Unofficial Andes

Here is First Tracks Online’s review of Las Lenas.

Las Leñas, Argentina

Review by Tony Crocker

“As measured by Google Earth Eduardo’s has the same average pitch as Squaw Valley’s 75 Chute for over twice the vertical. There are further long and steep routes through the rocks moving south from Eduardo’s to the Marte liftline and beyond, but one should first go with a guide to avoid unstable snow or becoming cliffed out.”

Las Leñas is the largest but perhaps most controversial ski area in the Southern Hemisphere. Advocates compare its scale to Vail and Snowbird combined, though the long and steep off-piste terrain is perhaps more analogous to low density European areas like Alagna or La Grave. Detractors point out that 80% of this terrain is dependent upon the Marte double chair, which is closed at least a quarter of the time due to weather or less diligent management than we expect in North America. When open, Marte’s skiing can also be limited by substantial lift lines and by the other slow lifts needed to return to it.

The polarized opinion above, plus my favorable impression of Extremely Canadian’s clinic at Whistler, convinced me to sign up for one of their World Tour weeks. Extremely Canadian has been coming to Las Leñas since 2002, and lead guide Joe Lammers has over 200 days of lifetime skiing at Las Leñas.

Some skiers put a premium on skiing anything in the Southern Hemisphere, just to break up the typical six to eight months between northern ski seasons, so it’s worthwhile to analyze Las Leñas relative to Southern Hemisphere alternatives, as well as on an absolute scale vs. European and North American skiing.

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