The Las Ardillas Expedition -- Playing Catch up with the Crew (Hardwear Sessions)

David Marchi, Petit Pinson, and Forrest Coots have returned from Las Ardillas. Follow Petit Pinson's day-by-day account of their experiences in Patagonia. We will post their trip journal in installments, so check back next week for more entries!

View Photographs from the Las Ardillas Expedition on Flickr.

By Petit Pinson

We are out of the incredible Patagonia peaks and couloirs...back from the coming of spring in the Andes into fall and the promise of winter in California. Our last blog was written from the one computer with internet access that exists in the quaint and colorful village of Cerro Castillo where we spent our last night in warm beds before heading out into the nearby mountains... (...we pick up the journey on Sept. 9th, 2007...)

Sept. 9th, 2007

An early morning in Santiago as we drag heavy ski bags through nearly empty city streets to catch a shuttle to the airport where we are met with the joy of "overweight fees" for our flight down to Patagonia (we try to explain the importance of our expedition to the tourism in the region. "Por favor?...they'll have none of it). Forrest falls prey to the familiarity and caffeine of Starbucks as we board the plane for our 3 hour flight to Balmaceda. A bumpy flight with views of villages, farm land, and jagged snow-covered peaks, and we are filled with anticipation of what Mother Nature has in store for us. We are greeted in Balmaceda by our local friend, Rodolfo Quiros, and another California native, Danny Sullivan. With the Toyota truck stacked full of gear and five anxious travelers in search of snow, we make our way north to Coyhaique to discuss logistics over Chilean wine and scour the isles of grocery stores for meals for our 11-day backcountry journey.

Rodolfo and Danny fill us in on the rainy cold days they've had as we study weather patterns on the web in hopes of imminent high pressure. Meanwhile clouds swirl overhead revealing glimpses of snow-capped peaks in the distance. A few stars in the sky tonight as we rest for our travel and packing day tomorrow. Cities to mountains... the landscape of Chile never ceases to amaze us... from the history of Santiago told in its city skyline leading to high mountains and endless valleys of rock, cactus, poppies, spring flow filling rivers... to Patagonia's mix of coastline, dense forest and wide open golden grazed hills spotted with lakes, farms and villages introducing the mountains we have come to climb and ski.

(Quote of the day: "You guys look like you are constantly ready to go for a long run or something." -- Forrest Coots on the sweet Mountain Hardwear threads worn by David and Petit.)

Sept. 10th, 2007

It turns out the Las Ardillas Lodge is not accessible by road right now, muddy and messy after this big South America winter. As with any expedition, flexibility comes into play, and we will look forward to connecting with the Lodge potential next time. So, here we are, a crew of five, in what feels like the quintessential Patagonian village, where chickens and dogs roam freely, school children amble the streets between classes giggling as they watch us dig through our strange gear and food, which is spread across the concrete driveway outside the small hotel/restaurant (our home for the night), and local women with warm smiles stoke fires and prepare hot meals. After a 2 hour drive over snowy passes under partially clearing skies, we are in the small village of Cerro Castillo preparing for departure into the nearby valleys and couloirs tomorrow. Clouds still cover the castle-like spires that lead to our planned base camp. It is as if we are waiting for a magical mystery to be revealed... and magical it is! What do the next 11 days behold?

We are prepared for cold and snow with our Mountain Hardwear Kiva, EV-3 and Trango-2 and hopeful for more blue sky, sunshine, and Chilean corn. We took a drive this afternoon to stare out at the awesome beauty of this region with rivers snaking into the distance and the majesty of Cerro Palo, the massive black rock tower ruling over the valley, contrasting the white world of clouds and snow.

Decisions, decisions...we begin to learn team dynamics as we plan for a 5:30am ("will there be coffee?!?") departure and opt for hiking instead of horseback ("Do I have to carry all this gear?!?") with two bags of food left behind for a local hired hand to bring half way in later. Off to bed... our last night under blankets and roofs... dreams of sunshine and corn dancing in our heads...

"The aim of life is to live, and to live means to be aware, joyously, drunkenly, divinely aware." -- Henry Miller

Sept. 11th, 2007

We awake to the early morning call of the rooster and the silence that follows in such rural and remote places. While the family/owners/cooks sleep in the next room, we make coffee and sip mate to jump-start our journey. Once again, the Toyota loaded and 5 sleepy souls packed in, we head southwest on muddy flooded roads to reach our departure point. Sheep stare in slight curiosity as we begin our exploration of Cerro Castillo with heavy packs and awkward ski-boot gaits on dirt trails worn by summer hikers. The pink-orange glow of sunrise catches clouds and distant peaks.

Each of us takes a comfortable pace as we hike beside a rocky river and into dense Lenga, Nire and Coigue trees, bare from winter, before reaching snow and opportunity to put on our skins. We are a motley crew of four skiers and one snowboarder anxious for climbing and fresh turns. This place is beautiful! It is one of those journeys where one wonders what is around each bend, over each ridge... the mysteries that lie beyond...

Four hours later we lunch under snowy skies overlooking potential base-camp spots, and already quotes from Borat and Talladega Nights (in both Spanish and English) have begun.

We've given David the nickname of "El Capitan" as we look to him for his guidance and knowledge of mountains and snow. Our friend, Forrest, has naturally become known as "El Bosque" (the Spanish word for forest). The rest have kept their own names for now. Surely after 10 days in tents together we will have many names for each other!

Two more hours of route finding and gaining altitude and we set up base camp by a clear mountain stream (our source of fresh drinking water for the next 10 days) in the valley by the trees where we look forward to a 360 degree view of Patagonia beauty when the weather breaks again.

Snowflakes get bigger and fall more slowly as evening sets in. We create our kitchen kiva a settle-in with hot drinks, dehydrated mashed potatoes, soup, and chocolate before retiring to the warmth of tents and down for the night. Anticipation builds...what will tomorrow bring?

"Wake up and live." –Bob Marley

Sept. 13th, 2007

The amazing peaks that surround us here in Cerro Castillo are still hidden by snowy skies. Our second tent-bound day filled with backgammon, chocolate, hot drinks, laughter (Borat and Talladega Nights), naps, and a grand plan of attack for when the sun is shining on endless couloirs. We've determined that we didn't bring nearly enough whiskey to "drink it blue."

It is this fascinating game of hurry-up-and-wait that we all play in the backcountry; ever watching the skies between naps and reading, skis and skins ready to go at the first sign of clearing. We went for a short tour up this foggy valley yesterday to keep the legs warm and moving. Even the few turns we got in this whiteout have us chomping at the bit for bigger, steeper, and deeper. The snow here at base camp is heavy and wet. We'll seek higher ground and protected couloirs to check out the Chilean snow pack soon. Already we are pondering future trips into this valley of possibilities.

For now we'll enjoy the stillness of the falling snow and the gourmet meals of... let’s see... what's for dinner… maybe some pasta with textured soy protein and tomato sauce. Maybe we'll dig out the "shitter" a bit and fix the benches in our kiva... then another nap... a piece of chocolate... and anticipation of what tomorrow will reveal. Ah... the simple life! And I see stars in the Chilean sky. Tomorrow could be the day!

Que sera, sera...

(Quote of the day: "How’s it looking out there?" -- David to Petit as she peeks out of the kiva to check the weather. "I’m drinking whiskey; that’s how it’s looking."--Petit’s response.)

Sept. 14th, 2007

Good morning! Wait... what is that light we see coming into the tent? What is that warmth we feel? From in-tents to intense... a crisp clear sunny morning in Patagonia (some experiences just do not translate into words). Yes! It's time for coffee, tea, oatmeal, and our first day of 360-degree views of this awe-inspiring slice of the southern hemisphere. We stumble out of our tents with wide smiles ready to explore and discover what hidden gems await just up the now sunny valley under these jagged spires of rock. We are inspired.

After about two hours of skinning up the valley through of a stand of trees and under hanging ice and rock walls, we strap our skis to our backs and begin the waist deep boot pack up our chosen classic couloir for the day. David Marchi, 6'3" and weighing in at nearly 200 pounds with a pack, takes the lead sweating and swearing his way up the slope leaving a staircase path for Forrest and Petit. Danny and Rodolfo have chosen to head to a bowl just out of camp. We’ve opted for the "divide and conquer" (or rather "divide and explore") game plan.

Enjoying every step (in a masochistic sort of way)... sounds of mountains and snow and sun and ice... breath hanging just in front of our faces as we ascend... looking back over our shoulders to take in the vastness of Patagonia. The sliver of a new moon hangs in the deep blue of the sky just atop a grand rock pillar, and the wind sends swirls of snow across rugged ridge tops, painted pink by afternoon sun.

At 5 pm we are ready for our first descent, a 50+-degree Alaska style couloir awaits us. Out in the valley giant condors soar silently above it all, adding to the already surreal Patagonia scene. Forrest drops in first, carving in the shaded powder and fading into the distance 2500 feet below. We hear a holler of joy echo up the rock walls, and Petit drops in just skiers' right of Forrest's solitary set of turns. Powder! The pain of the boot pack is quickly becoming a distant memory. Next is "El Capitan" ripping down the picturesque Patagonia powder. Indeed, we are inspired!

If this is an appetizer to what we'll be experiencing for the next week, bring on the boot-pack. We now realize that the vastness of this terrain creates a one-couloir-a-day journey. As we ski back to camp in the beauty of the fading light, we scan the valley like kids in a candy store for tomorrow’s challenge.

We share stories of sweat and sunshine and powder and possibilities as we gorge on crackers and cheese and curry and couscous and tea and chocolate… five souls getting in the groove of the expedition with starry skies promising another day of sunshine tomorrow.

Que delicioso!

(Quotes of the day: "I'm a guide; I boot pack and then let the rad guys get the first descent." --David Marchi. "If I were a woman, I'd have your children. You're as strong as an ox!"--Forrest Coots to David Marchi during the boot pack.)