Classic Jeep On Snowy Trail - Photo 64061146

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The local trail guides love the Suzukis, and delight in the early models as well. They are also Tim Hardy lovers and can fix rigs with sticks and stones just like he can.

Checking in at the Twisted Andes Adventure was unique. Most people had never met in person since it was all formed over the Twisted Andes website, twistedandes.com.

Attacking the dunes in the early morning, our hardy group from across the region was packed and ready to go. The Atacama Desert encompasses over 40,000 acres, an area about the size of New York. Low tire pressure and momentum help navigate the soft stuff.

The desert also comprises canyons and rock plains, not just dunes. Varas found himself between a rock and a hard place but slithered through, only to have to return from a blocked trail.

After reaching camp and setting up after a day of wheeling overland, food was the goal. A communal grille was provided by the support trucks of twistedanded.com, and a huge feast ensued with each team’s self-supplied meat.

The most famous dune in Chile is Medanoso, and it is used for many competitions. It rises over 1,800 feet and is the most difficult hill around. On this first-annual Twisted Andes Challenge, only two vehicles made it to the top, Sebastian Varas in his LS-powered Willys and Gonzalo Bravo in his twin-turbo Toyota-powered Suzuki. Power-to-weight ratio and skill are critical on the dunes.

Gonzalo Bravo is the world record holder for driving his Suzuki to the highest drivable point in the world, at 21,942 feet in the Chilean Andes.

He also participated as a co-driver with Sebastian Varas on our UA 2012.

However, a moment’s inattention caused a quick roll in the dunes (damage was minimal).

Along the coast are numerous obstacles and play areas. Alberto Bravo easily crawled around them in his ’96 Tacoma with 38-inch Swamper TSLs.

Beach driving in Chile is like the coast of Baja: free and unfettered with miles between people and facilities. They speak Spanish in both locales as well.

Since our group consisted of three Wrangler JKs, a TJ, three flatties, a Nissan, seven Toyota pickups, a 4Runner, two Rangers, a Samurai, four FJ-40s, and a few others, there was no lack of variety in tackling the difficult terrain. The black lava terrain made for incredible traction as we wound our way south.

Overlanding means hauling camp with you, but we threw in the part about extreme wheeling as well. Long dusty roads led us to another night of fire, food, and fun.

Boulders that seemed easy in the daylight often get worse at night. Mariano Teixeira from Argentina forced his Ranger along the trail over the obstacles. Luckily the Ford is equipped with 38-inch Swampers for better clearance.

Long days on the road puts a stress unlike wheeling on our 4x4s. More than one rig succumbed to the highway before making it to the trail.

The rock trail discovered by Sebastian Varas is like many in the American Southwest. Dry, cactus, big boulders, and awesome wheeling make for a killer trail.

As with any adventure, ending up at camp after dark is commonplace. The rock trail grew more difficult as darkness set in and the night worn on.

Night comes quickly near the coast and causes the temperature to drop. Night wheeling seems to be a tradition in Chile.

Flex is where it’s at in the decomposed granite terrain down south. A Ford 351W powers the flattie wherever it needs to go.

Too much flex, or a moment’s inattention, let our famous turtle turner find a sideways parking spot. Gonzalo Bravo made a name for himself on this trip with a record number of rolls and flops.

After a long road day fraught with repairs, we made it to the Facundo Farm, where 10 of the rigs went straight to the barn for more repair work. The rest of us stayed around the fire waiting for the roasted lamb to finish—and yes, it was excellent!

Facundo Lozano is one of the partners in the twistedandes.com site. His Toyota FJ-40 Land Cruiser sports Dana axles, big tires, and everything inside for comfortable overlanding.

Once again Bravo made the magazine, as he went right instead of left at the crest of a hill. Once wedged, it took about three hours in the freezing rain to extricate the Sammy and get it running.

Our faithful steed withstood the rigors of rain, even with our makeshift top and doors.

Such as we were, we made it home at 7 a.m. Holes like this gave rise to the term “Night of a Thousand Winchings.”

The local trail guides love the Suzukis, and delight in the early models as well. They are also Tim Hardy lovers and can fix rigs with sticks and stones just like he can.

Returning past the river crossing before dark ensured we would be home before sunrise.

Spring in the Andes Mountains means fresh snow and melting ice. Luckily it all started out warm for a three-hour tour, a three-hour tour…

Once 25 rigs were chewing up the trail, we finally reached the end, where we turned back—otherwise we would have spent two nights on the trail.