Week 25
Day 177 / August 21, 2026
On Friday, I was focused on one thing, and one thing only…RANDOFEST!! This was the 6th edition of the Maule based event, hosted by Andes Sustainable, a group dedicated to conserving and protecting the high andes within the Maule region. Worth noting, in addition to organizing this huge backcountry event, they were recently involved in the ‘No a las Torres: Salvemos Alto Maule’ movement. Electric company Enel was looking to construct 72 towers to carry a 500kV line of electricity from Talca, along Ruta 115, through Valle of the Condors and into Argentina. With petitions, peaceful protests, and meetings with local government, the project was shut down. That’s to say all the energy from the recent win certainly carried into the weekend!
Randofest was being hosted at Lo Aguirre along Ruta 115 just in front of the Valley of the Condors climbing zone, approximately 1.5 hours east of Talca. Though my Talca friends were planning on heading up the next day, I figured a Friday start would mean I could get straight out skiing on Saturday. So, I messaged into the Randofest WhatsApp group chat and connected with a crew that was heading up today. Jacob, Simon, and Benja were coming from Santiago and picked up Pablo in Curico then me in Talca en route. Jacob’s white Tacoma was full to the brim by the time they pulled up in front of my house at 1:00pm. We managed to stuff my things in the remaining pockets amidst the busy school traffic clogging up Tres sur.
We got the introductions down and began talking about the weekend. The guys were all between 35 and 45 years old and had various skiing backgrounds, with Pablo starting just the year prior! They had all camped in winter before, something that was new to me, and seemed to have a solid knowledge base to pull from. By 2:00pm we reached Pepe’s market and stopped to buy final snacks and essentials. Simon bought a block of queso de cabeza, also known as queso de chancho, which is a unique block of cold cuts made with pig brain. He warned it was quite the controversial concoction and handed me a slice to try. Although the seasoning was nice, something about cold cuts is always yucky to me, so I doubt I’ll be buying myself a block of it anytime soon.
We continued along the road and everyone shared what they did for work. Pablo works in blueberry farming, Benja in geology and 3D topo development, Simon in freelance trade work, and Jacob in mining administration.
Before long we arrived at the makeshift parking lot, a dirt patch that had been cleared of snow, which was full of food trucks and porta potties. I was surprised by the number of people!! There were stalls selling sleds, and families all around enjoying the snow. We took a moment to stretch our legs and go to the bathroom, before then huffing our packs over to the Randofest camping area. I stupidly decided to do the first trip in just snow boots, which promptly post-holed in the thin outer crust on the surface of the snow. I made it just 50m down the berm at the edge of the parking lot and up the other side onto the open plain. From there, I could see where the camping ground had been established another 100m in the distance. I dropped my packs where I was standing and went back to the car to put on my skis and boots as the others were doing. There were makeshift sleds constructed to bring heavy coolers full of food. I made two trips with my own gear before returning to help Pablo haul out the cooler.
We checked in, received an update about the agenda including a safety briefing at 9:00am the next day, and got to work unpacking. I watched the rest of the crew as they took out their shovels and began clearing a space to constructed their tent. In addition, they built a snow wall to block the wind. Jacob suggested we divide the work and put our tents together surrounded by one snow wall. He then asked for a shovel on my behalf as it was the one piece of equipment I was missing (and quite an important one at that… worth noting here a basic avalanche response kit includes a beacon, shovel, and probe). A ski patrol kindly offered his and I used it to help Jacob with the wall.
By 6:00pm the walls were built, tents constructed, and shovels returned to their owners. I took a moment to admire the view and make a ramen on my camp stove. The sun set right at 6:30pm, and shortly after the campground was lit up with camp fires and fairy lights scattered throughout the snowy plain.
Our group got to chatting with others and soon we were over at a fire hosted by some members of the Club Andino Universitario, a mountaineer collective born out of the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. It was a great way to start the festivities. In particular, one of the members had lived and worked at various ski resorts in the US. He told me about his trips to Stowe, Mammoth, and a few others I didn’t even know! Of course, as is the case with most Chilean gatherings, there was plenty of asado making it’s way around the campfire. With no meat to contribute, I brought my Jaagermeister to share.
By 11:00pm we were tired from a long day so most of the crew (everyone in the carpool) headed to bed. From my experience camping nearby in the fall, I was sure to pack extra everything. I layered up socks, and broke open four new hand warmers to stuff into my sleeping bag. Eventually I was able to adjust the setup in such a way that the opening for my face was on the ground side and my pillow inside the sleeping bag covering the hole to minimize draft. Even then, it was a chilly night.
Day 178 / August 22, 2026
I woke up to sounds of coffee and chatter at around 8:00am the next day. The hand warmers were still working their magic, and I promptly stuffed them in my boots to keep my feet warm for breakfast. All credit to past Rudy, because she planned just the thing for a mountain breakfast: apple crisp.
Running on little sleep, and with a big day ahead, the sweet, buttery, crisp was just the thing I needed. As I nibbled away, Benja started prepping his morning coffee and we got chatting about the day to come. At this point a few things were still unclear: the range in ability levels, preferences for objectives, and perhaps most importantly, stamina. Fortunately, the surrounding area had a lot to offer for all ability levels, so we could easily head up as a group, but descend on our own respective lines. Wanting to leave as soon as possible, I made sure I was booted up and ready to go before the safety briefing at 9:00am.
All the participants who had camped, around 90 people, showed up for the safety briefing at 9:00am. Various speakers presented. First a member of Andes Sustainable to brief on the history of the event and excitement for this sixth edition of it. Then someone from the Ski Patrol team to share general safety guidance and clear reminders that any zones out of eye sight were not being monitored. In the event of a bad crash, avalanche, or other catastrophe, we were on our own to figure it out. The mountains are huge, the risks we were taking were our own choice, and this was an important reminder. He closed the briefing with a good luck, and have fun!
Everyone dispersed to prepare for their various adventures. Our carpool group agreed to head out together. As I waited for the rest of the team to get ready, Cami, Nicole, Pauli, Nico, Javi, Carlos, and some other Talca friends arrived. I went over to say a quick hello, and they brought all their stuff over to set up camp next door. By 10:40am, skis were on and the carpool team assembled to have our own safety briefing.
Jacob, Simon, Benja, Pablo and I tested beacons then discussed the plan. Simon suggested that because I didn’t have a shovel, I shouldn’t go last (in the event someone got stuck in an avalanche or snow slide, ideal if the person following had the appropriate equipment). Most of the team had radios too, so they picked their own channel and checked comms too. Benja had a spare which he kindly lent me so I joined the channel as well. After that, we agreed to set off in the direction of other skiers and see what looked good!
We naturally fell into a line with Benja at the front striding ahead. At least 50 others were heading in the same direction and it was a beautiful sight! Friends, neighbors, families, all huffing and puffing uphill hoping to get some untouched turns on the way down. We stopped for a quick break and chat at around an hour in, 1000ft up from where we started at 6500ft. We agreed to continue following the crowd up to the obvious looking summit in front of us.
Onwards and upwards!
An hour later, at 12:30pm we arrived at 8,000ft just 150ft below the summit. It was at this point I knew I messed up. I hadn’t packed a water bottle (rookie mistake I know) and was hit by some brutal leg cramps from a mix of dehydration and nutrition imbalance. Pablo kindly offered some ibuprofen and Benja shared his water. It took a few minutes, but everything slowly returned to normal. We scoped out the lines on the other side of the peak and agreed to take a different route down than the one we came up. As for continuing upwards, the snow looked like crud and I was conscious about saving my legs after the very new and painful cramping episode.
Jacob and Simon were also wanting to rest for a bit, so Benja and Pablo continued up and agreed to meet us on their way down.
At 2:00pm they reached us again and we agreed to set off together. The others were unsure of the snow and were nervous the route looked steep, so I offered to go down first.
WHEWWWWW!!! The snow was still fluffy and fresh!! The descent was south facing, out of the sun which had crusted some nearby routes. I stopped at the bottom of the open bowl and waved for the next person to join. Simon and Pablo followed, then Benja, and Jacob at the rear. A guy named Nico had seen the crew dropping in and asked to join too, so he was in tow as well. Confident with the snow conditions, and more comfortable with the number of other teams around, I offered to trail at the back.
We were almost at the bottom by 2:40pm with only the short, flat, cow trail left to drain back to camp. Benja still had energy and asked if anyone wanted to join for another lap, the rest of the crew was tired, but I happily agreed! Simon lent me his shovel and off we went.
We transitioned at 7000ft and continued up a straight, gradual ascent to 8000ft once again.
There was another crew getting ready to head down as we reached the summit. We were directly opposite our previous descent, and this side offered even clearer views of the fingers at the end of cow trail. I said to Benja, if he was psyched, we should aim for an early start to the fingers the next day (foreshadowing: navegado hot wine and late asado would mean that plan did not happen, but it was fun to dream). We took in the view, enjoyed some sips of Benja’s coffee, then transitioned and made our way down.
This side was even less tracked out, so we had a ton of untouched snow to play with.
We floated down into the late afternoon sun straight to a mini asado set up by our neighbors, Federico and Antonia, below.
Shortly after our arrival we were corralled for a group photo. We headed to the base of the makeshift ‘bunny’ slope and squished together, now a whopping 300 participants.
After a few more clicks of the camera, the organizers told us there was a surprise… there was going to be a fire skiing show! In just over an hour, we instructed to look out to the bunny slope where a group of volunteers was going to descend with torches. The crowd cheered and we returned to our respective tents.
The carpool crew chatted, sipped wine, and soaked in the last rays of the day. Just before 6:00pm we looked up to a dark shape in the sky… a skier flying with a parachute!! The whole of the base camp paused what they were doing to take in the marvellous spectacle. He landed to a roar of cheers and told us two others were coming after him. It gave everyone a smile and was a great way to spend the sunset.
At this point, my Talca friends had returned to their tents and were sat around their makeshift snow conversation pit. I headed over to say hello and learned all about their adventures for the day. As well as enjoying some skiing near the camp, they had attended some of the workshops on offer including a snow refuge construction taught by Andres, Pared’s very own climbing coach. Ten people were able to fit inside at once, and a true testament to its utility, Andres was planning on sleeping in it that night.
Excited for a warm meal, I whipped out my stove and made a box mac and cheese which got handed around the pit. We just finished the last bite when someone pointed out the fire skiers were in formation.
Everyone stood up to get a clear view, and wow nothing could have prepared me for what came next. The volunteers had mixed ability levels, and with the added element of fire, it was pure carnage. Bodies hit the ground, fire was flying everywhere, and nothing we could do but watch. It was a relatively tame slope, so we were able to nerviously giggle knowing no serious injuries would come of it, but wow. Credit to all of them for braving a descent with fire in their hands, they all did better than I could!
It was a wonderful evening, great chats with even better company. Although it was cold, the Hokkairo hand warmers kept us all toasty. By 7:30pm a big crowd had gathered closer to the parking lot, so the Talca friends and I packed up our Uber (a green sled) with offerings to share.
The organizers had packed entertainment supplies alongside a full grill nailed onto two skis. All kinds of meats were passed around and people had themselves a time. There was a movie projected onto a bed sheet, free beer and wine, and so much chatting happening. At one point I was found myself chatting to an older gentleman, Cristhian, associated with Club Andino Volcanoes Maule, who told me some spooky ghost stories he experienced while outside. Included in his summary of adventures was a 2 day kayaking trip to the infamous Friendship Island. There are speculations about an alien species having at some point settled onto the island bringing with them all kinds of critters and problems. I definitely had chills hearing about it.
At 10:00pm, just when we thought things couldn’t get any better, there was an announcement for a talent show. Everyone crowded into a circle around the announcer and people stepped up one by one to show their talents. We saw backflips (attempted), contortion, Benja even stepped up to do some capoeira moves, singing, dancing, and more. Everyone was smiling ear to ear. It was such a treat!
By 11:00pm, the long day caught up to me and I headed to bed. Cami was staying in my tent tonight and I was so excited for additional body heat! We tucked in shortly after 11:15pm and went straight to sleep.
Day 179 / August 23, 2026
Folks were stirring at 8:30am, and the damage from the night before was clear. We were all con caña (hungover). I nibbled on the rest of my apple crisp, and sat at the conversation pit until the others gradually joined me. I couldn’t tell if it was the cold, the long days, or a combination… but my throat was so sore! I made myself a tea and hoped for the best.
Nico and then Carlos came over to join me and we chatted about our relationships with the outdoors, climbing, and how that has changed throughout the years with family, and work. It was a great way to start the day.
Psyched to get back to skiing, I was stuck in two minds about leaving by myself. Obviously there are always going to be risks, but I wasn’t sure if I was ready to accept them independently or not. This was my first time at an event of this scale, and in mountains this remote and wild. As a staunch rule follower in a new environment with no restrictions, I wasn’t sure where that left me. Ultimately, caution led me to wait for the rest of the carpool crew to wake and get ready. We were making our way up the other side of the plain by 11:00am.
Today it was just Pablo, Benja, Jacob and I as Simon stayed back to get some laps in with Andres. It was slightly more overcast than the day before, and still so beautiful.
We shimmied our way up to a funky rock outcrop overlooking the Randofest base below. We transitioned to downhill ski mode by 12:45pm and made our way back to camp.
There was a long drive ahead of us, so after a quick snack, we broke down camp and made trips to the car with all of our gear. By 3:00pm the car was loaded and we split one final mountain beer before hitting the road.
Hunger crept in so we stopped for a quick churasca at 5:00pm near the final Copec along Ruta 115.
By 6:30pm, we pulled up in front of my house. The whole crew stepped out to help me with my things and say a warm goodbye. It was a lovely weekend, and I was so lucky to share it with new and old friends alike!
As soon as I got inside my apartment, I had a quick shower, and immediately crashed into bed.
Day 180 / August 24, 2026
On Monday it was back to work, and I headed into the lab with a full blown cold. Much to my surprise, when I arrived Cathe, and Catha were already masked up with their own cold symptoms as well. We sniffled and coughed our way through some prep for the week.
With afternoon plans to visit the nearby Colegio Integrado Talca to present the Microheroes card game, I quickly (but carefully) went through a DNA extraction with a sample from Professor Aparna from Rio Loa in the Atacama Desert. After the last spin on the centrifuge, I stored everything in the 4C fridge, and at 3:30pm we headed to the school.
This was a particularly special visit because Nicolas attended this colegio! He reunited with past teachers who were absolutely beaming with pride watching him present his current research plans. The students loved the cards and quickly became competitive trying to finish their bacterial niches.
After the activity I went straight home to bed, absolutely wiped from the cold.
Day 181 / August 25, 2026
Tuesday started with the 8:00am Microbiology class with Professor Charles. Today we reviewed infection and immunity, talking about pathways for bacterial infections.
Cathe brought in some honey and lemon Strepfen tablets which were so good. After a quick snack and catch up, you guessed it, another DNA extraction.
I measured the concentrations of the extracts from the day prior, and was sad to see that even with method changes, a number of samples were still out of range.
Back at home I had a lovely long call with Val where we each cooked chicken parmesan. Good food did the trick, and I went to sleep with a warm tummy.
Day 182 / August 26, 2026
On Wednesday the lab was closed with half the team in Santiago to present updates for Micropolis. The day off was honestly so needed. I slept in, worked on the blog, and ate leftover chicken parmesan. I enjoyed a beautiful sunset from the couch and tucked in for an early night.
Day 183 / August 27, 2026
Not exactly the most thrilling end to a post, but the lab was still closed on Thursday so I spent the day mostly at home too. I was finally starting to feel better, and made myself some blueberry pancakes for breakfast.
At 1:00pm, I finally went outside to get some fresh air and briefly stopped by the lab to help Eiber water his bean plants for his experiment.
I headed to the grocery store too, then went home and made a salad with lettuce, avocado, tomato, boil eggs, and bacon. It was so yummy!
After that it was another early night for me.
Chau for now! :)
Randofest! An amazing playground with gorgeous views. Thank you for sharing the beautiful photos and videos. Kudos to the breakfast photo with campfire toast. Great memories and so many new friends made. Sorry about con caña, then getting a cold. Looks like you took it in stride, like all the challenges you face. As always, you are simply inspiradora. Excellent blog. Looking forward to the next one!