Four Refugio Traverse - Bariloche ARG

Traveling down to Argentina solo I had all the freedom in the world. From barely being able to communicate with locals to venturing in the backcountry; I was on my own. After a few days of connecting with new and old friends at the resort and the backcountry, I knew it was time for me to go on a big solo mission.

Before I had left the states I came up with the grand idea for a two day traverse between the four refugios (huts) surrounding the greater Bariloche area. The traverse starts at Cerro Catedral, the largest ski resort in South America where I had been skiing the last few days. The experience of resort skiing here could be a blog post itself, but well get into that another time. From there I began hiking on the summer trail towards the famous Refugio Frey. The summer trail is something every skier in Bariloche should do once and never again. It contours a major ridge that separates the resort and the backcountry. The quick aspect change around the corner of this ridge will create the first crux of your trip. I went from supportable, soft snow in tennis shoes to quickly putting on my ski boots and crampons on a precarious ledge as the surface turned into stiff snow and ice. After an hour or so of bootpacking the snow came into form for perfect skinning conditions. Following the well trafficked path put me at ease since I was going to be venturing by myself miles away from any support system.

Top left: Starting point at Caterdral, Top right: Flat section of the summer trail

Bottom left: Final gate showing the start of the trail, Bottom right: Finally in the backcountry

I forgot to mention but I was coming down with quite a cold, a cold that I severely underestimated. Although I was feeling sick and had ample time in Argentina for this traverse, the weather was too good to sit at home as it is notoriously fickle in this part of the world. After another two or so hours I finally made it to Refugio Frey! A famed beautiful stone hut at the base of a majestic lake with towering granite spires and steep couloirs all around. This refugio is well known in the skiing and climbing community for cramped quarters, a vibrant environment, and some of the most spectacular terrain for both disciplines in the area. I had to go into the hut to check it out and the rumors are true. Frey is as barebones as it gets for refugios in Bariloche but it all just adds to the allure of it.

Above left: The famous Refugio Frey, Above Right: Frey's gorgeous spires

Below: Across the lake and around the corner lookers right

After grabbing some water and a quick snack I was on my way across the lake and up to leave the granite spires to another valley towards Refugio San Martin. Atop this ridgeline is where I really start to feel my sickness and began to question all of my choices: “Should I even be here?” , “What am I doing here?”, and “Does this aspect even go?” all ran through my head in record time. Overwhelming feelings of self doubt crept into me as I felt the gravity of the situation: a solo 22 mile traverse 3,000 miles away from home while sick- what was I doing here? I took some deep breaths, took my skins off and began skiing downhill into the next valley. Of my entire traverse this really was the point of no return. After some perfect corn skiing down the valley I took another small break and began to feel sicker and sicker. Knowing that I was “close” to the next refugio I mustered up some strength and began skinning towards my final ridgeline of the day. Thankfully the terrain here was very straight forward and in about two hours I was on top of my final descent for the day. Looking back towards the Frey spires and the summer trail filled me with a certain sense of accomplishment, not that this was some cutting edge traverse but rather I was venturing into the unknown with each turn and how that provided me with immense gratitude to have these experiences. Before taking my skins off and clicking into downhill mode once again I reveled in the terrain that I was skiing in. Crazy couloirs around every corner that would inspire any skier.

Top to Bottom: Admiring my skin track and descent from the Frey spires, Packs off for a nice break on the ridge, Selfie with the terrain across from me in the next valley

Moving downhill towards Refugio Jakob I was met once again with perfect corn snow. Arriving at Jakob was such a relief: my feet were destroyed from being in the aquariums that I called boots along with my sickness getting worse and worse. As I walked in I was blown away at the accommodations. This refugio was brand new as it burned down a few years prior and it felt like an upscale airbnb. Hardwood floors, dormitory style rooms, dedicated mudroom for boots and gear and a gorgeous common area is exactly what I needed. The hut master, bless her soul, noticed , or at least I assumed, I was visibly sick and she gave me my own private room with 4 bunks in it for the night as I was just passing through. Checking in and getting to my room was perfect. Laying in the sun beaming in from the window while sprawling all of my stuff across the room was exactly what I needed. Once I collected myself I was pleasantly surprised to get a notification on my phone that my friend Joe and his two friends were staying in the Refugio for the night as well. We shared some chocolate, cheese, and of course mate in the common area as we talked about the great days of skiing we had shared together previously. These small pieces of our lives are the ones well remember forever, or at least I will.

Top left: Reviewing videos over some traditional snacks, Top right: Official sign of the Refugio

Left: The holy trinity of ski touring snacks

Something I may have breezed over in my posts about the refugios is that they have full service kitchens that will prepare a dinner and possibly even a dessert for you while staying. Many locals will choose to utilize their jetboils and dehydrated meals for sustenance but how many times are you going to be in a backcountry hut in North Patagoina? I genuinely forget what the main course was but I do recall it being extremely delicious. What I do remember was the dessert that they provided us; a pudding-like square that just put the entire day over the top for me. Shortly after the meal I went back to my quarters and prepped for the next day.

Left: The best dessert I had while in Argentina

Overnight my sickness destroyed any semblance of rest I was looking to acquire. Constant coughing, blowing my nose and hacking up mucus kept me restless, and probably the rest of the Refugio.

The next morning I closed out my tab with the hut master and said goodbye to my friends as I had to start early to get to my final Refugio. Leaving the hut was surreal for me, knowing that I had to do roughly 12 miles that day with tons of vertical while being sick would be a real challenge. Day two started with a steep snow climb of roughly 55-65 degrees at times just outside of the refugio. This is by far the most engaging part of the traverse as a fall would be catastrophic due to the exposure below me. Making my way through this section gave me energy and confidence as I thought it was the last major crux for the day.

Left: Morning light on my first peak of the day, Right: Cruising along ridges for a few hours

From here I cut my way along a few ridgelines with a beautiful view of Cerro Tronador to the west. Atop of my first descent of the day I drank a pepsi which was much deserved at this point. The descent was another perfect corn slope with major wet slide debris at the bottom. From here I began my second to last major ascent of the trip, ascending Cerro Negro’s south face. Unfortunately at my transition point I didnt attached my approach shoes securely enough to my pack it was the last time I saw them. After reaching the summit of Cerro Negro I made my way north along my final ridgeline and decided I wanted another descent out of this trip so I dropped into the basin that is created by the backside of Cerro Lopez. From here I was totally exhausted and stoked to make some water with Jetboil along with a snack.

Below left: The rocky bowl I choose to descend rather than stay on the ridge

Below right: Climbing up to reach the summit of that rocky bowl

Below left: Final pitch before rocky bowl descent

Below right: Open snow field with the Itailian Refugio faintly in the distance

Below left: Water boil break, Below Right: Almost to my final ridge

Once this break was over I got onto my final ridgeline of the day. This was by far the most grueling ascent I have ever done. The north facing aspect I was on was completed sun baked and rotten ( Solar aspects are flipped in southern hemisphere). I was constantly going back and forth between chossy rock that was falling away with each step to post holing up to my waist in purely rotten snow. In favorable conditions this would take maybe an hour and a half… It took me almost three hours to get to the summit.

Above left: Cresting onto final ridge with Tronador in the background

Above right: One final ridge that proved to be the hardest of the trip

Below Right: Alpenglow starting to develop as I reach the summit

As I crested the final pitch I was so delighted to have just one final descent to complete. The sun was going down and my body was totally exhausted. Luckily for me I had skied the Cerro Lopez zone a week or so ago and knew the most efficient way back down to the Refugio. Arriving I was met with looks of confusion from the hut master as it was nearly dark and he wasnt expecting any visitors for the night. Despite the confusion he recognized me from days prior and welcomed me in with open arms and told me dinner would be ready in about 20 minutes. When I say this meal was one of the best things I've ever eaten, I mean it. A milanesa of some kind with mashed potatoes and veggies was exactly what the doctor ordered. I was so happy to be inside a familiar hut, eating warm food and being done with 98% of my traverse.

One of my biggest crux’s was how I was going to get back to my car at the ski resort. Luckily I had a friend from Facebook who was coming up the trail to look for misplaced gear and he was happy to drive me back to the ski area. By a stroke of luck, I met him at a perfect spot on the trail where I transitioned from skis to walking down the summer trail in the ski boots since I lost my approach shoes. The ride back to my car was tough as I was super sick and was trying to hold myself together. I was beyond thankful for Willem being gracious enough to give me a ride and helping me complete this traverse.

That night I walked around Bariloche with a heightened sense of appreciation for where I was in the world. Just wandering aimlessly with no objective allowed me to be a sponge to my surroundings and I was beyond thankful to be out of my ski boots.

If you've made it this far and want to see the GPS track I created before heading out, here is the link https://fatmap.com/routeid/3042828/c-catedral-to-lopez-traverse?fmid=cp