Aconcagua Expedition

Aconcagua Expedition – Argentina

November 24 – December 16, 2007

Cost: $3,950
(land costs, including all meals)

November 29 – December 21, 2008

Cost: $4,250
(land costs, including all meals)

Difficulty Level: Intermediate
Participants should have either climbed/ trekked at altitude (over 15,000 feet) or have extensive backpacking experience. No technical climbing experience is necessary.

Aconcagua, 22,841 feet, is famous for many reasons – it is the tallest peak in the Western hemisphere; it is the ideal training ground for 8,000 meter peaks like Cho Oyu and Everest; it can be climbed without prior technical experience; it occasionally sees huge storms, cold temperatures and savage winds. A summit of Aconcagua is a proud achievement, and takes two weeks of hard work – acclimatizing, setting camps, and carrying loads – before you earn your summit bid.

But Aconcagua is also a mountain that can be attempted without years of mountaineering experience. Far more important are aerobic training, a postive attitude, and excellent logistical support. Our expedition is designed to maximize your enjoyment of this mountain while fostering education in the skills of high-altitude climbing. We focus on bringing each climber to a point of being a competent and active teammate and partner in our climb.

To accompish these goals and maximize your summit chances, we climb a route called the Polish Traverse. The Polish Traverse avoids the crowds, trash, and general overuse of the normal route, yet still allows us a moderate summit day without any technical climbing.

After meeting the team in Mendoza, we spend four days driving and trekking to our basecamp. This approach is not only a fantastic opportunity to see more of Argentina’s Andes. It is also essential to our acclimatization. From our 14,000 foot basecamp, we spend the next ten days placing and stocking three camps and progressively moving up the mountain. During this time we utilize a method of “climbing high and sleeping low” to help us acclimate. Our highest camp is placed at 20,300 feet, and when we arrive there we will be ready for our summit bid.

The summit day itself is very challenging. We climb over 2,500 vertical feet over sand, scree, and, in some seasons, snowfields. Our reward is to stand on the highest point in the Americas, with stunning views of the Andes in every direction. After summit photos and celebration we descend back to high camp to rest and recover. Our expedition finishes with a two day walk back out from the mountain, and then some well-deserved celebration in Mendoza over the best steaks and red wine you’ll ever enjoy!

In 2007, our Aconcagua expedition will be led by Alpenglow’s owner, Adrian Ballinger and Alpenglow lead guide Jaime Avila. Adrian has been climbing and guiding in South America for the past decade, and has led over 30 expeditions there. Jaime is an Ecuadorian local and has guided expeditions throughout the world, including three expeditions to Aconcagua. We combine our guides’ experience with the local expertise of one of Argentina’s best logistics operators. This ensures we have the best in transportation, food, equipment, and lodging and that your experience will be one you will never forget!