Photo Gallery

If you have not seen the sky in Patagonia, you have not seen Argentina. The clouds, lit up by the sunlight and in constant change, are blown across the landscape by often strong winds. Countless windmills pump the scarce though essential water for men and cattle from the deep water table. - Estancia Las Toscas / Patagonia / Argentina

The sky over Patagonia looks different from anywhere else. It is often veiled by very light clouds that let a strange light shine through. Sometimes the wind blows in violent gusts and causes sandstorms. Then it is necessary to seek shelter immediately to escape the turmoil of the elements. A yellowish light intensifies the sense of threat that grips the traveller. But the storm does not last long, and soon the sky is clear again. The inhabitants of the Pampas have taken advantage of the wind. They set up windmills at various points on their property and use them to pump water out of the ground. In many places this precious wet is completely lacking, which is all the more regrettable because thousands of cattle, which together with the sheep make up the wealth of Patagonia, need a watering place. This picture was taken on the estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1973

The sky over Patagonia looks different from anywhere else. It is often veiled by very light clouds that let a strange light shine through. Sometimes the wind blows in violent gusts and causes sandstorms. Then it is necessary to seek shelter immediately to escape the turmoil of the elements. A yellowish light intensifies the sense of threat that grips the traveller. But the storm does not last long, and soon the sky is clear again. The inhabitants of the Pampas have taken advantage of the wind. They set up windmills at various points on their property and use them to pump water out of the ground. In many places this precious wet is completely lacking, which is all the more regrettable because thousands of cattle, which together with the sheep make up the wealth of Patagonia, need a watering place. This picture was taken on the estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1973

The sky over Patagonia looks different from anywhere else. It is often veiled by very light clouds that let a strange light shine through. Sometimes the wind blows in violent gusts and causes sandstorms. Then it is necessary to seek shelter immediately to escape the turmoil of the elements. A yellowish light intensifies the sense of threat that grips the traveller. But the storm does not last long, and soon the sky is clear again. The inhabitants of the Pampas have taken advantage of the wind. They set up windmills at various points on their property and use them to pump water out of the ground. In many places this precious wet is completely lacking, which is all the more regrettable because thousands of cattle, which together with the sheep make up the wealth of Patagonia, need a watering place. This picture was taken on the estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1973

The sky over Patagonia looks different from anywhere else. It is often veiled by very light clouds that let a strange light shine through. Sometimes the wind blows in violent gusts and causes sandstorms. Then it is necessary to seek shelter immediately to escape the turmoil of the elements. A yellowish light intensifies the sense of threat that grips the traveller. But the storm does not last long, and soon the sky is clear again. The inhabitants of the Pampas have taken advantage of the wind. They set up windmills at various points on their property and use them to pump water out of the ground. In many places this precious wet is completely lacking, which is all the more regrettable because thousands of cattle, which together with the sheep make up the wealth of Patagonia, need a watering place. This picture was taken on the estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1973

There are huge flocks of sheep in Patagonia. Not the meat but the wool is the main purpose of sheep farming. One sheep yields four to five kilos of wool. After shearing, it is pressed into bales weighing about 200 kilograms and wrapped in a cloth on which a worker writes the name of the estancia. - Estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1976

Metallic skeletons on the endless pampas, the "mills" tame the wind to pump essential water for the herds, sometimes from considerable depths. - Estancia Las Toscas, Province Santa Cruz, Patagonia - 1976

Metallic skeletons on the endless pampas, the "mills" tame the wind to pump essential water for the herds, sometimes from considerable depths. - Estancia Las Toscas, Province Santa Cruz, Patagonia - 1976

In southern Patagonia and especially on Tierra del Fuego and in southern Chile, the climate and vegetation only allow sheep farming. The flocks graze scattered over thousands of hectares of stony wasteland. They are only herded together for three occasions: Disinfection bath, shearing and slaughter. But then the ovejeros, the shepherd gauchos, are often on the move for days with their powerful dogs, keeping in touch with each other with high altitude fires and smoke signals. - Estancia Las Toscas, Province Santa Cruz, Patagonia - 1976

"The meat is what is left over when you have nothing left." In the vastness of the pampas, this Argentine proverb still holds true today. Grilled outdoors, the asado is cut right at the mouth as you eat, and the best pieces belong to the guest as a matter of course, whether they are invited or happen to be there. - Estancia Las Toscas, Villa María, Province Córdoba - 1973

"The meat is what is left over when you have nothing left." In the vastness of the pampas, this Argentine proverb still holds true today. Grilled outdoors, the asado is cut right at the mouth as you eat, and the best pieces belong to the guest as a matter of course, whether they are invited or happen to be there. - Estancia Las Toscas, Villa María, Province Córdoba - 1973

"The meat is what is left over when you have nothing left." In the vastness of the pampas, this Argentine proverb still holds true today. Grilled outdoors, the asado is cut right at the mouth as you eat, and the best pieces belong to the guest as a matter of course, whether they are invited or happen to be there. - Estancia Las Toscas, Villa María, Province Córdoba - 1973

Sheep are herded early in the morning. Estancia Las Toscas, Santa Cruz Province, Patagonia. - 1973

A gaucho is herding a flock of horses. He works for the Estancia Las Toscas, a historic rural farm in the Argentine province of Santa Cruz. Such remote estancias in the Patagonian steppe were established in the early 20th century for sheep and cattle farming. – Argentina – 1973

These traditional windmills are essential for supplying water to livestock farms in the extremely remote and arid regions of Patagonia. As surface water is scarce, these windmills pump groundwater directly into water tanks or livestock troughs. The vast farms (estancias) are not connected to the electricity grid as they are often located far from the nearest town. Patagonia is one of the windiest regions on earth. The design of these windmills, with their many rotor blades, allows them to start turning even in a very light breeze, whilst protecting themselves from destruction during the notorious Patagonian storms thanks to an automatic flag control system. – Estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz – Argentina – 1975

The sky over Patagonia looks different from anywhere else. It is often veiled by very light clouds that let a strange light shine through. Sometimes the wind blows in violent gusts and causes sandstorms. Then it is necessary to seek shelter immediately to escape the turmoil of the elements. A yellowish light intensifies the sense of threat that grips the traveller. But the storm does not last long, and soon the sky is clear again. The inhabitants of the Pampas have taken advantage of the wind. They set up windmills at various points on their property and use them to pump water out of the ground. In many places this precious wet is completely lacking, which is all the more regrettable because thousands of cattle, which together with the sheep make up the wealth of Patagonia, need a watering place. This picture was taken on the estancia “Las Toscas” in the province of Santa Cruz. - 1973