listening to repeating

Last Sunday, the 26th, we finally had a chance to visit Cerro San Cristóbal.  For the winter in Santiago, we were incredibly lucky, because it was quite clear and the views were impressive.  From the top of the hill, you can see almost all of Santiago, as well as parts of the Andes, panorama-style.

We went up via funicular:

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Just returned from a trip to Pucón, south of Santiago, in Chile’s Lake District.  Went down for some Lake Villarrica sunsets:

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Yesterday, Brooken and I got a chance to venture up to Valle Nevado in the Andes.  The trip skyward was almost as good as the snowboarding.  The views made me feel small, and we traveled up in a Chilean partybus, complete with Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” on almost-repeat.  Nothing like nature’s majesty coupled with robot pop.   Plus, thanks to some visitors from Brazil, we learned heaps about American Idol and how to say “pool” and “cop” in twenty different languages.

I didn’t know this: Valle Nevado is almost 12,000 feet in the air.  That’s close to the sun.  If you are me, then it also makes breathing tough.  But more importantly, the elevation (or so I believe) makes the snow quite dry.  Indeed, Valle Nevado appears to be a desert, meaning that you see cacti and dry grass instead of the firs and other such tall trees you’d see in the Pacific Northwest, especially at Mt. Baker.   So, given the dry factor, the snow at Valle Nevado was great, as were the conditions.  Brooken and I could see for miles, even if there were few steep trails and there was no backcountry boarding.

No doubt, we’ll be going again, for the trip up and the top shelf snow, and we’ll also try Portillo.  Until that day, here are some photos from yesterday.  Soon, I think Brooken and I might pile together some video, too.

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