But before we are allowed to plunge into one of the gullies, we have to get accredited as freeriders at the lift. This means that we must be familiar with alpine dangers, be able to assess the avalanche risk and be prepared to take the risk of an accident ourselves. Then everyone gets a neon-colored sticker stuck to their ski goggles and the guys from the piste control give us the go-ahead.
The gullies lead into different faces, which are constantly divided into new gullies, hollows and slopes and there is something new to discover on every descent. My personal highlight, however, is the discovery of the Cerro Martìn at 3602 m altitude, which lies behind the Cerro Los Fosiles. Many years ago, as a very young snowboarder, I saw a snowboard video in which the heroes of the first hour had skied this mountain in a spectacular way. That was the initial spark for me to go snowboarding so much, to be able to snowboard at a higher level and ride really challenging lines like this one. And now this mountain is suddenly right in front of me and even seems to be accessible on foot!
A dream come true
The next morning, the time has come. We climb up over the ridge on the right and continue along a ridge. From here, we have to make our way through the ridge cornice and descend into a gully to reach the Cerro Martìn descent that I had marveled at in the video. The childhood dream comes true after 20 years. The slope is still untracked, and I draw my line into the freshly snow-covered face of the Cerro Martin at high speed. The snow is a fine dusting under the board and the bright sunshine makes the brown of the rocks around me glow. It couldn't be better! A day like this deserves to be celebrated and we celebrate with Malbec and an asado - the traditional Argentinian barbecue meal. That's how it should be in Argentina. The grill master, who is called an asador here, celebrates the barbecue in his own way - usually for hours. Hours in which we review what we have experienced so far over many glasses of wine. Hours in which we drink even more and plan our next trip through this impressive country.
It also takes hours the next morning until the headache from the many emptied glasses of the previous evening is over and we have loaded all our luggage into the car on the way to the next stop on our trip to Argentina?
Text: Holger Feist | Photos Baschi Bender
