Leave the USA for Peru in the afternoon (Wednesday). Flights should arrive in Lima between 6pm and midnight.

Drive to Huaraz (8 hours) in our private van, where we are based out of a small but beautiful hotel (10,000 feet).

An acclimatization and organization day in Huaraz.

Drive to Pisco base camp in the Llanganuco valley (12,500 feet). This 3 hour drive takes us through beautiful farming communities and past the famed Llanganuco lakes.

Carry a load to Cave Camp on Pisco (14,000 feet) and return to basecamp.

Move to Cave Camp.

Acclimatization day at Cave Camp. Today we review glacier travel and crevasse rescue skills, while our famed Peruvian chef Alfredo brings up a hot lunch from Base Camp.

Climb from Cave Camp to Moraine Camp (16,000 feet). This climb crosses a challenging rock glacier before climbing steeply into camp in a small sandy basin just below the toe of the glacier.

Summit Day (18,872 feet)! The climb to the summit of Pisco begins on 3rd class rock slabs before stepping onto the glacier. From the toe of the glacier we climb moderate slopes to a saddle on the ridge between Pisco and the Huandoys. As the sun rises we climb steeper exposed slopes crossing frequent crevasses to the final summit bulge. This final slope is often very steep, necessitating excellent crampon and vertical axe technique and a tight belay! After our climb, we pack up high camp and return to Base Camp.

Rest in Base Camp, where we enjoy the best food the backcountry has to offer from our Peruvian cook and good friend Alfredo Ibarra.

Another rest day, with an optional excursion to Laguna 69 (15,500 feet), one of the most beautiful high altitude lakes in the world.

Leave Base Camp, and ascend to Moraine Camp (16,000 feet) on Chopicalqui, with the help of one or two high altitude porters.

Rest in Moraine Camp, possibly doing a load carry to high camp.

Move onto the glacier and ascend to high camp, which sits on a flat glacier bench at 18,000 feet.

Attempt Chopicalqui’s summit. The route ascends a knife-edge ridge for over 2,000 vertical feet, with long traverses regularly interrupted by short but steep headwalls. This is a summit to be incredibly proud of. In most years only a few strong teams from around the globe are successful. After the summit we descend to Moraine Camp.

Descend to Base Camp.

Our van picks us up early in the morning and returns us to Huaraz, where we celebrate with hot showers, a great meal, and salsa dancing at the local discotheque.

Leave Huaraz by van. Catch an evening (8pm or later) flight from Lima (Saturday).

Arrive in theUSA (Sunday)