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
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