South America 2026

A lot of skiers are showing up in Chile, only to find out Portillo is still closed.

2 weeks and counting....

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However, if one storm-chased this, you lost:
  • Portillo - closed
  • Las Lenas - Marte yet to open, mid/lower slopes opened July 25-26
  • Valle Nevado / La Parva / El Colorado - got to 90% open by Monday, July 27th


Maybe Las Lenas can get Marte open sometime next week? Weekend of August 8th? Stability looks OK - 3 out of 5
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Tony Crocker said:
Portillo and Las Lenas both fall into the category of: “you’re there for the terrain not the powder.” It’s futile to chase powder from the opposite hemisphere. What you hope to get is smooth windbuff or corn.

This is all normal to me as Mammoth is my home mountain. The Alps are a little different in terms of sheltered areas above tree line preserving powder. That’s probably because there are higher peaks and ridges sheltering that powder from wind.

FWIW Soulskier says Las Lenas is windier than Mammoth, and even though I only skied one day at La Parva, wind effects (sastrugi, wide areas stripped of snow) were glaringly obvious.
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Yes. Much more wind-impacted than Europe.

IMHO - small sample size:
  • Las Lenas, La Parva and El Colorado (plus all the Chilean volcano resorts) are heavily wind-affected. You are looking for some protected chutes/gullies. When snow-fences are more important than snow-making, enough said.
  • Portillo and Valle Nevado have some more protected areas/valleys.
 
ChrisC said:
However, if one storm-chased this, you lost:
  • Portillo - closed
  • Las Lenas - Marte yet to open, mid/lower slopes opened July 25-26
  • Valle Nevado / La Parva / El Colorado - got to 90% open by Monday, July 27th


Maybe Las Lenas can get Marte open sometime next week? Weekend of August 8th? Stability looks OK - 3 out of 5
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Click to expand...
Holy smokes powder chase effort:reward is terrible. Seems that the only way to do Portillo is to be prepared to make the call a day out and be prepared to commute to Los Andes with the hope of picking up a mini week cancellation. And the only way to do las lenas is to allocate 2 weeks for travel/wind holds.
 
The Southern volcanoes have received some snow up high, but much of it was blown away, and upper lifts mostly closed. Lower slopes have been rain-impacted. A Whistler sandwich-type issue - squeezed into the middle of just ok skiing.


Pillan looks ridiculous

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Corralco

I don't need an on-site report to see:
  • base - rain/mix at base, a bit frozen
  • middle -ok
  • summit - winds on ridge lines, lift shown as closed

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Middle is NOT OK. Coverage, but closed.
Summit - likely a hurricane

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Nevados de Chillán

Instagram skiers showed hurricane conditions at mid-mountain. Lowest slopes are below rain line.

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jamesdeluxe said:
Is there any other lift-served ski region in the world with this much snow volatility?
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Oh no... :rolleyes: :D

jamesdeluxe

Post in thread 'My FWSA Transcript on Climate Change and the Future of Snowsports'

snowbird surfer said:
I will screen shot your data and stare at it for 3 minutes prior to bedtime to ensure a good night sleep.
Click to expand...
If you look in the terms and conditions when you registered for this forum, you'll see that it includes an exam on a variety of snow-related topics -- after which we reserve the right to review your further participation here.
  • Haha
 
jamesdeluxe said:
Is there any other lift-served ski region in the world with this much snow volatility?
Click to expand...
Tony Crocker

Post in thread '"Unprecedented" April Snowstorm'

EMSC said:
I still maintain that a majority of snow in the alps comes in exactly this type of storm: humongous. With only some snowfall outside of the huge dumps. eg more Sierra like than Colo or BC like, making pre-booked skiing very much a crap shoot at best.
Click to expand...

Review of Western regional standard deviations as percent of season snowfalls:

Northern and Central Colorado 18-25%, Beaver Creek and Winter Park under 20%, A-Basin highest

Canadian Rockies and Interior B.C. 18-25%, Okanagan and Revelstoke/Rogers Pass under 20%, Banff areas highest.

US Northern Rockies 18-26%, Big Sky, Brundage...
:bow:
 
I guess the road to Portillo is plowed, but they are not letting traffic up yet. IDK. There is another storm this weekend. Maybe next week?

But it’s mind-boggling that there's been no access for over 2 weeks during high season.

Also, the last official Portillo resort update was July 23, over a week ago. Seems like classic miscommunication (or non-communication) errors are being made. No news is the worst. People can deal with / understand issues that need to be resolved or mitigated. Does Portillo really want the perception that the ski area/resort can be closed for 2-3 weeks?

According to TGR, this current storm cycle was significant compared to the last decade, but barely registers in its Top 10.

Translated version:
Truth? Who knows - conspiracy by Chilean Gvt. lol. But did see other photos of road plowing online.

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And a helicopter popped up! Assume ferrying guests up.

I guess Portillo is finally opening.

Or too many angry ski campers and racers.....what else? Ask Chris Davenport to refund all of his attendees who might already be in Chile?

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