Santiago -> Buenos Aires during winter; 1st trip HELP!
 

Hey guys,
first of all thanks for all the helpful threads in here, helped me a lot so far. I'm studying in Santiago and have about a month of holidays in a couple of weeks.

I'm looking forward to doing my first motorcycle trip this july in Southamerica. I want to ride from Santiago de Chile to Buenos Aires and from there on to the north.
Problem is there is the Paso Christo Redentor inbetween.

Do you think that there could be problems crossing the Pass because of snowfall or ice on the road or better has anyone done that during the winter so far?
I couldn't find a site on the internet which has weather conditions about this road because its closed from time to time due to strong snowfall. The Pass is up to 3500meter high. Its the principal route between Argentinia and Chile so there there are a lot of trucks everyday and as far as i know they are always cleaning it as fast as possible.

Next problem. I will buy myself a knew Euromot gxt 200ccm for the trip. A friend of mine might come with me for the first part of the trip and i'm kinda concerned whether the power of the bike is enough for us two crossing the andes (she's a girl and i'm not that heavy either). Unfortunately I don't have much experience so I can't really estimate that. :(

I really want to do that trip with my own bike and don't want to make my trip with a bus which would be the easy and boring way.
Thanks in advance for your help and i hope someone has done that before and can hook me up with some tips. :)

I've crossed 4500m on a Honda XL200 with a girl on the back, it's slow but quite doable.

Also one tip for you, there's a very good hostel in Santiago thats rather cheap with a garage. You can find it here: Hostal de Sammy - Backpacker Youth Hostel in Santiago Chile

Could it be a problem? Of course it could. It snows. There's ice. It's cold. The days are short. Most people don't like riding on snowy, icy roads, and most don't like riding in cold either. That's because it's dangerous and uncomfortable. You might be different, but how are you going to find out? You need to try it and see. No one can tell you how you'll fare on an internet forum.

On the other hand, I can warn you against biting off more than you can chew with a new bike and insufficient experience. Get some practice first, including on some mountain roads in winter, before you start riding two-up on long trips through mountains in the wintertime. To start right out with a passenger is asking for trouble for you both.

This advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.....but I hope it's helpful nonetheless.

Mark

thanks, it was helpful indeed. well, the uncomfortable part is only between santiago and mendoza. this is about 370km and the crossing where its getting high, cold and nasty is only about 50km on a pretty decent road. all the other parts are over flat land where it's not as cold anymore.
i'm just trying to get a feeling whether there are serious concerns doing that. obviously its more comfortable riding on a sunny day in hot weather but i have to cross these mountains to get to the more pleasant part.

I know that road, and I know mountains well enough to know what it'll be like in winter. You keep asking the same question, this time phrasing it in terms of whether there are "serious concerns." The answer is yes, fer godssakes there are serious concerns. If you don't understand those concerns you shouldn't be riding a road like that during the winter....so go out and gather yourself enough experience to make it possible to judge such things for yourself.

On the other hand, in nice weather with the road free of ice and snow, it'll be a breeze....as long as you don't find one of the patches of black ice hidden in the shade, or the refrozen bit of meltwater off a snowbank. The trouble is, you don't sound like you're ready to make those kind of judgment calls. least of all with a passenger. At least stick to risking your own life for a while, not hers as well.

I apologize if I've misjudged your level of experience, which is perfectly possible considering the vagaries of internet communication.

Safe journeys!

Mark

...sometimes there is snow and ice but not often and this should be able to find out in advance-ask the cars and trucks which come down the pass.
There is wind-strong wind-but adventures never had been a caferide...
It will be fu...ing cold-wear as much as you can (especially girls on the back use to freeze a lot (she might become bitchy which could be you biggest prob ;-)))
You need really good gloves...

There is a border crossing at the coldest spot-calculate 3 hours for the border-no joke-after 10 month on the bike all over S-America I know what I´m talking about...

...but I´m sure milliones of Argentinians and Chilenians had done the same trip with their chicas on a 150ccm bike without proper cloth and without gloves...most of them survived

950 Abenteuer

Indeed that is a problem and exactly what happened to me.

Not millones, but cientos. Is totally doable if you are not in a hurry and wait for a reasonable weather.

But remember that during the winter you can have a sunny day in Santiago and a storm in the mountains.

Don't worry about ice, after a storm the people in charge add salt to de-ice the road.

it rained badly the last day, but the weather forecast says 13-20°C and sun for the next week in santiago and los andes (the nearest puebla to paso redentor)

If you can go during a time of good weather and in Mid Day, you should be OK. But the Sierra are always a bit unpredictable and conditions can change quickly. Pay attention.

I say go for it. Get latest reports and if all clear, GO! Do the Paseo at about 2 pm en la tarde. Warmest time. Also be aware that clear weather can mean very cold weather, which can mean ICE.

I'd stay in the North of Argentina this time of year. Too cold in the Southern areas. Maybe loop around on the way home and cross into Chile up North, then ride down the Chilean coast to Santiago.

Patrick, the northern passes are far higher (to 5000 meters/16,500 feet), far more remote (2-300 miles between population centers), markedly more difficult (most are at least partially dirt, though not all), and much, much colder. Altogether not suited for beginners with beginner pillion on board. Besides, it's a long way from northern Chile and Argentina to Santiago/Mendoza/Buenos Aires. One suspects that the OP knows this, although it sounds like you don't.

Those responding in less grumpy tones than myself have hit all the relevant points: wait for good weather, make sure the pillion is comfortable, allow for a slow border crossing (that one's famously slow), be careful.....and the odds are on your side, give or take. Oh, and don't forget that it's supposed to be fun, not torture-by-hypothermia-and-nervous-tension.

Mark

(from the remarkably laid-back Caribbean coast of Costa Rica, where there are intervals every so often during which it does not rain hard enough to reduce visibility to under a hundred feet)

Hey Mark,

You really get around. Seems like just yesterday you were in Panama staring down striking banana workers. Are you in Cahuita? Puerto Viejo? Costa Rican Carribean side was nice a few years ago. Hope it still is.

What was the question? Oh Yeah.
Checking the weather for Mendoza tomorrow I see high 59F low 32F . God knows how frikkin' cold it is at the pass. Los Andes is down at 800 meters so not a great gauge of pass temps. Two up on a Chinabike freezin' yer keester wheezing up a mountain pass in the Andes in the dead of winter with an unhappy frozen lass on the back doesn't sound like much fun to me. But what do I know?

Best luck,
John Downs

Cahuita today, trying to hurry home before I run out of money (but the vibe here is so relaxed I'm experiencing a bit of difficulty getting re-motivated this morning).

I was in the area in question last January. Don't know it well, but I do know mountains....and riding motorcycles in mountains....and riding with ladyfriends....and being a beginner. Not a good combination, IMHO, but mostly we survive whatever foolishness we undertake, right? (although I have to say my first impulse when facing angry men with weapons is to grin like a fool and chatter about world peace. Only if this fails do I resort to the steely stare and ninja-like calm.)

I'm back in Santiago right now. The first cross from Santiago to Mendoza was no problem at all. It wasn't even cold. It got kinda cold on my way back because some *** stole my jacket in Argentina and the sun wasn't shining. The streets were wet as well the second time, but they added so much salt that there weren't any iceplates.