Mendoza Sports & Outdoors

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Mendoza's surrounding is full of high peak mountains - remember, Aconcagua is close with nearly 7000 m.
So it would be logical that once you are in Mendoza, that you want to climb or hike on one of the mountains which are higher than 4000 m or even 5000 m.

Although I did not do these hikes or climbs (as my actual fitness did not allow it :-), I have seen the happy faces of the people coming back from trips with Juan Pablo Vilche and his team.
In this case, it was hiking on Cerro Lomas Blancas in Vallecitos, a peak of 3900 m.

But Huella de los Andes (traces / footprints of the Andes) offer much more.
I can highly recommend them for any kind of serious and reliable high mountain activities.


One serious remark for those of you who believe it is easy to do these hikes on your own (without a tour operator):
remember, the Cordillera is not the Alpes or US mountains. Apart from Aconcagua, the Cordillera around Mendoza is quite virgin. Thus, there are no well-trotten paths up to the peaks.
Reliable mountaineering guides do have high and long-year experience with these mountains and it is well worth to do the hikes or climbs with them.
Your life should be worth it.
(and no, I am not getting payed for writing this - I just have heared of too many serious accidents of people who believed this is a walkaway and did it on their own).


Equipment: Depends of what you will book. For the higher mountains, they offer equipment, which tourists usually don't bring (such as ice axis and crampons).
You should have your own clothing, however (but if you plan this kind of activities, you will have it with you anyhow): warm fleece (layer principle), ankle protecting hiking boots, hiking poles, etc.

Please check their website, they mention all equipment, depending on the tour.

It is in spanish at the moment, but will be available in english soon - please email me if you need translation.

LA actividad fué Mountain Bike por Bodegas de día completo. Lo hice con la agencia de turismo Kahuak, a la cual debo agradecer por su excelente servicio.
Nos pasaron a buscara a aprtir de la 9:30am por nuestro hostel y fuimos a Chacras de Coria un pueblo muy pintoresco y tranquilo, allí salimos con las bicis a recorrer las bodegas. Visitamos 2 bodegas por la mañana, muy lindas y cada una con una característica particular, lo que nos permitía diferenciar el tipo de producción de cada una.
Luego fuimos a almorzar a una Cava llamada Cava de Cano, el almuerzo fué muy suculento y excelente, de muy buen nivel y nos atendieron de primera....
Luego finalizamos el recorrido con una bodega muy chiquita cerca del lugar donde comimos.
La verdad que una experiencia inolvidable...

Equipment: es necesario llevar pantalones largos, lentes de sol y protector solar.
Además para la comodidad de cada uno sería bueno llevar un bolso o mochila donde podemos llevar camaras de fotos, etc.

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What a great day! Horseback riding is something many tourist operators offer. I chosen mine through my hostel because of good reputation. The horse riding tour is called CABALGATAS and costs 160pesos(32euros) for a full day.

First, they picked up everyone(in total a group of 8 people) with their mini van from the hotel (7:30-8:30am). Then, after a 30’ ride(at 9:00am) we arrived at a ranch, 50km away from Mendoza. Then a gaucho came with his son and 8 horses and we started our ride into the mountains after a demonstration of how to ride a horse.

The gauchos are the owners of the horses and they do the same job like their fathers, grandfathers etc They have and raise horses, they train them, they sell some of them and the last years some of them they cooperator with Mendoza’s agent offering horse riding for the visitors….

I was impressed of the surrounded view and it’s easy to happen to you because in fact, you don’t have to do anything when you are up on the horse, just hold tight the rope and enjoy the ride. The horses are very calm and they go in low speed. They only increase speed when they want to go up on a hill and of course if you want to race with someone else but even then you are the one that says “go” and “stop” (you control the speed with your feet!:) ).

We made some stops to drink mate (that the gaucho prepared for us) and at noon we returned back for the asado! Asado is the famous barbeque of the argentinians, we ate a lot, we drunk a lot, we laughed a lot. Then happily, we took again our horses through another path up in the mountains but it was more difficult because the horses run faster than in the morning. When we returned back in the hotel (around 19:00) I still had a smile on my face…

Equipment: a bottle of water, sun lotion and a hat

I will also be skiing in Las Lenas in July and August. I am looking for a place to stay for up to 4-6 weeks as close to las Lenas as possible. Any recomendations? Mendoza seems about 3 hours drive in good weather. The snow was great last year in June according to the weather data.

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Mendoza is an excellent starting point for all kind of outdoor activities,mainly trekking, hiking and of course, biking.
Downtown you'll find quite a few agencies and tour operators.
My friend Klaus and I took the bus in Mendoza and went to Malargüe, where we started our Andes-cross to Chile. In Chile we went up to Portillo (ski-resort), from there up an endless winding dirtroad up to 'Cristo Redentor' (about 3.800 m above sealevel).
The view was excellent, but too many tourists in buses came up there from the Argentina side of the Andes.
We got our kicks when riding the wild downhill to Puente del Inca, passing by the basecamp of the Aconcagua (6.962 m).
We saw the snow-covered Aconcagua in full beauty - no clouds, just perfect!!!

The next day we rode our bikes from Puente del Inca to Uspallata, and then one day later our Andes tour ended up in Mendoza, from where we had started 2 weeks ago.

Equipment: bring a good bike, not to much 'stuff', and lots of fitness!

If you're looking for a few more thrills and spliis than wine-tasting and sightseeing have to offer, you could try white-water rafting on the Mendoza River. The first company to offer rafting in Argentina, Rios Andinos operates out of a base near Potrerillos. With a programme that covers all age groups and levels of skill, there's scope for everyone to take to the water and experience the real nature of the river and the mountains. Whilst rafting is possible all year round, the volume of water in the rivers during summer does increase the difficulty.

Rios Andinos camp is just off the RN-7 5km past Potrerillos. Even if you're not rafting, the cafe there makes a pleasant place to stop en route to Puente del Inca.

Tiene un perfil más familiar que Las Leñas.
Ubicación: A 165 kilómetros de la ciudad de Mendoza.
Características y servicios: Son 28 pistas que abarcan 25.500 metros. Se practica esquí alpino, nórdico, de competición y extremo. En snowboard se puede elegir entre free-style, freeride y extremo. Hay una academia de esquí y snowboard y se pueden alquilar y comprar equipos. Existe una guardería infantil.Todos los sábados, durante la temporada invernal, se realiza la Bajada de Antorchas. El lugar cuenta con hosterías, departamentos en alquiler y refugios con baño compartido. A la noche se puede disfrutar de bares y de una discoteca.

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I booked this trek & repell through the casa pueblo hostel in Mendoza. My only regret is that I didn't do more of it when I was there. Well, a good excuse to go back... and a now maybe I will get more involved in the sport at home in the Rocky Mountains. Our guide Martin was excellent and very safety conscious.