JOSEPH ESSIGMAN, SOLOMON KURZMAN, FRANCESCA ROWLEY, THOMAS STRINGER

The full report documents a backcountry ski touring expedition undertaken from 19th July to 7th August
2026 in the northern Patagonian Andes of Argentina and Chile. Based initially in Bariloche, the trip
combined road-based logistics with guided and self-guided day tours, resort-accessed slackcountry
and an overnight hut tour. The report outlines both the technical and experiential
aspects of the trip, including avalanche preparedness, illness management, decision-making under
uncertainty and working with local guides. It concludes with key takeaways and recommendations for
future teams operating in similar storm-driven, wind-affected environments.

“Across 10 days on skis in Argentina and Chile, we covered over 120 km and climbed over 15,000 m of elevation. These numbers only hint at the breadth of the expedition, which demanded constant adaptation, tested our skillsets and delivered some unforgettable touring. Several days stood out, particularly the 29th of July, when we pushed through a white-out to the top of Volcán Sollipulli for an incredible descent, and the 5th of August, when the descent from the summit of Cerro Piltriquitrón delivered gorgeous dry powder all the way back to the refugio. Touring among snow-covered araucaria trees at Los Arenales, and our first summit above the clouds on Cerro López, were also highlights.

The defining theme of the expedition was the weather. A storm cycle that followed us across the Andes, high winds that closed lifts and even whole resorts, and an avalanche rating of 4 out of 5 in the final week meant that our original plans for Chapelco, Cerro Bayo and the Frey to Jakob traverse were all abandoned. Each decision involved real-time risk assessment, input from local guides and dynamic replanning. Far from a setback, this became a valuable lesson in expedition flexibility and judgement, and gave us a far broader experience of Patagonian skiing than the original plan would have done.”

Activities undertaken and a general diary of the trip, from the accounts of Francesca Rowley.

19th July: Our first day was spent in Bariloche, giving us time to get our bearings around the town
before heading into the mountains. After a first taste of the local cuisine with a breakfast of
medialunas and dulce de leche, the focus turned to equipment preparation: familiarising ourselves
with our kit, cutting skins and tuning skis. Time was also set aside for documentation, drawing up a
content plan and starting work on the expedition’s Instagram page. Later in the day we ventured into
town to watch the World Cup final, before packing our bags and loading the car ahead of our first tour
with Jeremías the following day.

20th July: Our first day of skiing! A day tour up Cerro López started with a 7am departure, strapping
our skis to the roof of a Land Rover 4×4 for a 30 minute ascent up a gnarly off-road track. This was
followed by a 25 minute hike up to Refugio López with skis and boots on our backs. A glorious sunrise
greeted us at the hut, where we dropped our hiking boots and spare layers before a further 40 minute
bootpack up to the skin line. From there skins went on, and we toured for 2.5 hours to the summit of
Cerro López, which offered a spectacular view above the clouds. The level of touring varied across the team, with the less experienced members producing some
questionable kick turns, and progress was often one step forward and three steps back before the
technique began to click. We descended the main face, stopped for a quick bite to eat and then headed
back up again, capturing some great drone footage along the way. Returning to the refugio meant
crossing back over the ridge, which required a couple of transitions and proved excellent practice.
After sharing some yerba mate at the hut, we continued down to the lower Refugio Roca Negra, where the 4×4 collected us. Copious amounts of empanadas for dinner, before swiftly passing out from exhaustion!

21st July: Largely a day of organisation. We collected snow chains in Bariloche before packing up the
car for the next leg of the journey. Some difficult decisions had to be made about where to head next,
as stormy weather and high avalanche danger were forecast around San Martín de los Andes and
Chapelco for the following week or so.
This put a spanner in the works, as Chapelco was intended to be our acclimatisation zone. After
weighing up the options, we made the decision to cut our stay in San Martín short and cross into Chile
to chase the good snow, settling on Corralco as our new primary destination. With this in mind, we
set off for two nights in San Martín in a very cramped car, with hopes of great snow on the horizon.

22nd July: Conditions were not good enough to ski at Chapelco, with the storm and high winds ruling
out a day on the mountain. Instead, we drove to Cerro Colorado, one of the low-angle objectives
identified in our proposal, for a hike and some avalanche transceiver practice. Heavy snow on the
roads called for careful driving, particularly on hire car tyres. The transceiver burials went well, with
Tom leading the session, and were followed by some drone flying practice in support of our film
objective. We finished the day with a dinner of local trout from the lakes, which was delicious.

23rd July: An early start to make the border crossing into Chile, where customs officers were a little
puzzled by the snow knife in Tom’s bag… Once across the border, we were greeted by an abundance
of termas, the hot spring baths found around Pucón. These were much needed, as Tom and Fran were
feeling severely under the weather, and the steam proved a great help for their chesty coughs. From
there we continued on to Malalcahuello, our base for Corralco.

24th July: It appeared the storm had followed us over to this side of the Andes, but that did not stop
us heading to Corralco for a day of resort skiing and further familiarisation with our equipment.
Although only two chairlifts were open, they gave access to some powdery off-piste terrain where we
practised deep snow turns on what was a very cold and windy day.
In the evening we met with local ski guide Javier to plan tours for the following days. He was extremely
knowledgeable, and it was valuable to speak with a local, who confirmed that ski touring that day
would have been unsafe. This was a reassuring check on our own decision-making.

25th July: By now the team was feeling somewhat worse for wear, with the chesty coughs still
developing, so we decided to take a recovery day and catch up on some admin in the cabin. The
weather was also poor, with even the windy volcano of Corralco closed for the day. In the afternoon
we did venture into the lower mountains, following a recommendation from Javier for more termas.

26th July: Another recovery day, used to book the final arrangements for our return to Argentina. We
also managed to source some antibiotics, which was a welcome relief.

27th July: The original plan was to head to Corralco and tour up through the resort, however the winds
remained very high and posed a serious safety risk. Instead, we hiked to the Salto de la Princesa
waterfall, saving us from cabin fever (and hopefully easing our actual fevers too!).

28th July: The first of our two days with Javier, spent at Los Arenales. This former ski resort closed
because it sat on native land and was not owned by local people, and is now used only for Chilean
army snow training and by local guides such as Javier. It proved to be a place of real natural beauty,
with araucaria trees, better known as monkey puzzles, covered in layers of snow. The touring route
was relatively shallow and short, allowing us to complete four laps, with the descent opening out into
a powdery bowl. At the bottom of the disused chairlift was a locally run restaurant serving a mouthwatering beef soup
known as cazuela de vacuno, a hot wine called navegado and sopaipillas dipped in a chilli salsa, all much needed after a day of touring in heavy snowfall. That evening we drove 2.5 hours south to
Melipeuco to stay the night with Javier’s parents ahead of our second day.

29th July: Our second day with Javier took us to Volcán Sollipulli. The ascent covered 1,000 m of
vertical over 3.5 hours and was made pretty rough by near white-out conditions and a lack of visibility.
A few fellow hikers were seen on the way up, but otherwise we had the volcano to ourselves. The
gruelling ascent paid off, however, as the descent was incredible. After a hard day’s work, the car was packed up once again and we drove down to stay near the border crossing back into Argentina, where the evening mainly consisted of drying clothes and gear.

30th July: An early border crossing back into Argentina, though the long drive meant most of the day
was still spent in the car. We arrived in Bariloche at 3pm, dropped off the hire car, planned for the
final week and headed to the shops to pick up essentials.

31st July: Due to unfavourable conditions once again, the five-day traverse from Refugio Frey to
Refugio Jakob was called off. The avalanche danger was rated 4 out of 5, and no one had yet completed
the traverse on skins this season.
This was a big blow, as the traverse was the centrepiece of the expedition and our route into the
Rucaco Valley and Cerro Inviares. Working with Jeremías, we adapted the plan into a series of day
tours around Bariloche, chosen to suit the conditions, with the hope of fitting in an overnight tour if a
window appeared. The rest of the day was spent planning and sorting out finances.

1st August: A day of resort skiing at Cerro Catedral, South America’s largest ski area, to get our legs
back into it ahead of the tours with Jeremías. Most lifts were open, giving us the chance to explore
some off-piste terrain and take in the scale of the bowls. Heavy snowfall meant the day finished with
soggy kit but happy hearts.

2nd August: Today we headed to Cerro Goye. The day started with a 45 minute bootpack along a fairly
overgrown path, which proved difficult to manoeuvre through with skis on our backs. A farm dog from
the base of the mountain joined us for the day and came all the way to the summit! As the ascent
began, Fran’s knee grew painful, so she made the decision to stop at the bottom of one of the faces
the rest of the group would be skiing down. The others continued for a further 45 minutes, climbing
through the trees before emerging at the peak, while Fran captured some great drone footage of the
winter wonderland before rejoining the group for the second ascent. The second descent offered fantastic dry powder until the freezing line, below which the snow became
pretty wet and much more difficult to turn in. We attempted to ski part of the bootpack path, but
after a few collisions with trees decided it was best to descend the rest on foot.

3rd August: Following an early start, we drove back for a second attempt at Cerro López. The snow
line had crept almost down to where the car was parked, a welcome surprise, although it meant the
4×4 struggled on the upper sections of the track, with the driver getting out on several occasions to
shovel it clear. After about as much travel backwards as forwards, we arrived and went straight onto
skins and up into the trees, as the fresh snow made the alpine too dangerous. Skinning through dense
forest to a more open section, we completed three laps across the morning and early afternoon,
totalling almost 1,000 m of vertical. It snowed all day, covering the skin tracks before they could be reused. The first descent was of mixed quality, with a constant worry of skis ending up under a fallen tree, but on the second and third laps
we found the deep snow and enjoyed some great turns through the trees, each run finishing on the
4×4 track that had been gravel on our last visit. Rather than a fourth lap, we headed down, which
proved easier said than done as thick brush blocked the way. Slow progress came to a comical end
when the right track was finally found, with Solly tumbling down onto it rather than taking a more
graceful approach. Back at the refugio, a hot chocolate warmed up hands and toes.

4th August: We headed to Cerro Catedral with Jeremías for some slackcountry off the top of the
highest lifts. High wind speeds meant lifts were opening and closing throughout the day, so we chased
whichever were running and explored wherever possible. The first ascent took us over the ridge to
skier’s left of the resort into La Laguna, which held some beautiful snow. After descending, a second
ascent was made beneath the closed Nubes chairlift in the top bowl. We certainly made the most of
our lift passes!

5th August: Still keen to fit in an overnight tour in Patagonia, we headed down to the town of El Bolsón
with Jeremías to access Refugio Piltriquitrón. Arriving at the base at around 10am, we made an hourlong
ascent to the refugio, most of which was bootpacking. After a quick lunch of empanadas at the
hut, we set off for the summit of Cerro Piltriquitrón. Touring up a bowl with no view of civilisation
really felt like another universe, and the descent from the peak was arguably the best of the trip, with gorgeous dry powder all the way back to the refugio. The snow was so good that we climbed halfway
back up for another run while the light held.A hearty meal of hut pizzas, in the company of Michigan the hut cat, sent us to sleep early.

6th August: Unfortunately Solly and Fran were not able to ski this morning, but were treated to a great
view of Jeremías, Tom and Joe’s descent back down to Refugio Piltriquitrón. We then set off back
down to El Bolsón ahead of the two-hour drive back up to Bariloche. Descending an icy track with 50
kg of equipment on our backs proved challenging, with a few slips on the way. Back in Bariloche we
said goodbye to Jeremías and picked up a hire car for the last few days, in the hope of one more day
at Cerro Catedral before travelling home.

7th August: Our last full day together! Conditions were pretty poor up at Catedral, and with most of
the lifts shut and all of us exhausted after five consecutive days of touring, we decided on a relaxing
last day mooching around the town. We finished off the trip in style with Argentinian steak and
Malbec!

Full report with photos: https://theneilmackenzietrust.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/patagonia-2026-expedition-report.pdf