Depart: (Friday) The ones leaving from Buenos Aires will depart in our van on Friday in the afternoon. Our meeting point is in Buenos Aires. If you decide to fly, you must arrive in Malargüe, (Mendoza) on friday. The nearest airport is San Rafael and it´s 180km from Malargüe. (Flight and transfer not included)

Saturday Day 1:
Arrive in the afternoon in Malargue, free time for visiting or resting. Lodging in a hotel (included) and dinner (not included)
The ones arriving by land and the ones flying from Buenos Aires meet in Malargue.

Sunday Day 2: Malargüe - Bardas Blancas
After a safety and organisation speach we start biking from the town central square.
First stage biking, we leave the last city (Malargüe) slowly heading south, over the famous road 40 that goes from Jujuy at the north of the country to Usuhahia in the very the south of the country with over 5000km. With the Andes Range on our right, we go over a paved road to the Chihuído Slope uphilling 550 metres in the first 42km until we arrive to enjoy lunch. Our support team prepares lunch every day and receives us in the middle of the Andes at midday and does the same for our night´s dinners and camps. Then we finish our stage at our camp by the Rio Grande at Bardas Blancas. Here we´ll spend our last civilized night at this Border place. From now we won´t have more paved roads until the end of the trip. Temperature will be around 30° during the day and it can be 0° at night, so bikers must expect a wide range of temperatures and strong facing winds.
67.5 km - 550 metres uphill

Monday day 3: Bardas blancas - Las Loicas
From the camp we bike from Bardas Blancas to Las Loicas, the last argentinian border control. The path is wide and always having a wonderful blue and cold river aside. Customer can choose between cycling ahead just looking for a sportive performance or doing it in the rear, just more relaxed. We usually use two support vehicles: the big minibus will escort us with our equipment and the other will go ahead to prepare the meals and the camp. We spend the night at a local "Puesto" where we´ll dinne "Chivito" the typical local goat..
37.5km - 120 metres uphill

Tuesday Day 4: Las Loicas - Río Montañes
After passing local argentinian border control, we cross the Chico river, and we start to bike on the Grande river´s left, that runs by the Grande Valley. Surrounded by incredible awesome landscapes, amazing views, strange rock shapes we find how the river becomes more clear as soon as we bike towards the Andes. We´ll cross big sand fields, bike long straight paths and may be if we are lucky we´ll watch a condor flying by the mountains near theirs nests. The breathtaking landscape at this moment is arid and lonely, peaks are still covered by snow and we´ll camp by the Montañes river.
That night temperature can reach 0° degrees.
49km - 250 metres uphill

Wednesday Day 5: Río Montañes - Termas del Azufre
We start early this short but strong stage that will take us to the incredible sulphur hot baths leaning under the Peteroa Volcano, that was alive during the '90s and still smokes all day.
This stage will face bikers to the strong wind, hard uphills, melting tinny rivers and no shade during the whole day, but at the same time will allow them to get into the heart and the spirit of the mountains. Our die hard cycling spirit will keep us cycling!
We´ll find volcanic black stones and volcanic ashes by the road and while getting closer to the camp, we´ll see the remaining snowed peaks from the winter. Under a glacier and by the hot baths our support team will receive us with the already set camp, to enable us to enjoy the Andes gift and have a hot bath!!
48km - 570 metres uphill

Thursday Day 6:
Termas del Azufre - Río Teno
We can define this day with emotion and excitation due to finish the uphilling and leave Argentina, to finally cross the border, get into Chile and start the amazing downhill.
After 14km we´ll find the border military control and the maximum height at 2465 metres over the sea level. Then prepare yourself for one of the most exciting downhill you´ll ever do on a mountain bike! The zig-zag curved downhill path will allow us to see an spectacular view and we´ll arrive at the camp placed by the Teno river, that is usually used for Olympic canoeing training teams for its great conditions.
39km - 65 metres uphill - 1185 metres downhill

Friday Day 7: Río Teno - Curicó
Last stage of the Andes Challenge that keep us biking downhill, though it´s a hard day too, due to rocks over the path. We start early to be able to enjoy the swimming pool at the hotel where we´ll be lodged. Landscape has completely changed, we already left the dry and no vegetation mountain landscape to arrive this humid, green forests, white water rivers one. After crossing Los Queñes town we reach the paved road with some happiness, to cycle the last 26km until arrive the City. Our support team will be waiting us at the hotel where we´ll be lodged to have lunch & celebrate with champagne for our trip! After that we load the bikes on the trailer and enjoy relax, a hot shower and a free afternoon, swimming pool and dinner at the hotel.
68km - 1020 metres downhill

Saturday Day 8:
We leave Curicó in our Minibus towards Santiago de Chile from where there are several travelling connections to make inside and outside Chile. Then we keep travelling to Mendoza, Mendoza Province, Argentina (600km). It´ll be a long day to cross the Andes Range though "Las Cuevas Paso".
We will arrive in the evening at the Cabines to dinner. It is advisable for the ones that do not have to return to Argentina, to stay in Santiago, from where they can return to theirs countries.

Sunday Day 9:
In the morning we will jump on the van, heading to Buenos Aires. We expect to arrive around 10pm.

Note:
if plane is not required, land transportation is about 16 hours.
Difficult level: advanced