Perito Moreno is a town in the northeast of Santa Cruz Province

Santa Cruz Province (Argentina)

Santa Cruz is a province of Argentina, located in the southern part of the country, in Patagonia. It borders Chubut province to the north, and Chile to the west and south. To the east is the Atlantic Ocean...

, Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, 25 km east of Lake Buenos Aires. It should not be confused with the Perito Moreno National Park

Perito Moreno National Park

Perito Moreno National Park 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 115,000 hectares of mountains and valleys at a height of 900 metres above sea level.-History:...

 over 300 km south by road, or the Perito Moreno Glacier

Perito Moreno Glacier

The Perito Moreno Glacier is a glacier located in the Los Glaciares National Park in the south west of Santa Cruz province, Argentina. It is one of the most important tourist attractions in the Argentine Patagonia....

 near El Calafate

El Calafate

- 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 8,000 people in 2005.- Wildlife :...

. The town is the capital of the Lago Buenos Aires Department

Lago Buenos Aires Department

Lago Buenos Aires Department is a department in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. It has a population of 6,223 and an area of 28,609 km². The seat of the department is in Perito Moreno.-References:*Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas y Censos, INDEC...

. It lies on the RN43, a paved road which links Caleta Olivia

Caleta Olivia

Caleta Olivia is a city located at the northeast of the Argentine province of Santa Cruz, on the San Jorge Gulf by the Atlantic Ocean. It has a population of 36,000 inhabitants...

 on the Atlantic coast to Los Antiguos

Los Antiguos

Los Antiguos is a town in Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, located on the south shore of Lago Buenos Aires. It lies 2 km from the border with Chile, and 8 km from the Chilean town of Chile Chico. It is connected to Perito Moreno and Caleta Olivia on the Atlantic coast by a paved road.The...

 and the Chilean

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

 frontier 60 km west, and Ruta 40, running north and south.

The town is a centre of cattle ranches and smallholdings producing fruit and vegetables. Tourism is also an important industry. Perito Moreno is the closest town to Cueva de las Manos

Cueva de las Manos

Cueva de las Manos is a cave or a series of caves located in the province of Santa Cruz, Argentina, 163 km south of the town of Perito Moreno. It is famous for the paintings of hands, made by the indigenous inhabitants some 9,000 years ago...

, 170 km south by road, and Parque Laguna.

In the 2001 census the town had a population of 3,588.

History

The town was founded in 1910, as a rest stop for travellers by the springs which give rise to the Rio Deseado. The place was called Pari-Aike (meaning "place of reeds") by the Tehuelche, but the town was officially called Nacimiento in 1927. The name was changed in 1944 to Lago Buenos Aires, and in 1952 to Perito Moreno, for the explorer Francisco Moreno

Francisco Moreno

Francisco Pascacio Moreno was a prominent explorer and academic in Argentina, where he is usually referred to as Perito Moreno...

.

Climate

External links

• Moon travel guide