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Central Chile Home  Central Chile Ski Resorts The Central Chile Ski Centers
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The Central Chile Ski Centers |
 The
Ski culture in Chile is still for the most part a first or second
generation sport. Up until recently, only the really rich could
afford to ski in Chile. Only in the last ten to twenty years has the ski
industry started taking off. Even at that, is rare to meet anyone who
is a second generation skier or snowboarder, that has skied more than a
few times a year.
La
Parva, Central Chile
So,
the nature of the ski resort cultures also reflect this new skier
culture. La Parva is the prime example. If you encounter someone that
skis in Santiago, and they tell you 'they only ski La Parva' with
their nose in the air, it is an indication that they do not know how
to ski. La Parva, although otherwise a fine resort, has some issues
with its trail markers. It is common to find trails marked with
double black diamonds that you could take a nap on, drink a beer, and
read a book while also taking in the scenery around you. At least
where I come from (the western US), double black diamond means, 'make
sure your health insurance covers skiing, and don't blink or you will
end up in the intensive care unit'.
So,
why the wimpy slopes with killer signs? Well it is kind of a
marketing tactic. If you are new to skiing, you don't want to feel
like you are on the bunny hill for bragging rights. Which works for
La Parva, it is just not for people that know how to ski. For that
you need to move next door to El Colorado and Valle Nevado.
El
Colorado, Central Chile
This
tends to be geared towards the younger crowd as they are slightly
more accessible and the lift tickets are a bit Cheaper than Valle
Nevado on the other side of the mountain. They have good facilities,
and good runs. They are however a bit short. In fact, you look at the
mountain side and think those runs could have went on for another 30
minutes, but they kind of abruptly come to an end at the main lodge.
The length of the slopes aside, there is a nice mix of difficult
stuff and easy going slopes with lots of lifts.
El
Colorado seems to also have a nice ski culture. We have seen the
Canadian Olympic Ski team pick El Colorado for practice in the off
season. We also have found the lift lines at El Colorado to be fast
even on a busy weekend. By the way, if you can ski during the middle
of the week you will for the most part have all the ski resorts to
yourself.
Valle
Nevado, Central Chile
A
little more upscale with a hotel and several restaurants. The lifts
are nice and long, and there is a snowboard park to capture the
younger crowd. As mentioned above, we did find the lift lines a bit
long and slow on the busy weekends, but still nothing like a typical
weekend in the States. As all the ski resorts, if you spend more than
15 minutes in a lift line you are there on a really really busy
weekend.
The
sweet spot for Off-pista skiing near Santiago.
If
you are not one to follow the crowd and the marked trails, then the
sweet spot for skiing in Central Chile is not any of the resorts.
Well, sort of. There is a valley that separates Valle Nevado and El
Colorado, that is highly marked with 'ski at your own risk signs'.
Well, it is worth the risk. With fresh powder, you can disappear in
to this valley and escape the crowds. Just be aware that those
snowboarder tracks may really be going to the road down below. It is
easy to over enjoy yourself and miss the turnoff that brings you back
to the lift line of Valley Nevado. Hitch Hiking back up the mountain
in Ski boots would not be fun, but you could do it. This unofficial
run is one of the longest in the area, and will take you about 30-45
minutes of powdery bliss to finish.
The
2007 ski year is a La Nina year, and that means lots of fresh snow in
Chile. Take advantage of it.
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