Las Trancas, Chile (September 9, 2009) — Las Trancas is a unique town. The locals are friendly, dogs roam free and the landscape is amazing. We have been here close to a month, long enough to get a legitimate sense of the area and first and foremost, the weather is amazing and totally unpredictable. For instance, the other day we witnessed a 15-degree temperature change in little more than an hour. We have seen marble- sized hail turn to rain in seconds. Weather drives the shred so the shred here is unpredictable. Do what you can when you can…

The weather report is a constant for any snow enthusiast. In South America one thing you cannot count on is a legit snow forecast. So you go on instinct. The other day we caught wind of a storm up north—jumped on a train, grabbed a bus, hopped in a taxi. We got to Farellones early in the a.m. to find four inches of blower pow on top of a firm ice layer. We made it work.

Bust on crust. With minimal snow in the forecast we decided to head back south and managed to sneak in a night of party in Santiago. Santiago is a great place to get loose. We saw four bands, three DJ’s and about 4000 beautiful girls. No covers. A word for the wise, watch out for pisco. Pisco is a Chilean booze made from grapes in the Andes, very potent. With a healthy hangover and time to burn we hopped a train back down south.

We arrived back in Las Trancas for a day of slushy snow, tree-jibber fun.

Then it hit at Nevados de Chillan; snow came and stayed. Wind lips, steeps, cornices, trees, and natural booters, two days of sun drenched soft snow. What else could you ask for?

Well there’s always the banger sunsets…bring your girl here, she’ll melt.

All images: Justin Kious