After over a year of being stranded in the lowlands due to multiple planned expeditions being cancelled one after another, I am finally headed to some high altitude grounds. Back in June my expedition to Mount Elbrus, in Russia was cancelled for obvious reasons. In February and then in November, my expeditions to Carstensz Pyramid were also rescheduled (twice) due to some local civil unrest. But Argentina seems quiet at this time, so my Aconcagua expedition starting on January 4th is still holding up 🤞🤞🤞.
At 6961m (22837ft) Aconcagua is the highest mountain of South America and a proud member of the Seven summits circuit. While the picture above showcases some snowy summit, the trail is mostly dirt and rock. There is no glacier or avalanche exposure anywhere on the route. Besides managing the altitude and cold, it is a relatively safe and "easy" route.
Like with any other high summit, the training required is mostly a strong fitness level, the lightest body weight possible and an ability to acclimatize to the high altitude. Unlike Everest or other 8000 meter peaks, that takes over a month and a half to acclimate, Aconcagua is climbed over a couple of weeks only. This is a lot of altitude to gain in a very short amount of time, so this mountain is no easy feat by any mean.
It takes 3 camp above the base camp to climb the mountain. Like with other Nepalese peaks, there will be a few rotations up the mountain before the actual summit push, in order to acclimate our bodies gradually to the higher elevation. I can't wait to visit these camps with interesting names such as Camp Canada, Camp Alaska, Camp Berlin, Camp Colera and learn about the story behind these names.
I am told there should be internet access on the mountain, though I don't really know how fast it will be.
As always, you can track me with my satellite GPS tracker here:
You can read more about the route we will be using with my group as part of the Garrett Madison mountaineering team here
Feel free to post any comments or questions you may have about my preparation or about the mountain and I will be happy to answer them in subsequent blog posts or in the comment section below.
Otherwise I'll see you in about 3 weeks upon my return with hopefully a lot of tales and pictures to share.
