The magical island of Chiloe, Chile

With the weather hitting a rainy patch we bee lined south to the Island of
Chiloe
. With its green forest, lush rolling hills and wild pacific coast we felt it was a stunning place to visit what ever the weather. We stayed the night in Puerto Octay on the southern mainland. A German influenced lakeside town that was shutdown in the winter. We camped by the lake on a quiet road. Not quiet enough as the police banged on the window to see what we were up to. A quick check of our passports at 3am and a sleepy response before they bade us a good holiday in Chile. Next morning we caught the ferry across to the island and the port of Chacao.
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We then headed west to where there is the Penguin sanctuary past Ancud. A desolate place in winter, the fast flowing ford to the beach was too high to cross so we parked up and wandered over a foot bridge. The rain was lashing down as we sheltered in the CONAF park hut. We watched a good documentary about the penguins in English that the helpful warden had found us, before a break in the weather let us strain our eyes to spot penguins. We saw a few outlines on the nearest island that the warden informed us were penguins, maybe!  It was just great to be in such a wind lashed place in the dark heart of a southern winter, just a few hardy souls spotted working on boats or hanging  about, certainly no tourists littering the beach.

 

After the penguin sanctuary we drove down a back road to Chepu. The rain was still lashing down as the road narrowed and steepened, then when we were halfway down a steep descent, the road fell away, we stopped on a flatter section to inspect. It had washed out. We tried reversing back up but there was no traction. We were stuck in the middle of nowhere on Chiloe which is already the middle of nowhere!! After some road works to widen the road with rocks and a 25 point turn we managed to get back to point uphill again. Then on the 3rd uphill attempt we managed to keep traction and reclimb the hill. At this point is was getting gloomy and the rain was still falling. We cautiously made it back to the bigger road and took the long way around! The road to Chepu in the wet wasn’t great but it was all driveable. We camped up on a random spot for a night listening to a chorus of frogs while hoping we wouldn’t be flooded in place tomorrow!

Chepu was isolated, we didn’t really know what to do, so we kept driving. We eventually arrived above the large beach at the head of an impossible rough and steep track down. We didn’t want to get stuck again so parked up and walked down. Some men on horses overtook us slowly treading down the track. The beach and dunes were vast, the featured image above shows some fairly wild horses roaming the wild expanse. We climbed headlands and over dunes past, arches and sea stacks, huge waterfalls spilling onto the beach. Then at the end some of the beach we saw women cutting and preparing seaweed. We saw a couple of local men on horses striding along the beach dragging huge bales of sea weed that they had prepared.

After detouring to Castro’s markets and the stilted houses, we headed due west to the national park of Chiloe past the two lakes and on to Cucao. A village at the end of the world, where it was fair to say the sunsets are amazing.

The next day was spent wandering the beach as far as the national park. The setting was remote with just the odd shack settled up the cliffs above the beach. These must belong to the few fishermen working the coast. We passed an old brightly coloured stock bridge crossing the river at the back of the beach for the cattle that are still in places grazing the dunes and back of the beach. This also linked the odd houses in the cliffs. The area at first felt empty but sitting down taking time we spotted an old lady with a large bag collecting driftwood, an old jeep pulled up before the river ford crossing. Two men got out put on neoprene trousers and waded into the sea. Another truck crossed the ford with water up to the bonnet. It survived. The tide then receded enough that a herd of trucks appeared with the men all wading into the sea to harvest shellfish. The seagulls were also harvesting them, they dropped them onto the hard sand to crack them open.

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The tranquility of the place in our rare winter sunshine was infectious we stayed in a deserted campground, where they kindly let us use showers in a summer rental cabin. We stayed longer than expected hiking and admiring the sunsets. The island is famous for its wooden churches of varying designs across all the 3o islands that make the area up. These were all quaint with some bright coulors and unique designs, the most interesting ones are covered by a UNESCO World Heritage designation.
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The island has a slow way of life, preserving some ancient traditions that have long been lost on the mainland. A unique Chilote population still populates most of the island.   Oxen pulled carts in the fields, where cattle grazed bright green grass. It really felt like time had stood still here. It has nothing of spectacular note but that is not the beauty of Chiloe, it is soaking in a way of life that exists in few other places on earth.

Ski touring Volcano Llaima, Chile

Volcano Llaima is in the Conguillío National Park in the middle of Chile, this is one of the more active volcanoes we skied/boarded, it last erupted in 2010…….that was just a couple of years ago, and it erupted again 2 years before that. Had I known quite how active it was and that it was due an eruption I would have been a little more anxious, but I didn’t so I was in blissful ignorance. Probably the best state when snow boarding volcanoes.

Looking back up the face of Volcano Llaima

Llaima has the Las Araucarias Ski Center at its base, a slightly more interesting area than some. We camped on the access road in our Wicked Campervan overnight in dense forest of Coihue trees, witnessing a stunning sunset in the process. The next morning we wake early and head up to the base area. We pull along side a fancy 4×4 camper and two Germans outside. True to style the Germans have beaten us to the start. They are pretty unfriendly and have no chat for us. It almost seems there is a competitive edge as we both rush to get ready. They set off before us with a few random stray dogs in tow. 

The approach road to Volcano Llaima

The resort has some more interesting terrain and a decent vertical drop, but was closed when we arrived, snow was thin. The weather was good though. We climbed next to the piste and saw the huge bulk of the volcano rise before us. At this point the stray dogs following the Germans ran back and the 4 of them proceeded to follow us all the way up to where we fitted crampons to climb!

There are 2 routes, simply; left and right flanks, we went left as it looked less glaciated on the map. It was mixed ice and softer snow.Riding down Volcano Llaima, dogs in tow

The upper slopes were pretty much blue ice on the verge of unrideable but we progressed with crampons and ice axes.

The ride back down was OK the dogs chased us, as we went which was super fun, I nearly hit a couple of them. We initially thought they were after food but it appeared they just loved coming ski touring! The volcano was another perfect cone as the pictures show it was shrouded in a light mist as the day drew on so the summit views had diminished. The final section down to the van was weaving in and out of monkey puzzle trees. The video below that I made shows quite a bit of Llaima; 

 

Is it going to bad snow year in the European Alps?

So it all started well but with about 15 days since the last proper snowfall, the Alps are starting to look thin on snow. It’s certainly not a disaster yet but some resorts are looking sketchy for a Christmas opening. This is the first week of arrivals in many higher resorts and skiers are being greeted by some rocky pistes and bare off piste. This was Alpe d’huez yesterday the 11/12/13. Despite appearances it is still open and spinning for skiing!OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

This is another shot of Alpe d’Huez and the funny cage lift. The low temperatures have allowed loads of snow making so many pistes are in better condition than you might think. But the cold dry weather and expert opinions seem to suggest a low snow but cold winter ahead. OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

A wider picture shows the pistes are in shape still but the forecast shows nothing for atleast two more weeks. Fingers crossed for a Christmas powder fest or it might be time for some flights to Japan!OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

This is looking over to Les Deux Alpes where the pistes are certainly not open!OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Ski Touring – Col de Cicle, Contamines

So with no fresh snow for a week and decidedly early season conditions, we decided to do a couple of

Opening day 2013/14; Grands Montets – Chamonix

Not as much snow as opening day last year here in Chamonix, but still plenty of pillows to ski. We had a fun day made much better by the 15cm of fresh that fell the night before. As all opening days should be we rode hard all day and left the Grands Montet feeling battered, bruised and muscles aching. It seems our summer/winter ski touring in South America is not the same as a winter lapping pow on chair lifts here in Chamonix!

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Snowboarding Volcanoes in Chile – The Movie

This is a Go Pro edit of us in Chile; hiking, splitboarding and snowboarding 9 Volcanoes across the country. We had every condition possible; sunshine and periods of endless rain, we had deep powder and scary windswept ice, winds that rocked the van and snapped trees and calm perfect days. Somevolcanoes had 40+ degree, super steep, 2000m of uninterrupted conical slopes, some were cruisey, but all had spectacular scenery.

The Volcanoes were as follows; Volcano Antuco, Volcano Chillan, Volcano, Lonquimay, Volcan Casablanca, Volano Villarica, Volcano Quetrupillan, Volano Calbuaco, Volano Lanin and Volcano Llaima. If anyone wants more info check out my blog posts or let me know. It seems there is a lack of info on skiing volcanoes in Chile so I am happy to answer any questions.

 

 

Early season snow in Cervinia, Italy and Courchevel, France

A weekend spent skiing or snowboarding in the high resort of Cervinia, Italy on 16/17th November provided some great early season powder. The views of the Matterhorn in Cervinia are super cool too, the Italian face is not its most spectacular aspect but still great to see. After an initial trip on the Saturday the snow was so good that after a drink that evening in Chamonix it was decided to return on the Sunday. At 90mins from Chamonix, through the tunnel, it’s not a bad journey. The weekend was not a bad start to the season, two days riding in mid November can’t be sniffed at! You have to love Italian skiing, cheap great coffee and awesome food on the hill.

The weekend of the 22nd November it was a trip to Courchevel to take advantage of the free ski preview weekend. Huge queues meant only 4 runs, but 40cm of powder in the obvious couloirs under Saulire lift made it well worth the effort. On the 23rd we attempted our first ski tour back in Chamonix valley at the appropriately named Le Tour. The wind had transformed the snow sadly and it was battering us in the face. Combined with a steep icy skin track and low visibility higher up it was good to stretch the legs but not the best day ever on the snow!!

 

Patagonia the Movie…..

The first installment of my South America snowboarding edit is now on You Tube. This is part 1 of 3 that will make up the whole movie at about 15 minutes in total, so take a look at the movie below.
This episode is centered on Patagonia and the national parks – Mt Fitzroy, Torres del Paine and the area around Bariloche. It was a dry year so we ended up hiking more than snowboarding in the deep south, but the views are inspiring. Also it has been selected to enter an Epic TV competition, so please view it and vote if you like it at the following;

http://www.epicthule.com/videos/video/snowboarding-adventures-in-patagonia/

Wow 3 months in South America is almost over

So after 3 months my flight home to Europe is tomorrow. It has been insanely good;

I have climbed and ridden volcanoes, splitboarded the high andes in the shadow of 7000m peaks, boarded deep powder in patagonia, sat out endless rain, ridden deep snow through forests of monkey puzzle trees, experienced crazy gales and storms, seen countless condors soaring, sat in hot springs surrounded by untracked powder, hiked for days among some of the wildest and majestic scenery the world has to offer, eaten a lot of pasta, travelled 1000s of kilometers by car, bus,van, boat and airplane.

I now have to sit and sort out 32gb of pictures and videos…..watch this space, I hope to start updating the blog next week

The endless rain of Chile’s Northern Patagonia

So after we left the Island of Chiloe we headed further south, on the mainland into Northern Patagonia. The weather was dire, no snow just rain up to the top of the Volcanoes.