Aconcagua

 This post is going to be a lot more factual and contain less description and pizzaz than normal. The detailed description is being put towards the book efforts!

Aconcagua. 

At 6,961m (22,838 ft), she is the tallest mountain in the Americas and the tallest in the world outside of the Himalayas. She is one of the 7 Summits (and 2nd tallest of those as well). This is not a technically difficult mountain but the altitude and size of it do make it challenging in its own ways. 

I joined a company called Adventures Patagonicas for this one on an accelerated plan of 12 days (compared to 17-21 for other operators). My team was 2 guides and 6 people. After the obligatory gear check and meeting, we had dinner out at an Argentinian grill and ate more meat than any human should consume in a single sitting. The next day they drove us out into the mountains, past vineyards, to the park entrance (3000m) where we would begin our trek. It was about 7km from the road to the first camp which took close to three hours, moving very slowly. Mules carried our gear so we were only hauling light loads. The first camp was well equipped with WiFi, beds in the tent, and catered meals. It was not a rough start to the mountain.

Much of the first two days of the hike look like this. 

Day 3 of the trip took us from Confluencia (3400m) to Plaza de Mulas (base camp at 4400m). However, in between is about 18km of trekking, fortunately, not steep. The route mostly follows the river up the valley and can be considered flat for a significant portion of the hike. At the end, the trail kicks up and most of the elevation gain happens in the final 90 minutes. Again, mules took the gear, so this was little more than a long walk. To allow people to acclimate, we moved at a very slow pace and stopped often.

The summit with an ominous cloud eveloping it.

Base camp sits on a plateau with a wonderful view of the mountain. Again, this was a well-equipped place with WiFi and a huge mess tent where we had our meals brought in by the hard-working catering staff. It was optional to rent a domed tent ($135/night) that had a bed in it, but I slept in a regular tent alone. We then "carried" to Camp 1/Canada (4900m). I say "carried" because I took up some climbing gear and shared team food, but everyone else hiked up with little packs as they were using porters. All of their weight and team food was taken camp to camp by porters. Needing the practice of carrying weight at altitude, I saved the money and carried my own gear. After a brief stay at the very windy camp, we dropped back down to base camp for the night. 

Camp 1

Day 5 started the "climb" and we went again from base camp to Camp 1, this time staying up higher, and I shared a tent with a teammate. Luxury was minimized here as we ate from our self-packed bowls, there was no Wi-Fi or power, and our toilet was a backpacker tent when you had to crap in a plastic bag. After one night, we head up the loose scree that is most of the mountain. This time I carried everything in one push, and it was my heaviest load at 57 lbs. It made for a challenging few hours but was completed without incident.  

Camp 2/Nido (5350m) was better equipped again. We had a mess tent and Wi-Fi, but the wind was punishing. Little sleep followed, and the next day was a rest day where there was little else to do besides eat, poop, and sit in the tent hiding from the wind. 

On day 8 we headed up to high camp/Berlin (5800m), and although the trail up was much better (not as loose and energy draining) and the wind lessened, there was no Wi-Fi as promised. While we all can afford to unplug, it was Christmas Eve and our summit bid was Christmas Day, and it would have been nice to check in with the family on the holiday, but it was not to be. Again, we had a mess tent and a decent toilet (a real toilet seat and a bucket which you put sawdust in after) within a tent to shelter your backside from the wind. 

Camp 3 after an Xmas Eve sprinkling of snow.

We awoke at 3am and were off by 5am in the darkness and cold, on our way up the mountain. The trail was as stable as it had been yet and the first couple of hours went by fine, with the rising sun causing the removal of layers. We moved slowly, slower than other teams, and once we hit about 6500m, two of my teammates opted to turn around. Counting the two that left the trip early previously, it was now just me and one other climber to carry on with a guide. We stopped at 6550m and soon after put on crampons. While there was no snow for the entire climb, on the final slopes a snow patch lined the side of the trail and walking on it proved easier than on the frustrating loose rocks. We pushed upward for several hours and 9 hours after leaving high camp, we arrived on the summit. It was flat and we had excellent views.

Panorama from the summit

Two thumbs and climbed it? This Guy!

The cross at the summit. 

 

25 minutes later and we headed down, although tired which made the trip much more difficult. We stopped to take off the crampons and 10 feet before that point I tripped and feel, smacking my leg on a rock. The descent was as frustrating as the ascent with loose rock and scree causing poor footing and draining energy. It took us 3 hours to get back to camp and we were tired, but we spent the night at Berlin. The next day (day 10) we packed up and descended to base camp, none too soon as the mountain got smashed with clouds and snow. Exhausted, the remaining members of my team took a helicopter out. I pitched a tent and the next day packed up the mules and hiked from base camp to the road, a journey of 6 hours or so on exhausted legs. Another day was killed in Mendoza eating and getting a haircut, and then I began the two-day journey back to Poland, happy to have done the peak but tired from the travel.

The peak from base camp after the snow came. 

This was not an overly fun mountain to climb. Climb is a hard word as it is basically a hike, but one that goes to almost 7000m. I feel the weather was generous as we summited in a clear window, but prior to that the wind was howling, and after we got down, snow covered the peak. Porters, beds, catered meals, and helicopter rides all make this much more accessible (and comfortable) than other peaks if you are willing to pay the price, but I felt like an outsider for wanting to do it like other mountains. Also, I trained hard for this peak en route to Everest, putting in 2-3 hours a day and sleeping in my Hypoico tent to pre-acclimate. I cant say others do this. While it is an "easy" mountain compared to some, it takes fitness and acclimatization to scale it in a matter of days, and people need to prepare accordingly. Group trips are always hard as it seems they cater to the slowest, least prepared people, which can be frustrating if you are on the other end of the spectrum.