Big polar high pressure system in effect, resulting in frost warnings, and couple days of Puelche winds in the Araucanía. This is a reversal of wind direction in certain watersheds, with Argentine pampa air blasting the lakes and, some times all the way up the volcano, as now:
This also implies high levels of woodsmoke contamination mainly, implying restrictions in many of the Central Valley cities. Good old temperature inversions….
Elsewhere in the south there is loads of snow up high
It should be said that the central zone base is still lacking. While the base is solid at the bottom, it is thin, and being winter holidays, overskied.
La parva has about 2/3 of the lower mountain (most of the steeper runs) closed, and many of the upper runs. Black is closed as of last Friday
All of those black areas were skied out powder though.
Portillo has the west half closed (Roca Jack and Juncalillo).
“Nosotros tuvimos generosas precipitaciones durante la primera quincena de junio, se acumuló buena nieve y buena parte de esa nieve se va a perder en los próximos tres días como consecuencia de este evento anómalo de calor"
So no new snow for 2 weeks, heavy traffic from winter holidays, and warm temps the last few days have done a number on the 3 Valley groomers. Pebbles and dirt are spreading up the mountain. Off piste is less hazardous than piste.
The upper mountain has a good base, and the snow is still packed powder.
So with no new snow forecast, things will get increasingly restricted. Too warm.
On the other hand, avalanche hazard is down
So this is an apt photo of people who are “aperrado” or brave and stout. Full pack heading up 2000 vertical meters, hot day, sinky snow.
With 16 days since the last snowfall, hard work is required to keep the piste in shape, and elsewhere is highly variable
The lower LP La Paloma lift kinda abandoned, for the brave only
So what better excuse do a ski-about, going high (3,000m up), hunting the recently groomed packed powder with my 7 year-old granddaughter.
Here heading to take the “cool” double chair In VN
Vals on Tres Puntas, which was the only packed run
Then the high road to the hotel and around the lower bowl
What could be finer?
Well maybe La Leñera
Some b side shots:
More irregularities
I finally got a definition of “irregular” from the ski patrol - no “fresada”, o no “pisada” in Chilean. Yet more “newspeak” from MCP, which best describes the apparent policy of packing one run per lift, at best.
Dumpers with a view of Sta Teresa
Yet another “Mechanical failure” leaves Ancla out of commission for the last 10 days.
The other upper lift “Del Inca” shut down too. So VN 2nd highest run was only accesible from LP.
Meteo.cl has something to say about that. June ended with deficits in most of Chile
And predicts generally lower than normal rainfall for the rest of the winter.
In these ranges
A high snow line is looking like the norm for this season, which is more bearable in the south, where volcanic pebbles and sand get covered ver easily. Antillanca is boasting
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