Skiing an active Volcano-Villarrica

Volcano Villarrica
Lake Villarrica
On the lift with the Volcano reflection
Classic Matt/Todd Iron Cross
Ice Bar anyone?!?!

An incredible day of skiing today at Villarrica, an active volcano that the city of Pucon, Chile rests in the shadows of. The Volcano is constantly puffing out clouds of smoke as you ride up the chair lift and you ski down looking down over beautiful lake Villarrica (it is Tahoe-esk).

Staying at Hostel Etnico in Pucon has been awesome, Gustavo the owner has been a great guy to hang out with. A mountain guide in his own right and currently learning how to tele, we hit the mountain hard together today. Suprisingly enough Kay, a woman from Washington showed up at the hostel yesterday chasing snow. With our new crew we headed up to the mountain with 2 cameras, my flip, and Kay's Go-Pro video cameras to film for most of the day. Tons of skiing some awesome pics and great video to remember this epic day. I posted the video below. Also, the video I tried to post from Chillan failed because it was enourmous. I shortened it considerably and reposted so take a look at it as well. Epic pow!!!

I may be talking to you from the southern tip of South America very soon!! Until then,

<><>LTD
Matt/Todd

3 Days of Sippin' Pillows

Dumpage in Las Trancas waiting for the bus

Ski school at the mid station were I hiked up solo from

Out the Hostel window to a winter wonder land

JD on the move after skiing back from Nevados on the road, yeah we skied home 8 km from the mountain!!!

Nevados De Chillan got hammered with almost 5 feet of snow over 3 days. They did not open the upper lift on Tuesday because of "bad weather" which includes the phrase “ there is too much snow.”

SAY WHAT???

I'VE HAD TOO MUCH TO DRINK!!!
NO I DON'T WANT A NON-ALCOHOLIC BEER!!!
I HAD TO USE THE MENS ROOM GARBAGE CAN!!!
THERE IS TOO MUCH SNOW!!!

Four things that should never be said nor heard, nor questioned, EVER!!!

Yeah, too much snow is a term they understand and embrace here. I don’t get it. Anyways, JD and I skied the lower lift for 5 hours getting 990 feet of vertical each run. All-in-all, it might have worked out for the better. Justin, who has skied since he was four, hasnt seen a ski slope for the better part of 3 seasons and needed to get his leg’s back under him. By the afternoon he was starting to show some moments of his smooth-and-effortless-747-coming-in-for-a-landing-in-strong-crosswinds ski conditioning. Turns out working off the rust for the upcoming pristine Thursday was welcomed. Treading down the hill on his rent-a-wreck 170cm skis for children with nothing underfoot, reconditioning was all there was to fill the mighty gaps his skis created for him. Great day for video! Ha!

Wednesday, Mountain Management again did not open the upper chairs due to bad (i.e. perfect skier weather) so I hiked 1,000 vertical feet with JD, then headed up further on my own and boot packed in knee-to-waste deep pow for another 1,000 vertical feet. My first set of solid face shots over 5 minutes of some of the deepest sugar I have ever skied into frosting.

The Chileans are finicky Skiers. They love the groomed runs, never venturing off-piste, leaving all the deep and epic lines for the Diehards, which essentially consists of Expats and Gringos. Great, you Guys enjoy the high priced and high trafficked groomers and I will be on the rest of the mountain taking face shoots and launching off the many cornices’ that are everywhere. Another curious Chilean ski habit is the Noontime start. Mountain opens at 9:00am and the Chileans arrive at Noon in droves to clog the lifts for the afternoon. They may, and well they do, only ski in the Sunshine. Why, when it dumps, is the mountain empty? Oh, I almost forgot, no one actually runs the resort, the busses run at different times ever day, no one knows any information about the resort, and there is a feeling of, "What are you doing here?" in the air. It is a different world, and given the current music blasting so loud you have to literaly yell to buy a ticket, it is also late 1980's here.

Enough with the ranting, I/we skied some epic lines and had the best day of the Season (I am including my first Ski Season of this year also) on Thursday, 5 feet of un-skied freshies and Sun...SO MUCH SUN!!! The new to me Rossi S7’s proved their weight in gold... AND I TOOK A TON OF VIDEO FOOTAGE!!! Check out the footage!!! It looks a lot like winter down here!!! Strangely missing Christmas though...

You might notice at the end of the video that we are skiing past cars and tracters, well, it is because we are. The snow was so nice on Thursday we decided the stupid bus that got us there at 11ish and leaving at 3:30pm was not worth catching because we would miss out on an hour and a half of skiing. In the spirit of adventure and taking full advantage of the winter wonder land we strapped our skis to our feet and skied all the way back to las Trancas 8km. It was awesome cruising past the timid Chilean drivers waiving and being stared at.

Concepcion

Fractured road from flooding


Toppled apartment building


Steel framed building that burned


Justin next to a building that is no longer


Massive mid-rise structural failure yet still standing

We took an overnight bus from Santiago to Concepcion arriving to a cold blustery morning, seeing the outskirts of Concepcion in a taxi to the hostel. It looks like the rest of SA so far with low level houses and yards cluttered with some debris and a spattering of poor graffiti and the occasional piece that inspires. We exit the cab, assaulted by wind hurling the dust and dirt in our faces you might expect in a damaged city trying to rebuild.

Walking to the central market to get lunch, I notice the buildings in this area are short, most not taller than three stories, and all built touching each other. As we walk the sun breaks through where a building used to stand and warms our cold bodies. There is a corrugated steel fence blocking the rubble but an open door provides a peak. The wires and brick still hanging from the neighboring building and the piles of rubble still waiting to be removed tell the tale of the February 27th earthquake. The term "earth shattering" comes to mind with new perspective seeing the damage the 8.8 magnitude quake has caused. Every few blocks there is corrugated fencing where a building used to stand, some with open doors and workers rebuilding and others stagnant.

We walked for 3 hours around the city surveying the damage and taking in the city whose heartbeat is still alive with commerce and rebuilding. The damage still towers over the city with one mid rise building having multiple floors fracture and give out, now standing ominously over the city.

We stumbled upon an apartment building whose foundation gave way and toppled over onto its back now showing us the concrete structure that once supported it. I can't help but think of the fear and trauma the occupants still inside must have felt. On the other side of the building you can see the top 3 floors fractured off when it hit the ground. It is a dramatic sight and one that is burnt into my memories like stained glass. The rebuilding of Concepcion is already underway with construction crews rebuilding facades, cleaning up debris, and the occasional tower crane in the skyline.

The local bus to Talcahuano and San Vicente reveals the second part of the quake damage that was not as prominent in the news coverage. These 2 towns make up a small peninsula bordering the Pacific ocean and got the brunt of the Tsunami caused by the quake. A local explained the waves surged for 3 hours raising the sea 10 feet leaving a trail of destruction as it receded into the sea. They were digging up and replacing the utilities along the water, and there are still piles of trash waiting to be removed. We stopped on the way back at the mall and found it packed with families eagerly spending there money and consuming in surprisingly similar fashion as we do in the states.

<><> LTD
Matt/Todd

1st Day of Skiing!!!!!

Pictures: (1st) Me at the top of Nevados De Chillan, (2nd)Skis on the bus, unconventional yet highly effective, (3rd) The Mountain, the top is the broad mountain center left with all the white stuff on it, (4th) Chilean lift repair, note the ski boots are still on and the safety rope is in his right hand.

Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes today it finally happened my first day of skiing in the southern hemisphere!!! And what a day it was. A place called Nevados De Chillan. I couldn't sleep past 5am this morning, drank more "wonderful" Nescafe (does't deserve to be capitilized), waited for the bus in 15 degree Fehrenheit temp for an hour, paid $6o USD for a 990 feet of vertical serviced by second hand lifts from Spain that can only be set to slow y mas slow. So I skied non stop from 10am to 3pm (no food, no water) and had the one of the most fun and defenitely most memorable ski days of my life.

I met 2 Brits and an Irish guy all wearing 1980's one pieces so naturally we skied together. It was a perfectly blue sky day with a little wind (at the bottom) and the mountain I have nicknamed the Squaw Valley of Chile. The mountain is broad and tall and brutally windy at the top. Yes, they eventually opened the upper chair around noon thirty, although the other big chair lift isn't running because the old owner does not want to let the new owner have it. Also, side note the casino at the hotel costs $5 USD just to enter. Welcome to South America, friends! Regardless, I found myself alone on the T-bar to the top laughing so hard with excitement, joy, and overall uncontrollable elation I made myself cry. No not sissy crying, man crying like I have jalepeno in my eye but someone told a funny joke at the same time kind

I included a bit of video that sums up my day better than any words along with the beatiful pictures above. Today has hands down been the best day of my trip and tomorrow looks like 18 inches of new snow expected and skiing with my original ski buddy Justin Dodd for the first time in a decade. Life is......better than good!

<><>LTD

Matt/Todd

Rants and Raves

Pictures: Improptu dance and photo session in Valp0. (upper) Justin (lower) Matt

I have been in Chile for 10 days now and have a few things I would like to get off my chest. It has been warm during the day but the nights cold. I am talking 28-34 degrees Fahrenheit at night. So, who cares right? There is no heat in the hostels, none! 2 layers of blankets and usually a propane heater that has no canister. Try getting out of bed when the ambient air temperature is 32 degrees, not an easy thing to do. It sucks and there is no wonder why Justin and I have failed to get our day started before 10am yet. As we move south and into the mountains I am expecting for heat to be common.

The Chilean economy is doing just fine right now. Chile is the first South American country to earn 1st world status (January 2010) and their economy is running on fish and copper exports amoung others. In Santiago and Concepcion (a Concepcion post is coming) we patronized local malls and they were all packed with happy teens and families spending their money on a surprising amount of American brands. The malls are stocked with American stores like: Hush Puppies, Levis, The North Face, Columbia, and more. They love American mass culture and clothing, I see people wearing Burton, Billabong, and Mossimo (remember Mossimo from the mid 90's, I had one of their shirts, don't judge), the music in the local bars and pubs is all American, lot's of classic rock and 90's rock. The first night in Santiago we heard a 10 song set that was Pearl Jam, Sound Garden, R.H. Chili Peppers, and Alice in Chains it felt like home.

Food.....sorry Chile but your food is lacking! I have nicknamed Chile "bland-land" in tribute to their genuine fear of spices or anything that resembles a flavor enhancement. And if they do find the salt I am convinced that someone in this country is unscrewing the lids off the shakers in every restaurant. Ewww baby, let's talk about breakfast, Nescafe is the national plague of Chile and I find myself, as any true Seattlelite would diving into any Starbucks I see for a decent cup of coffee. Nope not done quite yet, there is still the matter of the Completos (Kum-plate-os), who doesn't want a half cooked hot dog on an oversized bun smothered in diced tomatoes, 5 ounces of quacamole, and mayonaise on the very top. They are everywhere and it is borderline appalling. There is one bright spot, let's make it two, the Empanadas are delicious. Take some meat, carmalized onion, olive, spices (they do exist here), and quarter of a hard boiled egg in the center and wrap that in dough and you have a delicious Empanada. The second is not food but the national drink of Chile the Pisco Sour. Sweet, strong and refreshing I can drink them all night if I only want to be out until 10pm.

Rants and raves for now I have some incredible pictures of buildings in Concepcion to share. They will be up soon. Skiing is only days away I finally found snow!!!

<><>LTD

Matt/Todd

El Muro Gigante

Pictures: (top) Womans Face around the corner from El Muro Gigante, (center) El Muro Gigante, (bottom left) Valparaiso elevator at the top station, (bottom right) Random graffiti in a stair case we stumbled upon.

Santiago is not a city that overwhelmes you with her architectural beauty or charm. Other than the historic district that our hostel (Tales) is in there is not a lot of eww and aww moments; unless you look real carefully and then you will be open to the world that is Chilean graffiti. Among the boring stone buildings are these little gems of some of the worlds top graffiti artists. Chile is the rising star of graffiti with many critics now holding this South American up-and-comer in the likes of Germany for the world supremecy of best graff.

I found this amazing discovery for myself while in Valparaiso over the weekend as Justin and I were walking along the incredibly unispiring street at the south end of town, when I noticed this womans face on the wall (see above) next to me. I was instantly taken back by the definition and style of the work knowing this is rare talent to pull this off. Ten steps later we saw El Muro Gigante (see above) the most impresive piece of graffiti I have ever seen. 4 stories tall maybe 5 with a massive tree in the center and incredible detail throughout. The commisioned piece, like many commisioned pieces in Valparaiso and Santiago they are respected by the ones writing F@%K and other abnoxious things on the walls. El Muro Gigante and other peices are a part of Expo Graffiti Porteno (http://www.graffitivalparaiso.com/), were they brought together the best artist in Chile to put up art. Check out the website and watch the cool video, also if you google "chilean graffiti" you will get tons of cool images.

Moving on, with new significant snowfall over 12 days away Justin and I have decided to head to Tiera Del Fuego, the southern tip of SA and make our way back north skiing. There seems to be more snow happening there and the possibility of Antarctica is luring both of us. First, I need to get my technology figured out. I am missing some chargers and now have no power for my camera and Flip leaving me without the ability to document visually. Frustrating to say the least! With that and waiting for snow the begining of this trip (day 6) has not been what I expected.

Highlights of the last few days:
Chilean Graffiti
Valparaiso
Pablo Neruda's house in Valpo
The Valpo elevators
World Cup final
Pisco Sours (national drink of chile) they will put you on your ass and then you cannot get a bus back to Santiago because you are too drunk. Seriosly they would not let us on. Personal note: Be weary of Pisco in the future.

<><>LTD
Matt/Todd

Planning

Pictures: My buddy K-Korn chillin' on the plane, Mt. Rainer on my way to the airport.
Justin met me at the airport and totally saved my ass so I didn't have to struggle to get anywhere. It has been easy to not plan the trip knowing that Justin is down here and willing to take me under his wing to start. Having no plan is bothering me now. I started looking into skiing but Portillo only has a 27 inch base right now and that does not scream "come here now" to me so I am happy to spend a few days in Santiago and Valparaiso with JD. It is really nice to be able to hang out with my best friend from 1st grade after not seeing him for almost 2 years. He looks taller now that his has thinned down he looks like a new man.

To the plans, Valpo for a day or two then start the ski adventure. I am going to try to make my way to all of these ski areas along the way and it is very expensive so I am going to need to be carefull how I spend my money. Carrying all this gear around is even more challenging than I anticipated it is so difficult to have two backpacks and 7 foot bag to drag around with you. We took the subway from the airport to Hostel Tales during moring rush hour and it was packed. Body to body with all of this gear, I couldn't believe we made it into the car, and once we did people at the next stop decided it was not full enough. That was my first experience in South America. Bed Time now so we can make it to Valparaiso in the morning. I am trying to get more pictures up soon.

I almost forgot about the mountains surrounding Santiago. They are the biggest mountains I have ever seen! It is like being surrounded by Mt. Rainier's. The Andes are no joke my friends they are massive. It is incredibly intimidating!!