South America 2026

[tseeb]

Report from Valle Nevado from alexzn who I know @Tony Crocker skied with at Palisades Tahoe gathering. He does not include dates he skied but I think it was in the first half of August. His advice includes "The drive to Valle Nevado was uneventful, but we were glad that we took the transfer, as the road to the resort is very unpleasant. The Andes are really, really steep and you are crawling up switchback after switchback. Note to yourself: don't drive in the Andes unless absolutely necessary..."

 

[Tony Crocker]

by 12noon on a decent day from February to the closing date, 90% of the terrain will be a variable surface: crud/corn/mashed potatoes.

Not true at Mammoth. Mammoth is probably better than LCC at preserving winter snow and equal to most of Colorado aside from the 11,000+ foot places like A-Basin. I've skied chalky windbuff at the early February Mammoth industry demo after multiple weeks of no new snow. And the upper steeps usually retain winter snow into early April, absent an event like this year's March heatwave.

I have reached the point where I avoid giving gear advice; my own preferences have become so specific that my perspective is rarely useful to others.

Yes, I'm reticent in that regard too. But unlike most people here sbooker has no home turf to experiment with equipment.

Andes mimic Sierra-like snow. It's heavier than Rocky Mountain snow, and can be compacted by winds.

Mammoth is the closest analogy to the Santiago areas in terms of both wind and altitude range. Why is Mammoth better?
1) More snowfall
2) Higher latitude for preservation, also the main explanation for the snowfall difference.
3) Mammoth terrain, expert terrain in particular, is oriented to catch wind deposition. La Parva's orientation is negative in that regard, and I don't see any obvious large deposition sectors among these ski areas like Mammoth has. There might be few pockets in Portillo that are not obvious.

My view that these places with a big snowpack in September are an analogy to Mammoth in April greatly informed my decision for the upcoming trip.

For CaseyE's benefit: If you put Portillo's altitude range at Chillan's latitude and orient the mountain so nearly all the expert terrain faces SE for wind deposition, that's Mammoth!

 

[ChrisC]

His advice includes "The drive to Valle Nevado was uneventful, but we were glad that we took the transfer, as the road to the resort is very unpleasant. The Andes are really, really steep and you are crawling up switchback after switchback. Note to yourself: don't drive in the Andes unless absolutely necessary..."

I don't think the Andes are particularly bad for mountain roads. It's just unusual how much vertical they climb for North American skiers, especially when interstates serve our major resorts. We do have some high-pass or big-access-road resorts: Cottonwood Canyons, Mount Baldy, Bogus Basin, Whitefish, Schweitzer, Taos, etc., but they usually have shoulders.

Honestly, I am more impressed by how poor the roads are in Europe, especially to mega-resorts like Val Thorens, Monterosa, Alpe d'Huez, Saas Fee, Cervinia, etc. And I have only experienced Coronet Peak in New Zealand.

Anyway, I thought the access road to the Santiago resorts was scenic and relatively crowd-free in a previous August, so I could take a quick photo while driving or from the roadside. Weekdays had light traffic, but you still had to pass some drivers. Weekends were more crowded, but with 2 lanes in each direction, passing was straightforward. There was snowfall (4-6 inches), but the snowline/accumulation was almost at resort level.

However, by Day 4, I was done with driving/daily commuting, no matter how beautiful the views were.


Photos to set personal expectations/comfort level - all over 4 days in August 2016, commuting from Las Condes/Santiago, one minor snowstorm overnight on day 3.

 

[Sbooker]

I have reached the point where I avoid giving gear advice; my own preferences have become so specific that my perspective is rarely useful to others.

I also have a brother who is a genuine gear guru—and he certainly thinks so. I avoid bringing my own skis to Colorado because it feels like a slight against him, or my equipment is pathetic. As a result, I usually just let him pick skis that he finds interesting or condition-appropriate, at least until his work obligations or ADHD get the better of him.



My preferences have shifted because of a high-moisture Coastal snowpack. They are not really normal or standard.

Basically, I have given up on making lots of short-radius, carved turns on a hard, groomed snowpack. I feel 100mm+ skis with sidecut can carve 'well enough' for mid-to-wide turns and hold an edge. Instead of even having something narrower, All-Mountain, I now have 2 wider skis with different flex patterns depending upon terrain type.

I don't really mind an approximately 100 mm-wide ski in New England. However, I despise getting thrown around in crud.

In Tahoe or NW, snow quickly transitions to something wetter. Even groomers decline quickly. Basically, by 12noon on a decent day from February to the closing date, 90% of the terrain will be a variable surface: crud/corn/mashed potatoes. Groomers too, with traffic and temps. All-mountain skis get rendered useless/less effective. I am just picking the tool for the job.

Why is this relevant? I just found the Andes mimic Sierra-like snow. It's heavier than Rocky Mountain snow, and can be compacted by winds.

A stronger case against my equipment if I were based in Colorado or Utah. Even Mammoth. I am still amazed at Colorado's low-moisture snow, where 12-16 inches beats feet or Sierra/coastal snow. And I still get jealous of the Euro racers slicing up icy pistes at the end of the day while I deal with thick boards and sometimes degraded edges from rocks.

I appreciate the advice. I genuinely do. But I’m a pretty unskilled skier. I can’t get a 100mm ski up on edge well. And I get thrown around in crud no matter what I’m on.

 

[Tony Crocker]

I don't think the Andes are particularly bad for mountain roads. It's just unusual how much vertical they climb for North American skiers, especially when interstates serve our major resorts.

That was my impression though in 2007 we had a tour company with a driver shuttling us from Los Andes to Portillo and Arpa. He also took dam, Richard and me on a day tour of Valparaiso, deposited and picked us up for the 3 days/2nights at Valle Nevado, and ended the trip with a wine tour in the Colchagua Valley. Liz and I did quite a bit of driving in rural Chile on our December 2017 and 2021 trips, and Liz had some very adventurous driving solo in July 2010.

It's the length and vertical of those drives; I just don't want to do them as a daily commute.

And I have only experienced Coronet Peak in New Zealand.

That's the easy one since it's paved. All the other places I've skied in NZ have gravel roads!

I am more impressed by how poor the roads are in Europe, especially to mega-resorts like Val Thorens, Monterosa, Alpe d'Huez, Saas Fee, Cervinia, etc.

Yes some of those also get into the category of not wanting to commute multiple days. We departed Zermatt and daytripped Saas-Fee this past March. Fresh off my Zermatt knee incident I had to request that Liz do all of the mountain road driving that day. We have stayed on-site at all the other places ChrisC enumerates above, though we daytripped from Alpe d'Huez to Les Deux Alpes.

I can’t get a 100mm ski up on edge well. And I get thrown around in crud no matter what I’m on.

That's a personal thing. There are many knowledgeable skiers who claim that putting a100+mm ski on edge creates knee stress, but I do not feel that. Performance tends to degrade some, especially on hard snow. But my Blizzard Bonafides have great versatility ranging from powder to hardpack. I bought the first pair in December 2012 precisely because I knew that versatility would be important skiing the Arlberg the next month. I'm on my fourth and last pair of Bonafides now, a 2020 model because they were redesigned in 2021.

 

[Casey E]

A dry spell to start September, but with relatively low temps, which was also noted in the meteo.cl forecast ("below normal maximums").

North to south:

 

[Sbooker]

That's a personal thing.

For sure. Refer to my previous comment about being unskilled.
You know that nice feeling of being rocketed out of a turn? I don’t get that sensation so much with wider skis.
I am going to make a point of renting some race style skis for a day when if I get suitable conditions in Europe this year when I’ll be skiing with the kids.

 

[snowbird surfer]

I have reached the point where I avoid giving gear advice; my own preferences have become so specific that my perspective is rarely useful to others.

I also have a brother who is a genuine gear guru—and he certainly thinks so. I avoid bringing my own skis to Colorado because it feels like a slight against him, or my equipment is pathetic. As a result, I usually just let him pick skis that he finds interesting or condition-appropriate, at least until his work obligations or ADHD get the better of him.



My preferences have shifted because of a high-moisture Coastal snowpack. They are not really normal or standard.

Basically, I have given up on making lots of short-radius, carved turns on a hard, groomed snowpack. I feel 100mm+ skis with sidecut can carve 'well enough' for mid-to-wide turns and hold an edge. Instead of even having something narrower, All-Mountain, I now have 2 wider skis with different flex patterns depending upon terrain type.

I don't really mind an approximately 100 mm-wide ski in New England. However, I despise getting thrown around in crud.

In Tahoe or NW, snow quickly transitions to something wetter. Even groomers decline quickly. Basically, by 12noon on a decent day from February to the closing date, 90% of the terrain will be a variable surface: crud/corn/mashed potatoes. Groomers too, with traffic and temps. All-mountain skis get rendered useless/less effective. I am just picking the tool for the job.

Why is this relevant? I just found the Andes mimic Sierra-like snow. It's heavier than Rocky Mountain snow, and can be compacted by winds.

A stronger case against my equipment if I were based in Colorado or Utah. Even Mammoth. I am still amazed at Colorado's low-moisture snow, where 12-16 inches beats feet or Sierra/coastal snow. And I still get jealous of the Euro racers slicing up icy pistes at the end of the day while I deal with thick boards and sometimes degraded edges from rocks.

Two sets of skis. Moment wildcats for powder/corn/packed powder. Shift bindings add touring option. Head super shapes or stockli lasers to join the euro crowd.

Funny story, after a few days of charging the rothorn and hohtali faces my wildcats needed a tune. I brought them into bayard sports and was treated like a celebrity. The head tech was so excited to see and feel the skis that he did a pro level full tune with base welds at no charge.

 

[takeahike46er]

Two sets of skis. Moment wildcats for powder/corn/packed powder. Shift bindings add touring option.

…slackcountry option.
…short backcounty mission option.

Touring warrants a much lighter and less finicky setup IMO. It’s also nice to not have to take off your skis when transitioning. Hybrid setups are great for dabbling the backcountry or if someone is on a budget.

Back to epic South American conditions updates

 

[Tony Crocker]

It’s also nice to not have to take off your skis when transitioning.

You can apply or remove skins without taking skis off? You should be a yoga instructor!

 

[takeahike46er]

You can apply or remove skins without taking skis off? You should be a yoga instructor!

Just remove. There are strategies you can use if you’re not super flexible (like me!). It saves considerable time when transitioning.

The other way around isn’t really feasible.

 

[snowbird surfer]

…slackcountry option.
…short backcounty mission option.

Touring warrants a much lighter and less finicky setup IMO. It’s also nice to not have to take off your skis when transitioning. Hybrid setups are great for dabbling the backcountry or if someone is on a budget.

Back to epic South American conditions updates

Very reasonable opinion from an appropriately named contributor . I strongly favor downhill performance and so I usually grab my wildcat setup for up to 4k of vert in lieu of my proper dps alchemist/dynafit kit.

Is it safe to assume late September will offer some of the best touring SA has seen in two decades?

 

[Tony Crocker]

Is it safe to assume late September will offer some of the best touring SA has seen in two decades?

I assume you mean the southern volcanoes with decrepit lift infrastrastructure where the best skiing means touring above the lifts. Since CaseyE is in Villarica right now, he should be able to answer that question. September and October are not immune from high winds and other bad weather that can restrict skiing down there. This is sufficiently chronic that tour guides like Powderquest build in extra days in their schedules because it's rare for every day to have viable backcountry ski conditions.

 

[jasoncapecod]

This the day i would want....