New snow?! Back in Mendoza, I realize that the pass road to Chile is closed. That means it must have snowed a lot in Penitentes. I set off the next morning and sure enough, a few perfect days await us...
...By chance, Claudia and Alex from Munich have also arrived here and we enjoy the hard-earned, but all the drier powder on Cerro Santa Maria. After the two of them have moved on, I spend two more days exploring the backside of the ski resort before the weather changes and I decide to move on.
Vallecitos
In the meantime, I hear interesting things from Vallecitos, apparently the snow conditions there have also improved significantly. I meet up with Simon, a friend from last winter in the south, and equipped with a tent and warm sleeping bag, we try our luck. Pleased with the increase in snow, we pitch our tent at 3500m and, after a rather uncomfortable and very windy night, set off towards Cerro Rincón.
La Supercanaleta, the central snow band that runs through the east face, was probably a little too ambitious. We make it about halfway up to 4800m and then decide to turn back - it's getting late and we're both exhausted. Simon is not used to the altitude and is feeling worse and worse. He takes it with humor and remarks that the view here is really great, before throwing up in the romantic evening light. The next day, we find a few less difficult lines and then make our way back towards civilization.
My need for adventure...
is satisfied for now and it's time to visit a friend in Santiago. The national parks around the city offer plenty of terrain if you're prepared to explain to the picnicking day-trippers and park rangers several times and laboriously where you want to go with your skis and exactly how the skins work.
At the summit ridge of Cerro Manchon, Santiago far below us in a thick cloud of smog, over 1000 vertical meters of descent in perfect snow ahead of us, what more could you want? Hay que disfrutar de la vida, as they say here. You have to enjoy life.
