Tried to keep it fairly short…and, well, that didn’t happen. For the TL;DR skip to the bottom.
Day 1 – August 2nd – Take off
Seven of us leave Boston at 2 o’clock-ish in the afternoon, arrive in Dallas, and meet our 8th. We board our air vessel, and are en route to Santiago, Chile. After about 5 minutes, the cabin is pressurized, and we turn around due to a medical emergency on board...Yes, this was due to one of our 8. Yes, that person is okay. They didn’t really NEED to turn around, but the airline was following procedure, and taking precautions as they saw fit.
Fast forward a few more hours, we are re-boarded, and back en route to South America. Well…6 of us. They wouldn’t allow the friend to fly that night, so their significant other and him stayed the night in Dallas and caught a flight the next day.
Settling into an 8 hour flight wasn’t so bad. Three of us got upgraded to a “Premium” class. The extra legroom, slightly larger seats, and a bag full of airline swag, gave me just the right amount of comfort for a pretty solid sleep.
Day 2 – August 3rd – Santiago
Touched down around 11 o’clock in the morning. Despite having a delayed flight, the shuttle company we hired was waiting for us, with open arms. Furthermore, when they realized we only had 6 with us and the other 2 will arrive the next day, they immediately told us they’d pick them up…no questions asked, and no additional charges.
Spent the day walking around Santiago, eating all of the obscure foods we could get our hands on…horse, sweetbreads, goat ribs, tongue of some unknown animal, beef belly, a type of eel that I’m glad I didn’t Google prior to eating, and fish of just about every flavor. We haggled at the local market, buying three llama wool sweaters for a mere $30USD. At about 11:00PM, as most people in the city were just sitting down for dinner, we found our way back to the hotel to crash.
Day 3 – August 4th – Road to Portillo
Arose in the morning to a completely deserted city (amazing how late people get up when they have dinner at 11:00PM). One of our travelling companions found a highly recommended café for breakfast. Set up with an Alice in Wonderland theme, it was quite enjoyable…both the food and the atmosphere. After making our way back to the hotel, we packed up our belongings, and waited for our shuttle and our 7th and 8th to arrive.
The shuttle ride to Portillo was one I will never forget. It began with minimal excitement (generally how I like my bus rides). Then we got to the mountain pass. On the twisting winding road, double yellow lines seemed like a mere suggestion, and not a suggestion many people took. Trucks passing trucks while going up a steep incline was something you don’t get to witness in the States. At one point, Claudio, our driver took the outside dirt path to pass an entire line of traffic entering a tunnel. At the end of the road, we arrived on schedule, in one piece, and witnessing one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever laid my eyes on.
We settled into our home for the week, a little Chalet off of the main hotel, with that same immaculate view. After settling was complete, we opted to hit the slopes for a few runs. The snow was…umm…variable. Didn’t matter, it’s August. It could have been east coast, blue ice and I would have been happy. The groomed runs were a delight, ungroomed was as expected. The sun soaked snow, was soft but not slushy, and the shady areas were firm, but predictable.
Day 4 – August 5th – Lake Run
Seven of us got out just after the lifts opened, one was feeling sick since the night before, and opted to sleep it off. We all questioned which food didn’t sit well with him.
For the seven of us that went out, we took a few warm ups on groomers, and then headed for the slingshot lifts on the Plateau side of the resort. An inside tip from the welcoming crew at the reception was to start on those slingshots if you’ve never taken one before. For those of you that don’t know, a slingshot is essentially a Poma surface lift (the ones with the bar and the disk), but it carries 4 or 5 people up the mountain side by side. It operates like a tram where there are two lifts, one goes up while the other comes back down. We all made it up, with minimal smoothness on the dismount, but zero catastrophes.
From there we headed over to the Lake Run. It’s an ungroomed trail that ends on the lake side, with a narrow path along the lake to bring you back towards the resort. The snow was similar to the day before, a little of everything; soft, firm, bumpy, smooth. After the long trek back, it was lunch time. Going from sea level to staying at 9,500’ had us all pretty beat, so it was hot tubs, heated pool, ping pong, and a little foosball for the afternoon.
Day 5 – August 6th – Storm Rolls In
This was a day full of finding good snow. After the initial days of learning the mountain, we started to figure out which side of the gullies kept the snow fresh, and which side firms up. A few of us ventured up the Roca Jack slingshot and took the high traverse. The traverse takes you above a number of chutes, and you can drop in where you see fit.
That evening, as the storm started to thicken, our sick companion went to see the doctor in the medical clinic. The sickness was getting better, but he was getting an intense pain in his stomach. The doctor deemed it bad enough to be transported to Santiago for evaluation.
Day 6 – August 7th – Snow Day
First off, the avalanche bombing was the absolute coolest thing to wake up to. On the west coast, you can wake up to the sound of the bombs going off. In Portillo, you feel each one. The sound echoes throughout the valley. yYou can’t tell which direction the initial bomb came from, until you see the avalanche triggered high up on the mountain side. Portillo reported 9” of snow, but it was one of those storms that varied depending on the location on the mountain, and the wind effect. There were places I found myself in a solid 16”, other locations…a much lower total. Regardless of depth, it was the light, fluffy snow that dreams are made of.
They initially only opened up a small double chair, which accessed a single slope. Despite the small amount of terrain, it was a powder day in August…no one in our group wanted to miss that. We made the best of the single slope, finding a small lip towards the bottom that was perfect for morning entertainment.
By midmorning they opened up a couple more chairs that went to a higher elevation, and accessed more terrain. With the openness of the resort, you didn’t have to traverse far to get fresh tracks. Each run you traversed slightly farther into the open field of snow covered dreams.
Our friend in Santiago got diagnosed with a bruised spleen (with no explanation on how it happened…there were no trips, falls or accidents in his immediate past). We told him the storm didn’t pan out, we got a dusting, and it was an okay day.
Day 7 – August 8th – Same Storm Different Snow Day
Round 2 of the Snow Day ensued. They opened up all of the slingshot lifts to take us to higher, steeper terrain. It was awesome.
We started the day on Roca Jack, the highest lift at Portillo. Took a few runs there; painting the mountain with fresh tracks in the knee deep canvas. The day continued on as we moved around the resort, touching as much snow as we could. Unfortunately, they had to close down the traverse due to avalanche danger, which effectively closes down a decent amount of steeper terrain.
Day 8 – August 9th – Helicopters and Guides
We had signed up for a heli day, and landed ourselves in the perfect slot, two days after the storm.
After a quick morning safety session, we headed towards the launch pad. There were three groups sharing the helicopter that day, we were two of the groups, and the third was Warren Miller Entertainment and it’s athlete/film crew. Though it’s kinda cool to say we were sharing a helicopter with WME, it also took much longer to get out into the backcountry due to them needing to choose their locations, drop off the videographer, then drop the athletes.
We ended up getting two runs in before the sun was too high in the sky. It was getting too warm for the helicopter, as well as the avalanche risk was creeping up by the minute. The two runs were everything I could have hoped for. Good snow, good company, and some of the best turns I’ve taken in my life. As an introduction to heli-skiing, this far exceeded my expectations.
Day 9 – August 10th – Another Sunny Day at 9500’
Another beautiful day in Portillo. We kept it pretty mellow for our last day in the mountains. Slept in, had a nice long breakfast. Then meandered our way to the slopes. We took the time to enjoy the scenery, bask in the sun, and fully enjoy our last full day. The snow was still fantastic from earlier in the week, though visibly thinning, and a few extra rocks poking through the white blanket.
We ended our evening at the resort’s “discotheque”, drinking Chilean wine and doing shot skis with the friends we made over the week.
Day 10 – August 11th – Saying Goodbye and Valparaiso
The week had come and gone so fast, it was time to leave, and continue on our Chilean journey elsewhere. Next stop was Valparaiso to explore more of the local culture (and drink more Chilean wine). We arrived in Valparaiso in the late afternoon, were able to settle into our hotel, take a short nap, and wander around the city before dinnertime.
I would highly recommend this city to anyone travelling to Chile. Though a little rough around the Port; head up the hill to the city center, and the streets and alleyways are lined with beautiful art. The whole city is like an art display.
Day 11 – August 12th – Heading Home
Similar to Santiago, this city doesn’t open until at least 10:00AM, with the exception of a couple small cafés. We took the morning to wander the city streets, climb the hills, and ogle at the street art in the daylight. A fantastic day to wind down, explore, a see more of the Chilean culture that was not as prominent in the resort setting.
Early afternoon we boarded our shuttle, and headed back to Santiago. We were able to request a stop at the hospital to visit our friend. Unfortunately the doctors would not clear him to fly back yet, so would be staying an additional few days. Despite his misfortune on this trip, he was in good spirits when we arrived.
Lastly, shuttled to the airport, and prepared for an uneventful flight home.
TL;DR - Watch the video...
Disclaimer: This is very much an amateur video production. At no point during the trip was video taken for the sole purpose of a production. As a result, shaky, short edits and mistimed transitions are regularly present.
Side note: Nivelar literally means "to level" in Spanish. It has a slang meaning similar to the term "hair of the dog", or more literally to "level up". This was a term we learned on one of the first days...and was utilized correctly, and incorrectly, throughout the trip.
Day 1 – August 2nd – Take off
Seven of us leave Boston at 2 o’clock-ish in the afternoon, arrive in Dallas, and meet our 8th. We board our air vessel, and are en route to Santiago, Chile. After about 5 minutes, the cabin is pressurized, and we turn around due to a medical emergency on board...Yes, this was due to one of our 8. Yes, that person is okay. They didn’t really NEED to turn around, but the airline was following procedure, and taking precautions as they saw fit.
Fast forward a few more hours, we are re-boarded, and back en route to South America. Well…6 of us. They wouldn’t allow the friend to fly that night, so their significant other and him stayed the night in Dallas and caught a flight the next day.
Settling into an 8 hour flight wasn’t so bad. Three of us got upgraded to a “Premium” class. The extra legroom, slightly larger seats, and a bag full of airline swag, gave me just the right amount of comfort for a pretty solid sleep.
Day 2 – August 3rd – Santiago
Touched down around 11 o’clock in the morning. Despite having a delayed flight, the shuttle company we hired was waiting for us, with open arms. Furthermore, when they realized we only had 6 with us and the other 2 will arrive the next day, they immediately told us they’d pick them up…no questions asked, and no additional charges.
Spent the day walking around Santiago, eating all of the obscure foods we could get our hands on…horse, sweetbreads, goat ribs, tongue of some unknown animal, beef belly, a type of eel that I’m glad I didn’t Google prior to eating, and fish of just about every flavor. We haggled at the local market, buying three llama wool sweaters for a mere $30USD. At about 11:00PM, as most people in the city were just sitting down for dinner, we found our way back to the hotel to crash.
Day 3 – August 4th – Road to Portillo
Arose in the morning to a completely deserted city (amazing how late people get up when they have dinner at 11:00PM). One of our travelling companions found a highly recommended café for breakfast. Set up with an Alice in Wonderland theme, it was quite enjoyable…both the food and the atmosphere. After making our way back to the hotel, we packed up our belongings, and waited for our shuttle and our 7th and 8th to arrive.
The shuttle ride to Portillo was one I will never forget. It began with minimal excitement (generally how I like my bus rides). Then we got to the mountain pass. On the twisting winding road, double yellow lines seemed like a mere suggestion, and not a suggestion many people took. Trucks passing trucks while going up a steep incline was something you don’t get to witness in the States. At one point, Claudio, our driver took the outside dirt path to pass an entire line of traffic entering a tunnel. At the end of the road, we arrived on schedule, in one piece, and witnessing one of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever laid my eyes on.
We settled into our home for the week, a little Chalet off of the main hotel, with that same immaculate view. After settling was complete, we opted to hit the slopes for a few runs. The snow was…umm…variable. Didn’t matter, it’s August. It could have been east coast, blue ice and I would have been happy. The groomed runs were a delight, ungroomed was as expected. The sun soaked snow, was soft but not slushy, and the shady areas were firm, but predictable.
Day 4 – August 5th – Lake Run
Seven of us got out just after the lifts opened, one was feeling sick since the night before, and opted to sleep it off. We all questioned which food didn’t sit well with him.
For the seven of us that went out, we took a few warm ups on groomers, and then headed for the slingshot lifts on the Plateau side of the resort. An inside tip from the welcoming crew at the reception was to start on those slingshots if you’ve never taken one before. For those of you that don’t know, a slingshot is essentially a Poma surface lift (the ones with the bar and the disk), but it carries 4 or 5 people up the mountain side by side. It operates like a tram where there are two lifts, one goes up while the other comes back down. We all made it up, with minimal smoothness on the dismount, but zero catastrophes.
From there we headed over to the Lake Run. It’s an ungroomed trail that ends on the lake side, with a narrow path along the lake to bring you back towards the resort. The snow was similar to the day before, a little of everything; soft, firm, bumpy, smooth. After the long trek back, it was lunch time. Going from sea level to staying at 9,500’ had us all pretty beat, so it was hot tubs, heated pool, ping pong, and a little foosball for the afternoon.
Day 5 – August 6th – Storm Rolls In
This was a day full of finding good snow. After the initial days of learning the mountain, we started to figure out which side of the gullies kept the snow fresh, and which side firms up. A few of us ventured up the Roca Jack slingshot and took the high traverse. The traverse takes you above a number of chutes, and you can drop in where you see fit.
That evening, as the storm started to thicken, our sick companion went to see the doctor in the medical clinic. The sickness was getting better, but he was getting an intense pain in his stomach. The doctor deemed it bad enough to be transported to Santiago for evaluation.
Day 6 – August 7th – Snow Day
First off, the avalanche bombing was the absolute coolest thing to wake up to. On the west coast, you can wake up to the sound of the bombs going off. In Portillo, you feel each one. The sound echoes throughout the valley. yYou can’t tell which direction the initial bomb came from, until you see the avalanche triggered high up on the mountain side. Portillo reported 9” of snow, but it was one of those storms that varied depending on the location on the mountain, and the wind effect. There were places I found myself in a solid 16”, other locations…a much lower total. Regardless of depth, it was the light, fluffy snow that dreams are made of.
They initially only opened up a small double chair, which accessed a single slope. Despite the small amount of terrain, it was a powder day in August…no one in our group wanted to miss that. We made the best of the single slope, finding a small lip towards the bottom that was perfect for morning entertainment.
By midmorning they opened up a couple more chairs that went to a higher elevation, and accessed more terrain. With the openness of the resort, you didn’t have to traverse far to get fresh tracks. Each run you traversed slightly farther into the open field of snow covered dreams.
Our friend in Santiago got diagnosed with a bruised spleen (with no explanation on how it happened…there were no trips, falls or accidents in his immediate past). We told him the storm didn’t pan out, we got a dusting, and it was an okay day.
Day 7 – August 8th – Same Storm Different Snow Day
Round 2 of the Snow Day ensued. They opened up all of the slingshot lifts to take us to higher, steeper terrain. It was awesome.
We started the day on Roca Jack, the highest lift at Portillo. Took a few runs there; painting the mountain with fresh tracks in the knee deep canvas. The day continued on as we moved around the resort, touching as much snow as we could. Unfortunately, they had to close down the traverse due to avalanche danger, which effectively closes down a decent amount of steeper terrain.
Day 8 – August 9th – Helicopters and Guides
We had signed up for a heli day, and landed ourselves in the perfect slot, two days after the storm.
After a quick morning safety session, we headed towards the launch pad. There were three groups sharing the helicopter that day, we were two of the groups, and the third was Warren Miller Entertainment and it’s athlete/film crew. Though it’s kinda cool to say we were sharing a helicopter with WME, it also took much longer to get out into the backcountry due to them needing to choose their locations, drop off the videographer, then drop the athletes.
We ended up getting two runs in before the sun was too high in the sky. It was getting too warm for the helicopter, as well as the avalanche risk was creeping up by the minute. The two runs were everything I could have hoped for. Good snow, good company, and some of the best turns I’ve taken in my life. As an introduction to heli-skiing, this far exceeded my expectations.
Day 9 – August 10th – Another Sunny Day at 9500’
Another beautiful day in Portillo. We kept it pretty mellow for our last day in the mountains. Slept in, had a nice long breakfast. Then meandered our way to the slopes. We took the time to enjoy the scenery, bask in the sun, and fully enjoy our last full day. The snow was still fantastic from earlier in the week, though visibly thinning, and a few extra rocks poking through the white blanket.
We ended our evening at the resort’s “discotheque”, drinking Chilean wine and doing shot skis with the friends we made over the week.
Day 10 – August 11th – Saying Goodbye and Valparaiso
The week had come and gone so fast, it was time to leave, and continue on our Chilean journey elsewhere. Next stop was Valparaiso to explore more of the local culture (and drink more Chilean wine). We arrived in Valparaiso in the late afternoon, were able to settle into our hotel, take a short nap, and wander around the city before dinnertime.
I would highly recommend this city to anyone travelling to Chile. Though a little rough around the Port; head up the hill to the city center, and the streets and alleyways are lined with beautiful art. The whole city is like an art display.
Day 11 – August 12th – Heading Home
Similar to Santiago, this city doesn’t open until at least 10:00AM, with the exception of a couple small cafés. We took the morning to wander the city streets, climb the hills, and ogle at the street art in the daylight. A fantastic day to wind down, explore, a see more of the Chilean culture that was not as prominent in the resort setting.
Early afternoon we boarded our shuttle, and headed back to Santiago. We were able to request a stop at the hospital to visit our friend. Unfortunately the doctors would not clear him to fly back yet, so would be staying an additional few days. Despite his misfortune on this trip, he was in good spirits when we arrived.
Lastly, shuttled to the airport, and prepared for an uneventful flight home.
TL;DR - Watch the video...
Disclaimer: This is very much an amateur video production. At no point during the trip was video taken for the sole purpose of a production. As a result, shaky, short edits and mistimed transitions are regularly present.
Side note: Nivelar literally means "to level" in Spanish. It has a slang meaning similar to the term "hair of the dog", or more literally to "level up". This was a term we learned on one of the first days...and was utilized correctly, and incorrectly, throughout the trip.
