The Windy Empire

Patagonia, my home. And one of the few places in the world left that hasn't been explored entirely. High winds, pure nature, and excitement await you. We were set on a mission and drove more than 1,500 kilometers from Bariloche to El Chalten on Ruta 40. This road goes from North to South covering all of Argentina. The goal was to explore and ski places only a few people have ever visited. It's been my dream for a long time to ski next to the massive granite walls – the ones that only experienced and adventurous climbers dream about – of the Fitz Roy range. With the inconstant weather and unpredictable conditions, only the right preparation can guarantee a successful mission.

We were a group of five, and we departed from my home in Bariloche with a fully loaded car. Camera equipment, camping and ski gear, climbing equipment and boxes of food for 25 days were our cargo. The crew members were Thibaud Duchosal, Joi Hoffmann, photographer Javier Procaccini, filmmaker Laurent Jamet and myself. A great crew to travel with and create some fantastic memories. Driving through Patagonia is already a great experience. The views and the amazing landscapes that you enjoy throughout the drive leave you speechless. The colors of both the sunrises and sunsets are just unique. On the way, we stopped to ski in an area called El Foyel. We were guests at a massive ranch owned by Hubert. It's an excellent location for ski touring.

We went horseback riding to access different valleys and then planned several nights in one of the mountain huts the valley has to offer. Even though the snow conditions were not the best – in addition to the wind, high temperature fluctuations had a considerable impact on the snowpack – we were able to ski some fantastic lines. Bowls, couloirs, and epic views were what El Foyel offered us. The combination of horses and skiing is something special. After several days of skinning through different valleys, it was time to leave. We drove the whole day to arrive in "La cueva de las Manos," a nice canyon frequently visited by climbers from all over the world. We camped next to some big walls, started a big bonfire to get some warmth and rested.

The next day, our journey continued. We arrived in El Chalten, with high winds welcoming us and no visibility towards the massif. The weather in Patagonia can be very capricious and unpredictable. You never know what will happen and what to expect, so you always have to be ready to adapt and improvise. We knew that if we wanted to ski some big lines, we would have to be patient but always prepared to go at the right time. We had different plans for our stay in El Chalten, but one of our primary targets was Cerro Creston. This face is as sexy and appealing to every skier as it is scary.

With more than 500 vertical meters to ski, with sections of 50+ degree steepness and surrounded by big glacier fields, it's a real challenge and only making the right decisions can guarantee a successful mission. Our first attempt to ski Cerro Creston started with a hike at 4 am since we wanted to be above tree level before sunrise to have a good look at the face and attack the glacier with good visibility. The dense forest is impressive; so green and natural. You feel isolated, far away... Lost in nature of Patagonia. The weather was perfect, blue skies and no wind. We were out on the glacier and moving fast when the wind picked up. We could see far out on the horizon that clouds were approaching.

By the time we climbed the last ridge, the clouds had started to get in our way. We were almost at the summit, so what should we do? Keep going or turn around? We climbed all the way to the summit, but the dense clouds didn't allow for any great skiing. We returned to our base and were happy with what we had skied, but we weren't satisfied. We had to go back and ski it in perfect conditions. We struggled quite a bit with the weather over the following days, which is very normal in Patagonia with its inconstant conditions. Attempting different areas but getting shut down by the weather is a tough mental game one must play here. We finally got a window that looked interesting. This was our best opportunity.

We set out in the dark, while it was still snowing. We knew it would break clear after the sunrise, or at least we were hoping for it. Luckily for us, by the time we got onto the glacier and started to skin up, it stopped snowing, and we could see how the sky began breaking up. We were slower on our way up than the last time due to 30 centimeters of fresh snow, but we felt good. We got to the first ridge. It got windy, but the wind took care of the clouds, and the sky was totally clear. As we were looking for a safe spot to rest a bit, the whole face just collapsed制作 complete text from German and English columns based on the original PDF text extract. For length and continuity: Let's verify the German and English texts extracted from pages 94 to 101 for Cerro Crestón to ensure full completeness.