Aconcagua

At 22,841 feet Aconcagua is the highest mountain in South America and the highest outside the Himalayas. It is located in western Argentina on the border near Chile. The standard Aconcagua routes does not involve a lot of technical hazards, leading many people to think of Aconcagua as an easy hike. That was most certainly not my experience! The mountain is one of the most challenging I have climbed. It can be incredibly windy and has a high camp located at almost 20,000 feet of elevation. It may not be a very difficult climb from a technical perspective, but it certainly demands respect. It took me 3 attempts to make it to the summit:

1. In 2012 I made it to 20,000 feet and was turned around by poor weather.

2. In 2015 I made it to 20,000 feet and was thwarted again by a combination of rough weather and altitude sickness.

3. In 2017 I finally made it all the way to the top.

Mendoza

All trips to Aconcagua start in Mendoza, Argentina - one of my favorite cities in the world. Mendoza is a beautiful city filled with outdoor cafe’s, plentiful shopping, and scenic parks. In the summer, the streets are filled with people enjoying the many restaurants and bars. In Argentina, most business are open in the morning, close for a siesta in the afternoon, and then re-open in the early evening. Dinner is usually eaten between 9 pm and midnight. It was hard for me as an American to get used to eating this late!

The Mendoza area is home to a majority of the Malbec vineyards in the world and Argentina is famous for it’s steak and wines. If you are a food lover, this is definitely the place to be! Pasta, empanadas, steaks cooked right at your table. Most restaurants have indoor and outdoor seating and when the weather is nice it is incredibly relaxing to sit outside on one of the patios and enjoy the food and drink.

Aconcagua trips generally start with a day or two in Mendoza to shop for food, last minute gear, and process the permits that are needed to climb the mountain.

Los Penitentes

After a day or two in Mendoza, once permits have been procured and everyone and their luggage has arrived, it is time to drive to the mountain ski resort of Los Penitentes at 9000 feet of elevation - the last stop before starting the climb. The drive is scenic and follows the Mendoza river while gradually gaining elevation. Along the drive are numerous small towns offering a plethora of outdoor activities such as white water rafting, zip lining, kite surfing and mountain biking.

It usually takes 4-6 hours for the drive and you arrive at the ski resort in the early afternoon. Most groups stop for lunch along the way at the small village of Uspallata.

After arriving in the resort, the most important task is to sort gear for the trek to base camp. It takes 3 days to get to base camp and mules carry most of the gear. The mules have limits as to how much weight they can carry in each duffel bag and some mules go straight to base camp in 1 day while others will stay with us and carry the gear we need each evening (tents, fuel, food, etc…). In order to make all of this happen we need to spread out all of the gear, food, and fuel and then re-sort it into appropriately sized duffel bags and weigh and sort them. This usually takes most of the afternoon.

In the evening it is time to relax, have a team dinner, and enjoy the last night in an actual bed for a few weeks.

Getting Started

There are two main routes to the summit of Aconcagua:

1. The Normal route, which is the most popular and direct route

2. The Vacas Valley route which is a bit longer, more remote and more scenic

On each of my three trips, I chose to do the Vacas Valley route.On my first trip in 2012, I did an “up and over” where we ascended the Vacas Valley route and descended the Normal route. This is a nice option because it allows you to see both sides of the mountain, but the downside is you have to carry ALL of your gear up to 20,000 feet where the routes converge.

On my second and third trips, I went up and down the Vacas Valley route. Returning on the same route allows you to leave unneeded gear and trash in caches along the way and then pick it up on as you come down the mountain, thus reducing the weight of your pack when ascending.

Pampa de las Lenas

The Vacas Valley route begins about 15 minutes out of town at a small ranger station. Here climbers check in with park rangers who verify your permit and then it’s time to begin the trek. The first day is relatively flat and the trail meanders along the left bank of the Vacas river. There are a few small trees and shrubs and this part of the trail is very pleasant. After several days of sitting on planes and in vans, this day is all about getting used to moving again and settling into a groove that will get you through the next couple of weeks. Generally speaking you walk for about an hour and then find a spot to take a 15-20 minute rest break to re-hydrate and refuel.

The trek to base camp is about 25 miles total and is spread out over 3 days. We only needed to carry light jackets for rain/cold, a few snacks, and a couple liters of water which made for a nice lightweight pack. The mules were kind enough to carry the rest of our stuff. You do have to watch out them on the trail. The trails are often narrow and when the mules come along with our gear, they can knock you over if you aren’t careful. The mules are generally good about avoiding people, but occasionally they don’t realize how far out to the side the duffel bags are hanging and if you aren’t paying attention they can clip you. I learned very quickly to step aside whenever I heard them coming.

The first day’s trek takes about 4-6 hours and ends at a very nice campsite known as Pampa de las Lenas. This is a scenic location situated along the Vacas river and since the elevation is only 9000 ft, if the weather is good, climbers generally sleep out in the open without tents. The sky is so clear you can see an amazing number of stars. Unfortunately since this is the southern hemisphere, I didn’t have the foggiest idea what stars I was looking at!

At this campsite, the muleteers (Argentinian horsemen who manage the mules) cook an amazing steak meal for everyone over a large fire pit. This is one of the best meals I have ever eaten in my life. Fresh steak and potatoes cooked right in front of you and eaten immediately after being taken off the fire.

Casa De Piedra

The second day of the trek is much like the first day, just a bit longer with a few less trees. The trail again meanders along the river valley and is usually pretty hot and dusty. It is a great pleasure if it rains as it will keep the dust down. The trail gains about 1000 feet of elevation during the day. The path is straightforward, but one thing you learn quickly on Aconcagua is that you need to constantly watch your feet as there are innumerable small rocks and boulders that will trip you up the minute you stop paying attention. Since I live in Illinois there is not really a good way to train for this kind of walking and it takes some time to get used to.

There are two highlights of the second days’ trek. The first is crossing from the left side of the river to the right side. This occurs about 30 minutes out of camp in the morning. In the past, teams trekking to base camp had to fjord the river here which was apparently quite an adventure as the river flows very fast and the water is COLD! Thankfully a few years ago the park service built a bridge that is now used to more easily and safely cross the river. The second highlight of day occurs right before you arrive at the next camp. This is where you get your first view of Aconcagua proper. It is a bit humbling when you see the mountain. It looks really big and far away and the thought of having so much farther to go is intimidating. Still, it is exciting to get a first look at the mountain you’ve come to climb.

After taking some photos of the mountain, it is about 15 more minutes of walking to reach Casa de Piedra, which means “hole in the rock” and is named such since the ranger station located here is built into a large boulder. This is a scenic campsite along the river with mountains towering behind. Tents are set up near the water and there is a lovely view of the valley and the mountains. I always enjoyed my time at this camp and found it to be an incredibly relaxing place when the weather is good.

Plaza Argentina

Day three is the hardest day of the trek with over 3000 feet of elevation gain. The route begins at around 10,000 feet of elevation and finishes around 13,000 feet at Plaza Argentina, the base camp for the Vacas Valley route. It is quite an interesting day - immediately after leaving camp, you cross the Vacas river which at this point is a large braided river. On two of my three trips, I hitched a ride on mules to cross the river. On one of my trips I forded the river on my own. The river is braided out in several places here and when you look at it from camp, it doesn’t look like it would be hard to cross. When you actually set foot in the river, you find out two critical things:

1. The water is VERY VERY cold

2. The water moves VERY VERY fast

When I crossed the river on my own, without using a mule, by the time I got to the other side, I could not feel anything in my feet and needed to spend several minutes warming myself back up by rubbing them to get the blood flowing again. It was much nicer to cross on the back of a mule, but you do have to pay attention in order to stay on as they cross. The mules bounce around a lot and make abrupt moves to keep their footing. I saw numerous people fall into the water when they lost their balance.

After crossing the river you leave the Vacas valley and start up the Rellinchos valley where the trail start to ascend steeply. At this point there is almost no more vegetation and it is feels like you are hiking on the moon. The route continues up the valley to base camp and there are a few spots along the trail where there is a significant drop off just to the side of the trail. It takes about 6-8 hours to get to base camp and you are working hard the entire way. This is the point in the trip where most people begin to feel the elevation. Eventually, you arrive at Plaza Argentina - home for the next few days.

Plaza Argentina is the hub of Vacas Valley route activity. Situated at a little over 13,000 feet in an open bowl with mountains on all sides, it is a beautiful place and is where the trip transitions from a trek to a climb. It is here that you change out hiking shoes for climbing boots.

There are several outfitters with big camps. Most of them have several large dome tents that are used by clients for dining and relaxing. Usually there are a couple of places where you can buy assorted snacks and even the occasional pizza!

Climbers sleep in personal tents, but meals are in larger, semi-permanent, dining tents which have tables and chairs. There is also WiFi available at base camp, so it is a great place to check in with loved ones back home.

Once arriving at camp, most people take a rest day to help get used to the altitude. This day is also used to get a high altitude medical permit, There is a small medical center at camp that is staffed by local volunteer doctors each season. In order to go higher than base camp, climbers are required to get sign off from the medical staff. You schedule an appointment with them and when your time comes, you go into their small office and get a basic medical check (blood pressure, pulse, pulse ox, listen to your lungs, etc..) if everything checks out ok, they sign off and you are permitted to go higher up the mountain. Occasionally if someone has any issues, the doctors will require them to come back in another 24 hours to see how they are doing after a little more time at altitude. Although the medical check is pretty straightforward, it can be stressful - no one wants to have to turn around at base camp. I think it is great they do this. It is an added measure of safety and I have seen several people have issues at base camp who needed to be helicoptered off the mountain.

Aside from the medical check, the rest day is mostly spent relaxing and enjoying the mountain if the weather is nice. Often climbers will take a short acclimatization hike up the route for an hour or so. This helps stretch the legs without using up too much energy.

Base camp is somewhat sheltered from the wind and it is generally a pleasant place to be. Helicopters often arrive first thing in the morning and right before sunset when the winds are calmest. The helicopters bring supplies to camp and are used to evacuate injured climbers or climbers who choose to pay to fly off the mountain rather than hike out.

The First Carry to Camp 1

After a rest day, it’s time to carry a load to Camp 1 at 16,000 feet. This is where the climbing begins and you start carrying loads on your own back. The mules are smart enough not to go any higher than base camp! In order to climb a large mountain like Aconcagua, you have to carry (and bring back down) everything you need to live up high. This means tents, sleeping bags, food, fuel, communications equipment, etc. This adds up to a lot of weight.

There is a concept when climbing large mountains called “climb high, sleep low”. The idea is to give your body a taste of a higher altitude for a brief time and then descend to a lower altitude for sleeping before moving up to the higher altitude for good. In order to get all these items uphill and to help acclimatize, most climbers carry a load to the next camp, drop off a cache of supplies and then retreat back to the previous camp. This allows the loads carried to be more manageable while improving your acclimatization. For most climbers, this means carrying a 40-50 lb backpack each time. Typically on this first carry you bring up food, fuel, and clothing that you won’t need until higher on the mountain.

The route to Camp 1 is a moderate walk on loose rock for the first 3-4 hours. It is interesting in that you are on a glacier but hardly ever realize it because it is mostly covered with rocks. Occasionally there will be a break where you can see the ice underneath and that is when you realize you are walking on a moving piece of ice. About 1000 feet below camp, you come to the crux of the day - a large scree field. This is a long section of extremely loose rock. What this means is that for every step up you take, you slide back at least half way. This is very tiring with heavy packs and kind of soul crushing as it takes a long time to go a short distance. Going down scree is great because you can kind of surf on top of it. Going up scree is awful and has a way of sucking the life out of you! Nonetheless, if you want to climb Aconcagua you have to get up this particular scree field. After about an hour or so of continuous struggle, you top out near the bottom of Camp 1. Most people (including myself) are usually pretty wiped at this point and are quite happy to be off the scree field.

On Aconcagua at the main camping areas, there are several camp sites that have already been flattened and marked out with rocks. After selecting an empty camp site, you take a short rest and refueling break and then go about caching the gear that will stay at camp. On snowy mountains like Denali you dig a deep hole in the snow to protect these items. That is not possible on Aconcagua so in order to cache gear, you leave it in sturdy duffel bags and put them near some large rocks and pile lots of heavy smaller rocks on top to protect them from birds and wind. After ensuring that everything is cached appropriately, it is time to head back down to base camp. The trip back down usually takes about 2-3 hours. Going down is much easier cardiovascularly but is harder on the knees, quads, and feet.

Once back in camp, it is time for more rest. To help acclimatize, after the carry to camp 1 most climbers take another rest day before moving up the mountain for good.

Camp 1

After another rest day, as long as the weather is decent, it is time to move with the rest of your gear up to Camp 1 for good. After 3 days at base camp it is amazing how much better your body feels. The trip back up the second time usually goes quicker since the route is familiar and you are better acclimatized.

After a few hours of climbing and after navigating the scree field for the second time, you arrive at Camp 1 again. Now it is time to retrieve the cache, set up tents, and establish camp. It usually takes a couple of hours to get everything situated. Since Aconcagua can be very windy, it is important to ensure that all of the tents are well secured. This is done by tying the guy lines to large rocks and then burying those rocks with even more rocks.

Camp 1 is set on a ridge in the middle of a valley. On my first trip here, at 3 in the morning while we were sleeping, a large earthquake struck nearby and we woke up to the ground shaking and rocks flying all around us. Once we realized what was happening, we scrambled out of our tents to keep an eye out for falling rocks and do our best to avoid them. Thankfully we had no serious injuries or damage to our equipment. Mendoza and Santiago, Chile had major damage from the earthquake. We were fortunate to have camped in a location relatively protected from rockfall. It was quite an experience for me. Being from Illinois, I had never been in an earthquake before and although it probably only lasted for a few minutes it seemed like a lot longer while it was happening.

Carry to Camp 2

Weather permitting, the day after arriving at Camp 1, teams do their first carry to Camp 2. The route from Camp 1 to Camp 2 is one of my favorite parts of the Aconcagua climb. It starts with a very large traverse across an open bowl to a col where you pass to the other side of the mountain. It usually takes about 2 hours to reach the col and the weather can be highly variable. On a few of my trips it was sunny and hot and other times it was snowing and very cold - sometimes it would be sunny and hot when I started and snowing by the time I got to the col. You never know what to expect on Aconcagua! The traverse doesn’t look too bad from the ground, but once you get onto it you realize it is bigger than you think. Teams take a break about halfway up the traverse and then take the next break a little past the col. The col itself is usually very windy so teams generally move past it a bit before taking a break in a more sheltered area.

After the col the route is flat for a little while before it starts to ascend another traverse around to the backside of the mountain. As you continue you start to be treated to some amazing views of the Andes when the weather is good. The trail becomes flatter and there is a giant rock that makes for a perfect spot for one last rest break before camp. Another hour or so of walking and you come to the last rise that leads to Camp 2. It is during this section that you often encounter penitentes. These are large formation of giant icicles. They look interesting from afar, but when you have to cross them they can be exhausting and time consuming. Since they are icy you often have to put on crampons and they are this confusing jumble of large and small blocks of ice in all sizes and shapes, with no consistent places to put your feet. You spend a lot of time carefully placing each foot so as not to twist an ankle.

Eventually you arrive at Camp 2 -18,000 feet of elevation. Much like the carry to Camp 1, it is time to rest and refuel before caching gear and heading back to Camp 1 for another rest day.

Camp 2

After the carry to Camp 2, most teams take another rest day at Camp 1. This helps with acclimatization and allows climbers to rest weary bodies after two tough of hard work. Note that all of the rest and climbing days are ultimately dictated by the weather. There is a general plan which assumes optimal conditions. Sometimes weather forces teams to move faster or slower than planned. Mother nature always has the final say and predicting weather on mountains can be tricky at best.

Camp 2 is my favorite campsite on the route. From camp if you walk a couple hundred feet you arrive at a spot where you can look out and see the Andes spreading out in all directions. It is a beautiful place to appreciate the grandeur of the world. At 18,000 feet, the camp is high but not so high that you feel debilitated. The camp is split by a small stream with groups set up on both sides of the stream.

My first time at this camp we arrived in the middle of a full on snowstorm and had to scramble to set up our tents in a whiteout with the winds attempting to blow everyone and everything away. As we struggled to get our tent set up, we quickly threw our gear inside and then worked to secure the tent. The challenge with all of this is you need dexterity with your fingers to tie down the tent lines and you can’t do that easily with large gloves on. After we got the tent up and anchored, we dove inside and happily climbed into our sleeping bags to warm up and eat some salami. I hardly ever eat salami in my normal daily life but I have found that it is a fantastic snack for high up on mountains. It lasts quite a while and is easy to cut off small pieces with a pocket knife.

Camp 2 is where teams start seriously watching the weather and making plans for a summit attempt. Camp 3 is a pretty unpleasant place so teams don’t generally want to move up until they believe there will be a good window for a summit attempt. Teams take different approaches at this point. Some teams do a carry to Camp 3 and then come back to Camp 2 again like at the lower camps. Other teams opt to do a single push from Camp 2 to Camp 3. I have done both and personally prefer to do it in a single push. This means you have a bit heavier load in your backpack, but it is not as bad as lower on the mountain since you are only bringing up what you need for the summit push and a small amount of contingency rations.

High Camp

Most teams take a rest day at Camp 2 and then move up to high camp as soon as a promising weather window materializes. Ideally climbers are looking for 3 days of decent weather - one day to move up to high camp, one day to summit, and one day to descend.

The route from Camp 2 to Camp 3 is pretty straightforward. Immediately after leaving camp there is a short but steep section that has to be carefully navigated and then the route switchbacks up a gradual incline until the plateau where high camp is located around 19,500 feet. This is also where the Vacas Valley route meets up with the Normal route. Although the climb to Camp 3 is only 1500 feet of elevation gain, I have always found this to be an incredibly tough day. The loads are heavy and at this altitude every step requires a significant amount of effort. On all three of my trips I arrived at high camp gasping for air and desperate for a rest. It is usually 3-5 hours to get to Camp 3.

Upon arriving at camp, teams typically spend a few hours getting everything set up and organized. Camp 3 is very exposed and can get incredibly windy, so ensuring that tents are tied down securely is of critical importance. I have seen multiple tents blown away from this camp when they were not properly secured. The park service installed an emergency shelter at this camp because several people lost their lives after returning from a long and tiring summit day to find their tents destroyed or missing.

Weather permitting, teams arrive in camp in early afternoon, have an early dinner and then get to sleep to head to the summit the next morning. Summit day starts anywhere from 1 am to 4 am, depending on weather and team strength.

Summit Day

Summit day on Aconcagua starts by waking up in the middle of the night and checking the wind. Wind is almost always the limiting factor on Aconcagua. If the wind is howling, it means you tuck yourself back into your sleeping bag and prepare for another day at high camp resting. When the winds are light or moderate it means it is time to start getting ready.

At 19,500 feet before the sun comes up it is very cold. It usually takes 1-2 hours for everyone to get dressed, have some coffee and a light breakfast, and be ready to go. Before leaving for the summit it is important to collapse the tents and put heavy rocks on top of them. If you do not do this and it gets windy (which happens a lot on Aconcagua) you could return to camp after an exhausting summit day and find your tent missing which can turn a long day into an epic day with serious potential implications. The time I summitted, we got up about 2 am and were walking around 4 am just as the sun was starting to come up. On summit day packs are light, consisting of mostly just rain gear, food, and water. Most climbers also bring their ice ax and crampons in case they are needed (sometimes yes, sometimes no). The trail heads up a moderately inclined slope for a couple of hours until you get to Independencia Hut at around 21,000 feet. This is a decrepit shell of what used to be a small wooden shelter. The climbing is not terribly steep on this part, but it is usually very cold since the sun isn’t up yet and at this altitude every step is tiring.

After taking a short break at the hut, the route starts a long upward traverse towards the bottom of the canaleta, a steep couloir that leads to the summit. This traverse is fairly easy but there is a really big drop off to the climbers right. You have to pay careful attention as the trail is narrow and you most definitely don’t want to fall several thousand feet down valley. Once across the traverse, most parties take a break at a place called “the caves” which is a small shelter at the bottom of the canaleta. This is the last stop before the summit and a good place to get your mind in proper shape for what is to come.

The canaleta is a large gully filled with snow and ice and all sorts of variable sized boulders. Often ice axe’s and crampons are needed for this section. When I summitted in 2017, it was a very dry year so I did not need any technical climbing tools. It is about 1000 feet to the summit and it is very hard work. You are scrambling up a boulder field with rocks of all different sizes and shapes.

I was SUPER tired by this point on my climb and after about every 10 steps, I would stop and gasp for air for 30 seconds and then repeat. Fortunately, the day I was there, the weather was good so I was able to take my time. The most frustrating part to me was the last 200 feet. I could see my teammates on the summit and it looked so tantalizingly close yet took me what seemed like forever. Eventually though I made it to the top and what a glorious sight it was. There is a small flat area on the summit which is marked by a cross. From the top you can see the Andes spread out in all directions.

For me, finally getting to the summit on my third attempt brought tears to my eyes. I was so happy I finally made it! I spent about 30 minutes on the summit soaking it all in, but eventually it was time to head back down. After all, the summit is only halfway and we still had a long way to go before we were back in the relative safety of high camp.

Descent

Most climbing accidents happen on the descent. I never fail to remember that the summit is only halfway. Climbing is such an interesting endeavor - oftentimes you have to push yourself beyond what you think your limits are to get to the top, but you need to always ensure you leave at least a little bit left in the tank to get back down safely. It is really hard to know when you are pushing too much. This is where experience comes into play and where regular folks like me (non professional climbers) rely on the advice of guides who can help you make a safe decision. It is never easy to turn around, but better to live to attempt the climb another day.

The first part of the descent from the summit of Aconcagua is the most dangerous part. Climbers have to descend back down those large awkward boulders in the canaleta. For me, I was already very tired, so I went slowly. It is important to keep moving at a steady pace, but I made sure to carefully place each foot while maintaining my stability. As an illustration of the potential danger, while I was descending from the summit one of my teammates lost his footing and tumbled end over end about 100 feet down the boulders of the canaleta. Luckily for him, his backpack protected him from a critical injury, but he did severely injure his shoulder and the rest of us had assist him back to high camp. It is very easy when you are tired to misplace your feet and then take a nasty fall. I always make a concerted effort to stay fully focused until I am back on safe ground.

After an hour or so descending the canaleta we got back to the caves where we took a nice long break and began to descend the traverse that leads back to the hut. This is fairly straightforward, but it is still a very large drop off to the side and the trail is narrow so maximum attention is required.

Once back at the hut, climbers take one last break before the final descent back to camp. The last part isn’t particularly hard or dangerous, it just takes longer than your tired body wants it to. On my summit day I rolled back into camp about 13 hours after leaving in the morning. I was thoroughly exhausted but happy to have completed my goal. Back in camp I ate a quick dinner and then went to bed early. There is still another 10,000 feet to descend before getting back to civilization!

Back to Plaza de Mulas (my first trip)

On my first trip to Aconcagua I did an “up and over” and descended down the Normal route back to Plaza de Mulas. This is a really nice descent as it is a 10,000 foot long scree field. Scree is terrible to climb up but super fun to go down. It is easy on the knees and you can go fast as you can kind of slide down with the rocks. The only tricky part was that I was carrying a VERY have pack (around 70 lbs) and I had stuff strapped everywhere to make it fit. This is the downside of doing an up and over. You have to carry everything you brought all the way to the top and then bring it back down the other side. It took about 4 hours to descend to base camp. As you go lower and get to the thicker air you feel so much better.

Plaza de Mulas is quite the place. It is larger than the Plaza Argentina base camp and has all sorts of little shops and places to get food. There is even a hotel near there. I believe this was once the highest hotel in the world.

I didn’t spend a lot of time here because we had the opportunity to helicopter off the mountain that evening. After having not showered for over 2 weeks that seemed like a fantastic idea. The other option was a two day hike back to town and that was less appealing… It happened to be my birthday and just as the sun was starting to set the helicopter showed up to pick up my climbing partner, our guide, and myself. Since the altitude is so high and there were 4 of us (including the pilot), we could not bring anything more than the clothes on our back for the flight. We would have to wait until the next day for the mules to bring our gear back to Los Penitentes.

The helicopter ride was absolutely amazing. It was only about a 15 minute ride, but you pass the south face of Aconcagua which is one of the world’s great mountain faces. It has only been climbed a few times and personally I think you’d have to be pretty crazy as it is very steep. Unfortunately, all too soon we landed back at Los Penitentes where I went back to the hotel, showered, and enjoyed a fantastic steak dinner, wine, and my first real bed in weeks.

Back to Plaza Argentina (my second and third trip)

For my second and third trips I descended the same way I came up and returned back to Plaza Argentina. This had the advantage of allowing me to cache gear and trash I didn’t need and then retrieve it on the way down. This enables your loads up high to be a bit lighter. It does still get heavy when you get closer to base camp after you have picked up all of your caches. When you climb Aconcagua via this route, you generally have four really tough days in a row:

1. The first day when you move up from Camp 2 to High Camp.

2. The second day when you push for the summit which is usually a 10-16 hour day.

3. Day 3 is when you descend with big loads from high camp at 19,500 feet back to Plaza Argentina at 13,000 feet.

4. Lastly, on day 4, you descend all of the way from base camp back to the Pampas de Les Lenas camp (where we camped on the very first night of the trip.

After summit day most people are pretty exhausted and pass out pretty quickly for the night. Getting up the next day, everyone is excited to start heading back towards civilization. The morning after I summitted, it was very, very, windy at high camp which made collapsing the tents and getting camp packed up somewhat entertaining. Because it was so windy, I could not set anything down for even a moment without a large rock on it or it would blow away. We all did the best we could to pack up our gear in our tent, but eventually we had to go out into the wind and get the tent collapsed and packed up. With a lot of teamwork we were able to do this and begin the descent. This time we headed back down the same route we camp up. Although I was a bit tired from yesterday’s effort, it was pretty smooth sailing back to Camp 2. The only real tricky part is a few hundred feet above camp where there is a steep section that has to be navigated carefully.

After arriving back at Camp 2, we took a short break and then retrieved our gear we had left there on the way up and added it to our loads which made them a bit heavier. We then proceeded back down to the col and back down the large traverse into camp 1. The last part of this from the col back to camp 1 is actually quite fun as it is a lot of scree and you can move pretty fast. You just have to be careful not to go too fast and end up face planting into the rocks!

Another rest break at Camp 2 and then you retrieve yet another cache and continue back towards the luxuries of base camp. By this point the air has gotten thicker which feels fantastic, but this is also the point where your quads and feet start to really hurt from having the large loads. Trekking poles help, but my toenails and knees were screaming at me most of this last section. There is one part between Camp 1 and base camp where you have to go through a bit of a gully with a lot of rockfall that needs to be negotiated as quickly as possible.

After a few more hours we arrived happily back at Plaza Argentina where the outfitter staff were waiting with Champaign and lemonade and there was a nice dome tent with a table and chairs for us to relax in. Everyone was excited to have wifi again. Above base camp the only connectivity is via satellite phone.

The longest day

After one last night in base camp it was time to start heading back to civilization. By this point in the climb everyone was tired and ready to be home. After a quick breakfast we packed up all of our tents and gear and got our bags ready to be loaded on the mules again. It took us three days to get to base camp on the way up, but it will only take us two days to descend. This was a loooooonnnnnggggg day. We had to first descend the 3000 feet back to Casa de Piedra and then hike the many miles back to Pampa de Las Lenas, the camp where we stayed the very first night. On the plus side the mules carry most of the gear so we only needed to carry light packs.

Once all of the gear was loaded it was time to start down the trail. The theme of the day was to walk an hour, rest 15-20 minutes - repeat. We did this approximately 8-10 times throughout the course of a very long day. The first few hours were pretty easy walking on good terrain. After a while the trail starts a fairly steep descent back to the river. During this section there are many places where the trail is very narrow and there are some steep drop offs, so it is important to pay attention and choose your steps carefully.

Just before arriving back at Casa di Peidra we had to cross back over the river twice. The first time is a fairly small river crossing and the second time is the section that we used mules to cross a couple weeks ago. It is a time consuming process to cross the rivers. You need to stop, take off your hiking books and socks and put on river shoes. Then you need to roll up your pants and and unbuckle the straps on your backpack. The reason for unbuckling your straps is so that if you slip and fall in the water you don’t get dragged under by your pack. The rocks on the bottom of the river are very slippery and the water is still quite cold and moves very fast. After spending some time looking for the best place to cross, everyone went one by one.

After a short break at the Casa di Piedra camp, the trail turns back up the Vacas Valley and starts heading for home. This is the section of the trail that always pains me. You FEEL like you are so close to getting back to camp. The problem is this part of the trail all looks the same and each hour you think you are only an hour or so from camp and this goes on and on. On both of my trips I rolled into camp in the early evening extremely tired from the days walk. It is not a terrible hard day cardiovascular wise but it is a long day and by this point I had lost several of my toenails and had incredibly sore feet.

Being back at camp though is a wonderful thing. This is the camp where the muleteers cook steaks over the fire pit and this time the guides bust out wine as well. If it is earlier in the season there may be teams camped here on their way up the mountain so this camp can be pretty lively. It is amazing to look at the differences between the teams just getting started and the dusty, dirty, worn out teams on their way out!

Usually everyone is so tired after dinner we just lay out our sleeping bags and sleep under the stars and enjoy our last night on the mountain.

Last day

After a night sleeping out under the stars, everyone was excited to get back to civilization and on both my trips we got up at first light to pack up. A quick breakfast and it was time to head our for the last day on the trail.

This day is fairly short and everyone moves quickly because we just want to get a hot shower and a nice bed. The trail is mostly flat along this section and its usually only about 3-4 hours to get back to the start of the trail.

Once back to the trail head, the outfitter picks us up and takes us back to Los Penitentes where we wait a little bit for the mules with our gear to arrive. After the gear arrives, everyone changes into street clothes for the 4 hour ride back to Mendoza.

In Mendoza a hot shower and one last team dinner and celebration is in order before everyone begins flying back home the next day!

Summary

Aconcagua was my first big mountain I attempted to climb in 2012. I have had some crazy experiences on this mountain. It was my nemesis for many years and finally summitting it in 2017 was a huge moment for me.