With a northsouth expansion of more than 7500 kilometres, the chain of the Andes is the biggest mountain range in the world. Peaks of up to 7000 metres in height, do not only offer an imposing view, but also influence the climate highly by being the drainage and meteorological divide all the same. The land in the spheres of the Andes is full of contrasts, a land of fire and ice, of coldness and heat. In the wet and stormy patagonian South, jagged massifs and glaciers prevail, while volcanos, hot springs, geysers and salt lakes dominate the scenery on the dry highland. On the western side of the range, air enriched with moisture provides for lush, lichencovered enchanted forests, while the eastern side only receives 10 % of the precipitation which supports only semiarid areas. Starting in Tierra del Fuego in the very South of the American continent, we travel along the Andes towards the North and climb to heights of more than 5000 metres on the bolivian/peruvian Altiplano. Onward, we follow the course of the water downhill to the east and arrive in the Pantanal, the biggest wetland in the world. The waterfalls of the Rio Iguazu, which is a tributary to the huge Rio Parana, which again drains in the Atlantic Ocean at Buenos Aires, represent the awesome grand finale. Extraordinary nature and animal stories – sometimes imposing and fascinating, sometimes funny or exciting – describe in a very touching way creation and fading and life and death in the spheres of the Andes.