Chile-Argentina Ski Trip

[broken_legs]

Has anyone here been to Chile in the winter?

I'm heading down on Aug 25th for a month. The plan is to rent a vehicle and tour to all of the resorts near Santiago, then drive to Las Lenas.


Can anyone speak on road conditions? Recommend car rental places or hotels?

Is Easter Island do-able in the winter?

Any other general tips or experiences you can share?



Thanks!

[davidI]

Nothing to add but I would love to hear about how this goes!!!

[kaput]

.

[98brg2d]

Get on epicski and tetongravity forums. There is a pile of info from people all over North America regarding flights, buses, taxis etc. different resorts that you may not have heard of, snow conditions for each area etc. End of August sounds a bit late (peak snow and vacation time is mid July I believe) but you can still luck out anytime anywhere.

[calgarygts]

I did the same a couple summers ago - the biggest piece of advice is get some chains for the drive up to el colorado (santiago) as the road can get pretty slippery. Have fun, that road is the craziest thing I've ever seen with all those switch backs!

I really liked el colorado, only made it to the next mountain one day (there are three there all side by side). Be careful not to go to the wrong chair if you've only paid for one hill, they'll send you walking if you go the wrong way and it's not fun! I also stayed at a hostel in the little village half way up that mountain one night - definitely great place to stay as you're practically on the hill in the morning and you can actually ski right back to it at the end of the day. Unfortunately I can't remember what it's called - I'll post again if I can find it.

I stayed in hostels which was really fun because I met a lot of people that I still talk to today. Hotels are nice, but you just don't meet people. I can't remember who we rented a car from but we did it in Santiago - most of the rental places were the same. Don't get a ticket if you can help it - we got one for parking and got a lot of grief when we brought the car back.

You may want to keep an eye on things down there though - there has been a volcano eruption. Not sure what it means for Santiago but better to know before you go.

http://sports.espn.go.com/action/freeskiing/news/story?id=6635432

[broken_legs]

thanks for the tips guys.

ill try to update this when im down there.

as far as driving i was going to rent a 4x4 nissan pickup. i was also under the impression there would still be ronnes of snow in the late season.

can u recall what hotels were going for down there at the mountaims?

anyone tried Al Alpa snow cats?

[rony_espana]

Looking forward to hearing how this goes for you!

[broken_legs]

Ive got this whole trip sorted now, no issues on accommodations or planning side.

Problem now is there is no snow.

Eruption in the south has burried Cerro Bayo and Catedral Alta Patagonia with ash

Las Lenas isnt reporting anything about snow conditions - weather channel calling for 50+ highs over teh next week! What the shit!?? 11,000 feet and you cant even get snowed on? fuck me.

Northern resorts near Santiago have 50-60 cm bases and sun forecast for the next week. That means Portillo, Valle Nevado, La Parva etc.. are all a wash so far.

Still got a chance at Termas de Chillan/nevados de chillan apparently they got a 2m dump in the last couple weeks.

I'm going to be there in 3 weeks. Please, beyond, assist me in praying to the snow gods...


Mr. Espana, que esta haciendo?

[broken_legs]

Alrighty, finally got some pictures uploaded to the net.


Day1: Friday August 26
Started the trip off landing in Santiago. We had no idea what to do, didn't really have a solid plan, and just wanted to ride, so we just gave in and went with one of the very persistent taxi drivers and got a ride to Farrelones.

Farrelones is about an hours drive from the Airport and over looks the city. From there you can ski:
El Colorado
La Parva
and Valle Nevado
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/Map1.jpg

When we got to Farrelones, the rumors of crap snow were painfully true. We were getting sandblasted, conditions were long past the point where snow melted and turned to mud. We almost told the taxi to turn around then someone told us it was going to snow that night so we decided to give it a chance.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0623.jpg
Looking towards Santiago from the hotel

Day 2:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0627.jpg
Next morning it snowed!!!

^We stayed at the Hotel Farrelones. We shared a room and for a total of 3 nights it cost us $880 USD. Breaky and dinner were included. This was not a "nice" hotel but it was comfy and convenient You can take the T bar from the hotel entrance to the bottom of the chairlift and ride down at the end of the day.

First day we rode El Colorado - The skies cleared for an amazing BlueBird day. No lift lines. a foot or more of fresh pow. Just rode the chair, and got our legs back - no need to go anywhere fancy for fresh dry snow.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0631.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0648.jpg

Lift tickets were 30,000 pesos-ish.

That night it started snowing again and we went to a bar in Farrelones called Montanes - Good times - lots of friendly people, good food.

Day 3
It snowed again the next day, and we were super hung over from Pisco so we took the day off.

Day 4
Next day we went to the backside of El Colorado. It overlooks Valle Nevado. It's pretty steep and there was tonnes of new snow. The two of us and maybe 10 other people rode this side all day.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0663.jpg
Backside of El Colorado.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/DSC00290.jpg
Valle Nevado in the Background

Hotel let us checkout late at 5pm, we went and got a hotel in Santiago to start our adventure to Argentina.

Day 5:

We take a 2 hour flight south from Santiago to Puerto Montt. The extra baggage fees sucked (150$), but the one way tickets were only 85$ a piece. We flew on www.skyairline.cl

The plan is to take a bus from Puerto Montt to Bariloche. When we get there we soon realize that there are no buses going to Bariloche due to the erupting volcano.

New plan: Take bus north to Osorno, then take bus from there. There has to be a bus right?

*NOTE: Bank machines hold the card until AFTER you get your money. Left my card in the machine at the bus stop. Despite what you may read, no one wants USD unless youre at a big hotel.

2 hours later. We are in Osorno. Same story, there are no buses to Bariloche. We take a taxi cab to 7-8 car rental places looking for a ride. For some reason every rental place in town was booked up or closed.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0676.jpg

New Plan: Check gear at bus stop, go eat pizza and drink beer, wait for late bus to Chillan.

Day 6

Bus left Osorno around 10pm and we slept for a a couple hours getting to Chillan around 2am. Now we are in a super sketchy neighbourhood fighting off packs of dogs and homeless people... with our snowboard bags and suitcases. Acutely aware that we do not fit in, we duck into a cafe and hold out till morning.

Somehow in the morning I manage to sort out a rental car. Rosetta Stone only prepared me to tell you about green apples and running children. Santiago, resort towns, you can find a few people that speak english. In the smaller cities expect that you will only be communicating in Spanish.

36,000 pesos/day for a Kia + 20,000 pesos and a 2 hours of walking around with the car rental lady getting copies of my passport and seeing the notary public to get the papers for the rental car to take it across the boarder. Exchange rate while I was there was 450 peso/ 1 USD. So the car was about 80$/day. Had to be paid in cash, in full, before* taking the car. This is standard in Chile. No idea about insurance. Your CC will not cover you.

[adamc]

Bad. Ass.

[a social dsease]

Awesome! Looking forward to whats next!

[-relk-]

Hows the terrain there? Any big crowds? Freshies all day?

Looks awesome!

[CLiVE]

This thread takes me back. I lived in Santiago for 5 years, and was on the Ski Team at Valle Nevado. (back in the late 90's). Skied most of the resorts in the area, and used to drive up the Farellones road 3 days a week.

Have fun man!

[broken_legs]

Day 6 Cont'd

On the road:
It's 11am. Fuelled on Redbulls and cigarettes, were driving south on Ruta 5 guessing which one of the mountain passes is going to be open.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/DSC00342.jpg


*Tip* Ruta 5 is a toll highway. Every 80km or so you will have to pay the toll. It's 2,000 pesos each time, make sure you have pesos to speed things up. The CC line is long, and may not work depending on your card.

At first we were driving very conservatively. The speed limit is 120 for cars, the highway is in good condition, and lots of drivers seem to be doing 140-160. We picked it up and went through 5-6 speed traps. Never got stopped. Maybe you have to be doing 200+?

Driving is very civilized even in the cities. Don't worry - Cop cars ALWAYS have their lights on. Don't even bother moving over for them.

Here is the Route we took:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/Map2.jpg




Driving up through the foothills, then into the mountains and passing through Volcanoes on the right and left was very cool.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0680.jpg

We got to the border around 4:30ish after passing through the longest tunnel in the world through a mountain (well it seemed that way) 80km/hr for 5 minutes until we saw the light at the end.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0684.jpg

*TIP* - It may sort of look like a border crossing, or maybe just a coffee shop, but get out and check anyways. You need to get an exit stamp from Chile, cross the frontier, then go through Argentine customs. They wont let you in if you don't have an exit stamp -

Unknowingly we blew right past the Chilean border and continued through the Frontier to Argentina.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0700.jpg
Snow much? We are so stoked!!!

Just at the pass we started running into the 'Monkey Trees'. Looks like a jungle in the snow.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/DSC00387.jpg


After getting turned back by Argentine customs, then getting the exit stamp and going back, and traversing some sections of dirt road - we are now in a desert. Stoke Level has dropped... The landscape changes so fast. 20ft snow in mountain peaks to bone dry desert in 15 minutes.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/DSC00400.jpg

Around 7pm ish we roll into the small desert town of Las Lajas, which brings me to my next tip: Make sure to get Argentine money BEFORE going to Argentina.

Without thinking about we were in the middle of nowhere, with no access to cash. To make things worse we were about to learn another lesson the hard way.

Pulling up to a brand new shiny north american style gas bar and convenience store, I pull up and start pumping my own gas. Obviously they take credit cards, right? Obviously not. The other small bit of gas station etiquette i missed out on was that you're not supposed to or allowed to? pump your own gas.

Just as the tank is full the attendant comes over screaming 'Policia! Policia'. Big no no. Dude was pissed. we had 4-5 people yelling at us in a language we don't understand. lol

45 tense minutes later, we've managed to get a local to give us a horrible exchange rate on USD, gave our applogies, and paid for the gas.


OK. 8pm now and we realize there is still another 500 km left. FML. The view was nice though:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0721.jpg

Around 9ish I started to notice some grit in my teeth. We were driving through the ash from the volcano. It was nasty. Im sure the rest of the drive was quite picturesque but it was too dark. Lots of big hills and valleys through the desert.

[broken_legs]

Day 7

We get into Bariloche sometime just after midnight. The last 2 hours of the drive were very 'challenging'. So much ash in the air really limited visibility and our speed.

This was the only day we had ash in Bariloche, and according to locals, this was one of the only days they had ash in the last couple of months.

*Total distance traveled was 980km. Chillan ->Bariloche

We roll into the Hotel Nahuel. Get a 30% discount for paying in cash and get a room for $70 USD/night. The hotel has a good breakfast and is right in the middle of the action in downtown Bariloche.

Argentina is WAY CHEAPER than Chile in terms of food, hotels, booze etc... Suddenly we go from spending 80$/day on shit food and drink to $45 and eating and drinking very well.

Heres the car in the morning:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0724.jpg

If kelowna and banff had a baby, it would be called Bariloche.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0771.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0815.jpg

It didn't snow much at all in the city, but it dumped on the mountains almost everyday. I won't go into too much details on the next 6 days, I'll just say they were freaking awesome.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0729.jpg
Going up the high speed quad

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0731.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0752.jpg
Cool Terrain everywhere. Trees, Bamboo, rocks, drops & cornices.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0776.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0746.jpg
It snowed everyday, but the snow was only good until about 10:30. Then BAM within 5 minutes it would go from fluff to snowman. Also, this mountain has an issue with snow at the bottom. It's always melting on the ride out. Theres a foot of snow in the morning, and by afternoon you hiking through mud after a few core shots.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0780.jpg
Lots of easily accessible back country and hiking. The La Laguna is the place to be if you got your avvy gear. WE however are drunk and lazy and didnt make it that far.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0761.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0765.jpg
Food was awesome and cheap. The beef was top notch. Go for the Lomo.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0794.jpg


Overall impression of Bariloche:
- AWESOME
- Tonnes of bars
- Live music everywhere
- Lots of travelers
- People know some english communication is much easier
- WAYYYYYYY more fun than Chile
- Decent hill. Lift tickets were around 60$ USD
- The hill is 18 km from the city. Easy to hitch hike.
- You have to pay for parking 5USD at the hill if you have less than 3 ppl
- The lift lines are FUCKING GAY, no order, no lifty, 150 cram into a funnel with no lines then go through an electronic turnstile right in front of a super steep ice ramp into the chair.
- I will be back.

[Dycker]

:thumbsup:

This thread made my morning. I have decided on my next ski trip!

[broken_legs]

Day 13 - September 7

I do NOT want to leave this place. More snow is in the forecast, we've managed to meet quite a few people here, but alas, my travel buddy has to go back to work in a couple days.

Goodbye Bariloche, Goodbye Cerro Catedral.
Mountain/Resort website: http://www.catedralaltapatagonia.com/

We set out Around 10:30am to drive to Osorno. Apparently the mountain pass is open now.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/Map4.jpg

On the way there we Pass Cerro Bayo - I heard good stuff about this mountain. Next time I am in Bariloche, I will make day trips here, its only 70km from Bariloche.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0819-2.jpg

Passing through Villa la Agustura, we see what a difference a couple miles crosswind up to the volcano makes:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0823-1.jpg

There was SO MUCH ASH. It was strange though, it only appeared on a 40km stretch of highway, then just tapered right off as we got closer to the Vulcan.

Approaching the Chilean border in the Frontier:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0831.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0835-1.jpg

Again we were shocked by the transition in landscape. One minute, mountain snow jungle, the next minute, tropical jungle and waterfalls.

We drove right beside Puyehue, but it was cloudy and we couldnt see it. We decided to take a detour to the thermal spas and check it out. a new adventure begins.

The tourist information guy told us to drive up to Antillanca, a small ski resort on another volcano to get above the clouds. It's only 18km away - should be easy right?

1km in the road turned into gravel. We are in a tropical jungle. This reminds me of Thailand.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0841.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0860.jpg


... and 10 minutes later on the same road, we start to get a bit worried:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0844.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0847.jpg

WE are barely moving up a mountain in single track snow ruts. There is no where to turn around. After getting stuck a few times we managed to make it up to the Lodge. The FWD Kia is a stud. Chains would have been a good idea.

*Tip* - Driving some roads chains are required by law. This is one of them...



We decide to stay the night and ride in the morning to check things out.

Day 14
As has been the case everywhere, we are greeted with fresh snow in the morning.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0850.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0854.jpg

Unfortunately the visibility was crap. It started raining. And the chair lifts to the top of the volcano were closed (due to TOO MUCH SNOW)

We checked out and hit the road again, connecting with Osorno, then North back to Chillan.

Getting into Chillan around 9pm, we notice that EVERYONE is staring at us. Then we notice 'The Noise'
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0867.jpg

The Kia had been bottoming out in the snow (and boulders) on the dirt road. Luckily, the plastic came off with some pliers.

Night life in Chillan was not that spectacular.

Day 15

We return the car then almost miss the bus back to Santiago, get some rest and arrive in Santiago around 2pm

5 hour bus ride - 15$

Day 16
Tour Santiago on foot
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0889.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0886.jpg

The area off Bella Vista is super cool at night. Lots of bars and pubs and restaurants with good food.

If you're in Santiago, make sure to go for coffee in one of the many shops with tinted windows.... The coffee was really really good.

Day 17 - Sept 10

My friend and I part ways. He flies back to Texas. I check my snowboard bag at the airport storage and get on a plane to Easter Island...

[broken_legs]

Day 17 - Sept 10 Cont'd

LAN is the only airline flying to Easter Island. Round trip from Santiago was 740$ CAD. The plane was PACKED and the flight was about 5 hours long, leaving at 9am and arriving around 1pm on the island.

I stayed at a place called the Mana Nui.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0893.jpg

85$ US per night for the room just off the beach and right beside the museum. The breaky was decent, rooms were clean, service was good. Most of the people staying here were couples, but i lucked out and met another solo traveler staying there so we immediately started drinking in town. My opinion was this was the best location in town by far. Lucked out on this one - Everyone elses hostels and hotels were in weird places.

*Note* if you're on a budget, bring some food with you. Shit is EXPENSIVE on this island. You can stay in the tent village for 7$/night or a hostel for about 20$.

Stumbling back from the bar I snapped this:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0899.jpg

That was the only real sunset in the 5 days of the trip.

We took some french girls out for dinner - Not meeting people on this island is almost impossible, its soo small. 1st night we ate at the "blue restaurant" the food was awesome but expensive.

Day 18

We book into a full day tour with this guy through the girl at the hotel:
Green Island Tours
Marc Shields
# 62145884 or 75139350
[email protected]

The tour was about 60$ USD and lasted 5 hours. I would recommend Marc because he's a Kiwi so easy to understand and he was not a slave driver like some tour operators.

The way the tours work here is that they are all set up for 1/3 of the island.
Tour 1: The Crater Orongo. This is a half day, very impressive
Tour 2: Full day tour on the west coast and inland, did this on my own on the bike
Tour 3: Tour of East/South coast, Quarry and end at the beach, good tour, gives you a good idea of the island layout etc..

All the tours are the same from all the companies.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/Map5.jpg

So we set out with about 12 people crammed into a little vw mini bus thing pretty excited about the day. As things go on the wind picks up and it starts to rain. Some people would think this sucks, but to me it kind of added to the mystique of "discovering" the Moai through the mist.

Bring a rain coat if you go in the winter months, its not cold, but it can get chilly.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0920.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0965.jpg
Marc was not prepared for the rain.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG0962.jpg
After a while you start to realize there are 5,000,000 Moai on the island and it gets kind of boring.

Day 19
We book a half day tour of Orongo for 40$ USD
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1039.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1013.jpg

Very cool.

I bid farewell to the other traveler as he has to leave, now I am solo again. I decide its time to rent a dirt bike. These Moai are getting boring.

You'll have to try a couple different places if you don't have your license. Just say "Yes" if they ask you if you have a license ;) The bike was 20,000 pesos per day and well worth the cost.

The bike = Freedom. I can tour the entire island on my own schedule now and do it very quickly. Dirt trails and roads that were slowing down cars were no issue. Plus its fun.

Stay on the roads if you can, a lot of unlikely looking places are ancient ruins - dont piss off the locals.

I road up to Orongo, back down, all over the SE coast to Akivi beach, back down the main road then did the West coast loop and stopped at every attraction on the way - and did it in less time than one tour took the day before.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1109.jpg
Bike at Akivi Beach

Tired from a long day of riding, i fall asleep and show up late for the "Traditional" native dance and music show with the french chicks. Basically a bunch of dudes falling out of their banana hammocks gyrating on stage and stomping around. Softcore porn for highschool girls. I'd skip it next time. There were some hot island girls, but they barely got any stage time next to the dudes. Restaurants arent open too late.

Also ran into lots of drunk native islanders. Alcohol abuse amongst the natives appears to be rampant. Reminds me of a reserve in Canada.

Day 20

Wake up early and head down to the Orca diving center.
www.seemorca.cl/

The guy who owns it was on the Calypso with Jacques Cousteau, and used to train Orcas. very cool dude

Right in the shallow water at the dock there are multiple giant sea turtles cruising around. Didn't see any on the dive, but didnt need to.

1st dive we did the reef with the anchor and the Moai in the bay, second dive was the Pyramid. The water was 20 degrees. I was pretty chilly in a 5 mil wet suit. Pyramid was my favourite dive (mostly because i couldnt handle the cold and destroyed my tank in 15 minutes on the first dive :facepalm: ) it had 2-3 archs to swim through, and lots of coral.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/PICT0007.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/PICT0008.jpg
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/PICT0028.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/PICT0047.jpg

Easter Island is famous for the visibility. No one tells you that this is in the summer months. Winter vis was just OK. Dives were 35,000 pesos a pop. There arent many fish, just little tiny ones. Still fun.

Spent the rest of the day playing tour guide for a girl i met on the dive and just hanging out.

Day 21 Sept 14

Well its time to go. Hotel arranges your transfer, very easy to deal with.

I recommend staying at least 4 nights on the island. Theres a decent amount of stuff to see, i had lots of fun and would have stayed longer if my flight wasnt already booked.

Flight leaves at 1pm, I arrived in Santiago at 8:00pmish.

Now I have no plan at all. Do I stay in Santiago and go to the RHCP concert, go North, get a hotel?

www.snow-forecast.com

Well it's snowing on Friday at Chillan. 24 cm expected. Decision is made for me.

Time to rent a car and hit the road. I checked the desks for Hertx, Avis etc... Their rates are retarded - Expect to pay 80-100 dollars for a mid size car, or up to 200/day for a 4x4.

*Tip* - Look for the sketchy dudes hanging around the car rental desks. They work for small private rental companies and give way better deals. Expect that youll be doing paper work and paying money in the parking lot.

I ended up renting a 4x4 Great Wall SUV for less than I rented the car before in Chillan. The guy also took me to a decent hotel, and gave me a couple days free rental.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1187.jpg

[broken_legs]

Day 22 - Thursday Sept 15

It's a 5 hour drive from Santiago to Las Trancas so I hit the road at 8am. Navigating through Santiago is easy, I head south once again on Ruta Cinco getting to Las Trancas around 1 pm.

Driving through the small towns and villages on the way there be careful for animals on the road. I broke the lower panel on the front of the SUV after a pretty severe Turkey impact.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/Map6.jpg

Las Trancas is a little resort mountain town about 8 km from the Mountain resort. The resort is uber expensive. I recommend staying in Las Trancas, as this is where all the non-rich brazilian travelers are.

I stayed at the hotel Primahuyhue or something. Its right on the corner of Shangri-la road. I can't find a link for it.

Again, i think i found the best deal at the best place. They have brand new 'artisanal' wood fired hot tubs, decent rooms, cheap on site massage, and breaky and dinner included for 90$USD/night.

Theres a hostel in town called the Chill'in. For a single room there they wanted 65$USD with no food and shared bathrooms. 45$ for shared accommodation.

The mountain:
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1190-1.jpg

The resort is on an active volcano. You can see steam coming from the top most days. Some of the chairs were not working due to the Earthquake last year.

I pick up a hitchhiker and end up meeting the only group of western tourists in town. New riding and drinking buddies! They were staying in a rented house for 600$/month. Seasons passes at this mountain cost $1400 USD!!!!

They had been there for almost 2 months and were telling me that every 3rd day was fresh snow. And usually 2-3 ft at a time.

Day 23 - Friday Sept 17

As always, Chile is delivering with more fresh snow. Decided not to ride because the visibility looked poor with the snow.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1195-1.jpg

Took Friday off from riding and met another couple at my hotel, and toured around the village then spent the rest of the day in the hot tub.

Day 24 - Saturday

Bluebird Powder Day... Terrain at Chillan is sick. MASSIVE cornices everywhere. Trees, valleys, off piste and fresh tracks everywhere. This weekend is Deiz y Oucho, the Chilean National Holiday and the lift lines are still pretty short.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1211-1.jpghttp://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1231.jpg

Theres a lot of sketchy shit on this mountain - SUPER steeps with avalanches, 20 ft drops into boiling water thermal springs hiding behind the next pillow etc... Makes for fun riding :thumbsup:

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1239.jpg

Spent the night at the Firehall celebrating with all the locals for the Holiday. Very fun time. Everyone was very very drunk! The Chilenas were extra friendly.

Day 25 - Sunday Sept 18

Another Blue Bird Powder day.

Another night of hot tubbing, drinking, and partying at the firehall.

Day 26 & 27

Blue Bird spring conditions. Powder still fluffy in the trees and valleys, everywhere else its brown sugar.

Spent most of the day drinking beer, getting a really bad goggle tan, and hiking some jumps.
http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1255.jpg

Assado Lomo BBQ more hot tubbing and drinking.

I skipped on going to the natural hot springs. According to the locals, the facilities suck, and the water is black, smells like sulphur - I'll stick with the hot tub.

Also - Not very easy to hitch hike from Las Trancas, i recommend having a car. Not a lot of people at the resort at this time, finding a ride can be challenging.


Day 28

I fly from Santiago back to Seattle at 9pm - I check out of the hotel.

Theres some discrepancies on the charges. They tried to charge me 150USD extra because they found out I had a girl in the room one night. Took a while to convince the desk guy that was bull and finally got the charge removed. Sneaky bastards.

Good Bye Las Trancas - affectionately known as 'Las Druncas' by the locals

Drive back to Santiago goes smoothly. I have a few more hours to kill so I decide to drive back up to Farrelones and see if I can get some stickers for my board.

No Stickers. No Snow. The chairs are still running? I have no idea why. Apparently the 2 days we rode there were the 2 best of the season.

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj259/broken_legs/Chile_Argentina_2011/IMAG1262600x359.jpg
See what I mean?


And just like that, a month in South America has flown by.



I will be back....

[broken_legs]

Just went over all my visa bills and bank statements. This is the break down as best as I can recall:

Cash Money:
$770 - US Cash spent
$3686 - Withdrawls for cash while in Chile food, booze, 2 car rentals, hotels, scuba diving, motorcycle rental, guided tours, gas, lift tickets, baggage storage at airport, bus tickets etc..
$400 - Cash Withdrawls in Argentina Food, drinks, booze etc..

Flights:
$1535 - Seattle to Santiago includes charge for oversize luggage
$732 - Santiago to Easter Island
$87 - Santiago to Puerto Montt

Visa Bill (excluding Flights)
$ 1392 - Lift tickets, booze, food, gas etc...

Grand Total:
$ 9,480

Keep in mind that I traveled solo for the last half so things were more expensive. Also, I didn't mess around with hostels, cheap food, or try to be very frugal at any point. This trip was saved and paid for ahead of time. All together I rode 13 times, did 2 dives, rented a car for 8 days, an SUV for 7 days, a motorcycle for 2, stayed in 'upscale' hotels with creature comforts. I drank my face off, smoked like a chimey, ate like a king, and did it all on my terms.

I think you could easily slash a few thousand of the bill if you:
- Stay in a hostel
- Share accommodation
- Don't drink as much alcohol
- Buy your own food, take food to the ski hill
- Take the bus

Some specific costs I picked out:
- Lift Tickets @ Catedral: $47.50
- Chillan lift tickets: $65 in morning, $54 afternoon
- El Colorado Lift Tickets: $76
- Sketch SUV rental in Santiago: $65/day
- Car rental in Chillan: $76/day
- Hotel Nahuel in Bariloche: $70 USD/day
- Hotel Farrelones (with 2 ppl per room): $136/night per person
- Mana Nui Hotel: 85$ usd/night
- Motorcycle rental: 54$/day
- Scuba Diving at Orca: $76/dive
- Scuba Diving next to Orca: $65/dive
- Green Island Tours: $65/each

Basic meal w/ 2 beers on Easter Island: $50
Basic meal w/ 2 beers in Farrelones: $27

[s dime]

Looks awesome, i' m jealous!:drool: