in El Calafate, and pack a second pair of socks.

The small things. A hat, because the wind comes off the ice. Gloves, for the same reason and because you will want to hold a camera. Sunglasses, because a glacier surface on a bright day is a large white mirror. Sunscreen for the same reason. A small day pack to carry the layer you have taken off, plus water and something to eat.

The clothing is broadly the same across all 16 tours, but what you emphasise changes with the shape of the day.

A walkways day, from $60. You are on a boardwalk circuit for two to four hours, mostly standing still and looking at the wall — $84 names four hours there, $62 about three. Standing still in wind is colder than walking in it, so this is the day where the warm mid layer and the shell earn their place. Footwear can be ordinary walking shoes, though boots are still more comfortable on the steps.

A day with the hour on the water, from $60 with the boat option, or $145 where it is standard. Roughly an hour in front of the wall on Brazo Rico. Everyone goes out on deck, because that is the point of it. Add the hood, the gloves and something that does not mind a little spray.

A trekking day, from $117. Here the boots become a requirement rather than a preference, because the crampons the operator issues need a firm sole above the ankle. You will be warm while walking and cool while the guide talks, so the base layer and a mid layer you can open matter more than sheer thickness. Everything technical — crampons on $450, all necessary equipment on $520, hiking equipment on $588 — is waiting for you at the ice.

The verdict. Pack for the trekking day even if you have not booked one. It is the strictest of the three lists and it covers the other two completely, which means one set of clothes works whichever tour you end up on. And if you are still choosing, $399 is the listing that uses the whole list in one trip: approximately an hour hiking on the glacier with crampons, a cruise in front of the wall, the Patagonian forest and the boardwalks, at 4.8 across 852 reviews.

The three layers hold in every month. What changes is how heavy each one is, and how much daylight you have to spend outdoors in them.

In the Patagonian summer, December to February, the daylight runs long and the mid layer can be lighter — but do not leave the shell behind, because the wind on the open balconies does not take the summer off. In the Patagonian winter, June to August, the same three layers go heavier: a thermal base, a properly insulated mid layer, and the same windproof shell over the top. Days are short then, which is one more reason the eight-hour guided visits suit that half of the year.

In the shoulder months, March to May and September to November, pack for both. A Patagonian day can offer still sunshine on the forest path and hard wind on the balcony an hour later, and the whole point of three adjustable layers is that you are dressed correctly for both without changing anything but a zip.

Dress from the outside in, in other words: decide on the shell first, then how much warmth goes underneath it for the season you are travelling in.

1. Buying crampons before the trip. There is nothing to buy. The six trekking listings supply them — $450 names ice walking crampons, $520 all necessary equipment, $588 hiking equipment.
2. Wearing trainers on a trekking day. A crampon straps to a firm sole and wants an ankle above it. Soft shoes make the fitting awkward and the walking worse.
3. Packing one thick coat instead of layers. A single tour moves you between a heated vehicle, a sheltered forest, an exposed balcony and an open boat deck. Only adjustable layers are right in all four.
4. Leaving the windproof shell at home in summer. The wind on the balconies is a year-round feature of this coast of the lake, not a winter one.
5. Forgetting sunglasses. The glacier surface on a bright day is a very large reflector, and there is no shade on the boardwalks.
6. Carrying everything in your hands. A small day pack holds the mid layer you have taken off, water, a snack and a camera. You will take a layer off at least once.