Aconcagua (22,841) by Brian Schultz January 5- January 28, 2012 Summit day January 20, 2012
Participants: Lee-Anne Slater (Australia), Colin Levey (Australia), Angel Taboada (Mexico), Paul Greene (Utah), Pete Krzanowsky (Colorado), & Brian Schultz (Minnesota)
Guides: Martin Molina (Argentina) & Javier Carvallo (Bolivia)
After an unsuccessful climb of Aconcagua in 2007, I tried to convince myself that setting a personal high elevation record on that trip was enough. But deep down it was hard to reconcile not making the summit and as the years passed by it only got worse. While climbing with Pete Krzanowsky in the summer of 2010, I nonchalantly asked if he was interested in climbing Aconcagua someday and he said yes. Things got interesting when I had a regular eye check-up in January 2011 and my eye doctor asked out of the clear blue if I thought about doing Aconcagua again. He'd assured me after the climb in 2007 that the pressure feeling I experienced on Aconcagua was sinus related and not retina related, which was a huge relief as I'd had a prior surgery for a detached retina, but now I had glaucoma to deal with. When he assured me it wouldn't be an issue the wheels really started to turn. I headed into my busy work season and over the next month hinted to my wife that I'd probably be giving the peak another try. In early March I emailed Pete to see if he was still interested and got an immediate response of "hell, yes!" He had to make sure he could get the time off from work and when told he could, we both began inquiring about using frequent flyer miles for the flights. After confirming we could both use miles, we booked with Aventuras Patagonicas guiding service in mid-March. Pete was fine with using A.P. because I'd used them twice before and was extremely satisfied with them.
I'd be doing two significantly different things this time compared to last time. First I'd be wearing contact lenses instead of glasses because I simply see better with contacts. Last time I got dizzy and assumed it was the altitude but I tend to get dizzy wearing glasses, even at sea level, and wanted to rule them out as being the problem. The contacts would be a hassle to keep clean in the harsh environment but I was willing to put up with it. Second, unlike the last time when I started a training regimen in December, I'd begin this one in September. I felt it was imperative, physically and mentally, to be able to handle the heavy load carries to the high camps, especially at my age.
January 5- January 6:
I flew from Minneapolis on Thursday January 5th to Atlanta, a smooth flight that arrived on time but had a four hour layover before the overnight flight to Santiago. My seatmate on the flight to Santiago was a doctor from Wisconsin who asked where I was going and when I told him I was climbing a peak in Argentina he asked if it was Aconcagua. Amazingly, he was climbing it too! He was using RMI of Seattle for his guiding service and we talked half the night about climbing. We were also booked on the same flight from Santiago to Mendoza and I met two more of his teammates in the Santiago airport. After a short layover there, the four of us flew together to Mendoza and it was the last I saw of them until crossing paths with one of them at the Hyatt Hotel in Mendoza almost three weeks later. It turns out they summited the same day our group did, unbeknownst to me.
I arrived in Mendoza at 1:00 pm (Friday) and was picked up at the airport by an Aventuras Patagonicas driver. He delivered me to the Hyatt Hotel and it sure was nice to arrive a day early, unlike five years ago when getting to Argentina was a near disaster. I was just settling into the room when Pete arrived. We began unloading our bags and soon left the room cluttered with gear when we decided to take a walk around town. When we returned, the phone rang- it was our assistant guide Javier, and one of our teammates, Angel (an engineer from Mexico), asking if they could come up and do a gear check. Javier didn't speak fluent English so Angel helped translate while Javier checked our gear. Javier gave us the thumbs up so Pete and I took off again for dinner and more sightseeing around town.
Saturday January 7, 2012:
Our official first day of the trip began with an excellent breakfast buffet at the hotel, that is, after Pete hit the hotel gym. Pete and I took a long walk around the city and once back in the room, we began packing our gear. Martin, our lead guide, called to say he couldn't meet the group until 8:00 pm but we got another call from Angel asking if we wanted to meet Lee-Anne, another teammate who was with him in the lobby. Lee-Anne is a doctor from Australia who speaks fluent Spanish (her parents are from Chile and Columbia) and before long, Colin, a carpenter from Australia and Paul, a firefighter from Utah, showed up too. I found it fascinating that Colin and Lee-Anne lived only 10 minutes from each other in the same town in Australia and never knew each other prior to signing up for the climb. I don't think anybody expected our introductions at 3:00 pm to last very long but our group meshed so well that we hung out until 7:00 pm before heading back to our respective rooms. I had one concern with the other five climbers in our group though- every one of them were between the ages of 30 and 35 and I was 57. I wondered if I'd be able to keep up with them on the mountain.
We met up again at 8:00 with lead guide Martin, from Argentina and Javier, from Bolivia, to talk about our mountaineering experiences as well as expectations on the Aconcagua climb. Each of us were asked the highest elevation we'd climbed (the six of us had already filled each other in during the afternoon) so we repeated it again for Martin and Javier. Pete's highest elevation was Orizaba (18,700'), Lee-Anne's was Kilimanjaro (19,343'), Colin climbed to 21,000' in Nepal, Angel had climbed Orizaba several times and like me was returning to try Aconcagua a second time, Paul had only climbed as high as Kings Peak (13,528') in Utah, and I reached 21,000' feet on my first attempt on Aconcagua five years ago. Martin has led 33 successful summits on Aconcagua and Javier summited Everest last year so we six climbers were obviously in good hands. Colin had signed up to climb Aconcagua's Polish Glacier route as a hopeful precursor to Mt Everest and was clearly disappointed when Martin told him the conditions were poor on the route and that nobody had successfully climbed it in a long time.
We finally went to dinner at a very late hour, not unusual by Argentina standards, and celebrated Pete's birthday when midnight rolled around. It was interesting as the conversation alternated between English and Spanish with Angel, Martin, Javier, and Lee-Anne bantering away in Spanish while the rest of us tried to keep up. We stopped for ice cream later, families were still eating well after midnight, and the sidewalks were bustling with people strolling about. We finally turned in after 2:00 am.
Sunday January 8, 2012:
The process for getting our climbing permits (700.00 U.S. dollars each) was long and slow, taking two full hours. Our group finally left Mendoza at 1:00 pm for Penitentes, stopped in Upsalatta for lunch, and arrived in Penitentes at 5:45. Duffels were packed and weighed for the mules and at 7:00 pm, Pete, Paul, Colin, Lee-Anne, & I headed up the ski slopes across the highway for an acclimatization hike. Pete and Colin pushed ahead to a subpeak at ~10,200' and Paul stopped at 10,000'. I stayed back with Lee-Anne, who hadn't done any scree hiking before and was a bit unsteady on the steep class 2+ slopes, until we caught up to Paul. At 8:20 the three of us turned around so we could get back for dinner at 9:00.
Unlike my last time at the Hotel Ayelen, the showers were excellent on the third floor. I initially balked at being assigned to a room on the third floor but the lady at the desk assured me the plumbing was new since I was last here. The others in the group weren't as fortunate- they either had low pressure or silt in the water. Pete's birthday was celebrated again after dinner, as it was for the next six nights through base camp. Angel was the master of ceremonies each night and had everybody laughing at his antics and storytelling.
Monday January 9, 2012: Arrival at Pampa de Lenas camp
Even though the Vacas River Valley trailhead (~8,000' elevation) is just down the highway from Penitentes, we didn't get on the trail until 11:25 am. The weather was hot and sunny but a nice wind kept the hiking comfortable alongside the river. The mules carrying our gear soon passed us and we took several breaks along the way to our first camp at Pampa de Lenas (~9,200' elev). We pulled in at 4:20 pm and were shown how to properly set up the tents, in particular how to tie down the ropes when strong winds would be encountered at the higher camps. A great steak dinner was grilled over an open fire and another birthday celebration for Pete ensued as night fell. Angel kept everybody in stitches with his stories and Pete was definitely enjoying the seemingly endless supply of wine.
Tuesday January 10, 2012: Arrival at Casa de Piedras camp
Our group milled about until the guides were ready. We departed camp at 10:05 am and hiked upstream to a river crossing replete with a new bridge, unlike five years ago when the old bridge had washed away and we had to cross by mule. The weather was hot and sunny but winds once again kept the hiking pleasant. We took numerous breaks, especially enjoying the wildflowers, before arriving in Casa de Piedra camp (elevation 10,600') at 3:30 pm. The view of Aconcagua was exceptional just before pulling into camp.
Wednesday January 11, 2012: Arrival at Plaza Argentina base camp
We departed camp at 9:05 am for the Relinchos River Valley, which first required crossing the Vacas river. The water depth was quite low and we probably could've just put sandals on and walked across but a muleteer was all set to transport us. I went first and wondered how Pete was going to handle the ride because of his fear of mules. He did great and once everybody was across we headed up the Relinchos Valley. It warmed up so quickly when the sun hit that we had to stop to pull off layers and apply sunscreen. As we began the moderately steep ascent, I held back with Lee-Anne as she tried to get accustomed to the scree. Javier also held back. The views of Aconcagua and neighbor Ameghino were opening up as we gained elevation, and after regrouping we crossed the river and took a long lunch break. As we continued and neared Plaza Argentina base camp, the penitentes that were so prominent five years ago were quite shapeless this year due to the warmer weather season. We pulled into base camp (elevation 13,780') at 3:20 pm and were treated to pizza and snacks in the large mess tent by our cook crew, Diego and Selena.
Pete and I took a site near the mess tent but first had to scrape the ground clear of rocks. This didn't take very long but the site was somewhat small and Pete was a bit uncomfortable with tying the tent down to his satisfaction. We got the tent secured just as it started snowing, which continued heavily into the night. One nice improvement since I was here last time was a rudimentary hose system that piped water into camp so we didn't have to walk for fresh water. Nevertheless, Martin recommended we filter it. With the dropping temps I had to layer up with long pants and a gore-tex jacket, signaling the end of my wearing just shorts and a tee-shirt. Javier took everybody's stats for pulse and oxygen saturation, my pulse was 120 and oxygen sat was 86. After dinner Angel found a bottle of wine to celebrate Pete's birthday again.
Thursday January 12, 2012:
Rest day today. The base camp medic checked everybody's blood pressure and oxygen sats. My blood pressure was 150/93, pulse was 110, oxygen sat was 91. Pete, Colin, Lee-Anne, Angel, and I took a hike up the north facing slopes across the flat valley and split up at various elevations. Angel continued alone to the top of a subpeak and gained quite a bit of elevation, surely wanting to prove that his low oxygen sat readings weren't going to be an issue. We had a big lunch and relaxed the rest of the day. The sunny weather of the morning disappeared as dark, ominous clouds rolled in later but no storms materialized. A solo climber from Australia was camped up on the rise near Lee-Anne's tent and I visited with him and Lee-Anne for quite a while before dinner. The temperature dropped in the evening and most of us stayed in the mess tent for warmth and conversation. Angel and Lee-Anne joined the cook crew in the adjoining kitchen tent, which was warmer yet with the stoves' heat. We overheard lots of laughter coming from the Spanish speaking group.
Friday January 13, 2012:
Everyone was excited to do a load carry to High Camp 1. Gear, food, fuel needed for the higher camps was packed up and we began at 9:55 am at a slow but steady pace. We stopped for breaks and arrived at Camp 1 (elevation ~16,400') at 1:40 pm. Pete kept the strongest pace behind Martin and those two arrived slightly ahead of us but everybody was doing fine with the altitude. It was cold at camp so we only stayed until 2:25. The descent near the penitentes was a fun scree slide and it went fast, I remembered doing the same quick descent five years ago. Colin was developing a significant headache as we pulled into base camp at 3:45 and it snowed heavily after dinner with four inches piling up overnight.
Saturday January 14, 2012:
The snow melted fast in the morning sunshine. Today was another rest day and after breakfast Lee-Anne and I walked across the valley to find Pete & Martin. They were on their way back after doing some bouldering on a large rock but decided to go back again when Lee-Anne said she wanted to try it too. My feet were too big to fit in Martin's climbing shoes so I watched as Pete and Lee-Anne took turns climbing the 15-20' tall rock. After lunch, Pete, Lee-Anne, Angel, Martin, and I went to some other large rocks for more bouldering. Colin joined us later and we all had lots of fun. I was able to climb the 20' crack in my hiking boots but when it started hailing later, Pete and I made a bee-line for our tent. It snowed again that night.
Sunday January 15, 2012: Arrival at Camp 1
This morning all the items we didn't need or want for the high camps would be packed out by mule; everything else, including tents, sleeping bags, food, etc, would be carried up the mountain. I asked Martin if any of the workers at camp might want my hiking boots, even though the sole was peeling away on one of them, and Diego our camp cook was ecstatic to take them. From this point on we'd be wearing our plastic boots to the summit as well as to the base camp on the other side. We were all ready and eager to move up to the 1st high camp and finally hit the trail (photo 1, photo 2, photo 3) at 10:20 am. Even with heavier packs, I had an easier time compared to the prior carry and we arrived at Camp 1 (elev ~16,400') at 1:15 pm. Light snow showers began falling after setting up the tents but didn't last long. Most of the others were dealing with headaches but Pete and I were feeling fine. Even though gusting winds never let up and the cold temps forced everybody to eat in their tents, Pete and I went out later to take pictures of the interesting sunset.
Monday January 16, 2012:
I hadn't sleep well, nor did Pete, as winds howled all night. The guides offered cereal for breakfast but it was too hard to fumble with in the cold weather so I settled for tea, bread and cookies. We split up the gear and food for a load carry to Camp 2 and departed at 9:55 am with winds blowing at gale force. Despite the cold winds, I got too warm with all my layers and stopped in the basin above to take off my down jacket. I foolishly set my gloves down without weighting them down with a rock and one blew down the slope more than 100', creating a minor issue because my summit mitts were too warm to put on and my other gloves were too thin. Javier scrambled down to retrieve it, making me feel terribly guilty, but relieved because even at the slow pace we were going, using the rest step, I still would've fallen way behind had I gone down to retrieve it. There was lots of snow on the scree slopes but it traveled well with the plastic boots and no crampons were needed. The winds were still gusting as we stopped for a break, and likely prevented a summit bid for anyone attempting it today. We reached Camp 2 (elevation ~17,800') at 1:10 pm, a slightly higher camp in elevation than the one I stayed at five years ago. It was cold but we stayed almost an hour to 2:05 and enjoyed boot-skiing the scree of the open areas on the descent. It shortened our return time to Camp 1 and upon arriving at 2:57, the cold temps and strong winds had all six of us teammates huddling together in one tent to stay warm and pass the time. My pulse reading that night was 105, oxygen saturation was 78.
Tuesday January 17, 2012: Arrival at Camp 2
Pete had a mostly sleepless night and woke up with a splitting headache. He was moving extremely slowly and was unable to help take down the tent. Colin helped me with it and Pete did recover later but I had a brief moment wondering if he was going to be okay. We started at 10:10 am for our move to Camp 2. My pack was just as heavy as yesterday but the hike went well and we pulled into Camp 2 at 1:18 pm.
Colin had hired a porter to carry his pack and easily arrived ahead of everybody. He secured tent sites for most of the group but Pete and I picked one more distant from the others because the camp was quite populated and we figured our site would be quieter for sleeping. The weather was sunny and the winds were light. Martin used the satellite phone to check on the forecast and was told that Friday looked good with no winds but Saturday, our scheduled summit day, looked very poor. He said we might move up to Camp 3 a day early.
I visited with Paul and Colin in their tent later in the afternoon. Paul was not feeling well. He was always first or second behind Martin as we made our way up the mountain but the thin air was now taking a toll on him. I went back to our tent to read and relax and Colin stopped over later for another visit. It was cold and everybody ate inside their tents, but after dinner Pete and I went outside to view the great sunset. So far, it seemed most everybody was experiencing headaches, blisters, or some kind of ailment but nothing major.
Wednesday January 18, 2012:
Today was a rest day and the weather was quite accommodating- sunny and wind-free. Martin called again on the satellite phone. He informed us that we'd be moving up to Camp 3 tomorrow as the window looked better for Friday than Saturday, but it also meant losing an acclimatization day. Pete and I didn't care because we were excited to get a chance at the summit. The park rangers set up a slack line and it was fun to watch Pete, Lee-Anne, Martin, and others walk the tightrope but I wasn't about to risk an injury this close to summit day and soon retreated to the tent to catch up on some reading.
Meanwhile, Martin put together a heavy load and carried it to Camp 3 to help lighten our load carry in the morning. We could see the rock formations of Camp 3 above and watched as Martin and several other climbers made their way up the steep slope. In the afternoon the same medic from base camp, who was also climbing Aconcagua, took everybody's readings. My pulse was 94, oxygen saturation was 71. My blood pressure was high but not worrisome to her and she said to eat less salt which I thought was funny because the foods we were eating were loaded with sodium. The late afternoon sun cast deep shadows across Camp 2, providing fine photo opportunities and a reason to get out of the tent.
Thursday January 19, 2012: Arrival at Camp 3
We departed at 10:55 am and moved up to Camp 3 (elevation ~19,600') with full loads- mine was close to 50 lbs and I could sure feel it but my training back home was paying off. We arrived at 2:35 pm, and though I was moving very slowly when we pitched the tent, overall I was feeling okay. Camp 3 was a busy place with lots of climbers milling about but we were in a nice secluded site above and away from the other tents. The water situation was the same as my last time here- snow had to be chopped and boiled, which was a long process at the high elevation, and it tasted awful. Pete, Colin, and I went out in the evening to get some very nice photos before turning in.
Friday January 20, 2012: Summit day
Pete woke me up around 4:10 am. I was moving slowly but felt good as I layered up. My lower body layers consisted of: thin long underwear, fleece pants, REI supplex pants, and Cloudveil goretex bib pants with suspenders. Upper body was thin long sleeve shirt, mid-weight long sleeve shirt, 2 polartec zip-ups, North Face goretex shell, & Mountain Hardware down parka. Footwear included a pair of sock liners, a pair of Smartwool socks, plastic boots, gaiters and crampons. My hands were protected with thin glove liners and Marmot expedition mitts, my head with a balaclava, ski cap, and the parka hood. I was very comfortable. The trail from Camp 3 to the summit would be entirely on hard packed snow, ideal conditions for crampons, as we departed at 5:50. Many other groups started well ahead of us.
Martin, Lee-Anne, and Pete moved ahead of the rest of us but we all re-grouped at Independencia, elevation ~21,000', for a rest and fuel break. It was a great feeling for me to get above Independencia because it's where I turned around five years ago. The group split up again with Martin, Lee-Anne, and Pete pushing ahead while while the rest of us finished our break. On the traverse to the Canaletta, Angel, Colin, and Paul also pushed ahead while Javier stayed back with me. My thoughts were clear but strangely they were beginning to disconnect from my head. I didn't feel it was a problem and didn't say anything to Javier. My body, however, was not moving anywhere near as fast as Javier wanted and I soon told him I needed to sit for another break because I didn't eat much for breakfast and really needed to eat and drink some more. He relented. I took off my parka because of the unusually warm weather but he got impatient with my pace when we started again. He had me breathing short quick breaths and taking smaller steps. He was in front and at one point turned around and asked if I wanted to go back to camp. I said no and he held up his fingers and asked me to count how many he held up. He was satisfied but it's a good thing he wasn't behind me because I was getting more and more unsteady on my feet and it might've prompted him to turn me around. As we approached the wall of the Canaletta, we caught up to Colin and the three of us continued up the steep ridge (photo 1, photo 2) toward the summit.
By now my thoughts were in a total disconnect from my body and it was weird because it felt like my mind was in a small tunnel outside of my head. Colin made a comment about how I'd come pretty far and didn't have to prove I was a man by continuing to the top. Ha ha, I may have been stumbling in my worsening condition but my mind was still sharp and my determination never wavered. I assured him I'd be okay. He said he'd watch my back and that he did. He was close enough behind me that I could see him planting his left trekking pole inches from my left heel. We finally got to within two hundred fifty feet of the summit and Javier once again asked if I wanted to stop but I told him I was fine and that once I reached the summit I'd do better on the descent. Suddenly we came upon Paul sitting on a rock and when I asked him how he was doing the burly firefighter said he was out of gas. I pointed to the summit and said, "Paul, we've been on this mountain for twelve days and the summit is right up ahead, you can't quit now." He got up.
Javier and I soon stepped on the summit with Paul and Colin right behind us. The time was 1:52, the others had been on top since 1:26, and we celebrated our success. I had to sit down after the summit photos because I was so tired. We stayed on top until 2:24 but I was too tired to enjoy the views and too tired to find my camera. I do remember seeing some familiar faces such as the medic and others in her group but not the doctor I shared the flight with to South America.
On the descent Javier was behind me and getting really impatient with my foot placement. He'd call my name as "Bry-on", accenting the second syllable whenever it looked like I was going to lose my footing, and finally got so concerned that he took out a rope. He short-roped me to the wall of the Canaletta, pulling sharply a few times as I stumbled. We all stopped there for a break. I told Martin how tired I felt and he got the oximeter out. My oxygen saturation was 56 and he immediately gave me glucose tablets to chew on. He handed me his water bottle with sugar flavored water and told me to start drinking because I was obviously severely dehydrated. He also had me breathing in and out in rapid succession. He took my pack and split it up between him and Javier to conserve what little energy I had before sending me and Javier on ahead of the group.
Javier had me roped in again on the descent to Independencia but I finally started getting my senses back as well as some strength when we stopped there for a break. He removed the rope and when the rest of the group caught up, he and I started for camp. I felt better and we descended fairly quickly, arriving at camp at 4:52. The rest of the group arrived 10 minutes later. I was still very tired though and sitting on a rock when Pete came up to me and saw my condition. He helped me get my crampons, gaiters, and boots off and then went to help Lee-Anne and Angel with theirs. He and the guides were the only ones who weren't a wreck. We ate dinner in our tents, which was just as well in my condition.
Saturday January 21, 2012: Arrival at Plaza de Mulas base camp (elevation 14,435')
We didn't have porters to carry our tents and gear down like we did five years ago so this was a full carry for everybody. We departed at 1:02 pm and I immediately wished I had my crampons on as the trail was icy and steep. I was tired and moving slowly but looking forward to spending the night at Plaza de Mulas. I tried to keep up with the group and did so for a long time but eventually fell behind. It was mentally and physically draining to see the camp below and not have the energy to get down there as fast as I wanted to. Martin and Lee-Anne passed me by and now it was Javier and me again for the remaining descent. He kept prodding me to go faster and finally had some sympathy when I told him, in Spanish, how old I was. He must've thought all along I was younger but whatever, we took it slower and caught up to Martin and Lee-Anne again.
Just above camp, Colin was waiting along the trail and offered to carry my pack down. I was thankful for the gesture and mighty relieved when we pulled in at 4:53 pm. Pete had arrived at 3:40, Paul at 3:47, and Angel at 4:30. We had pizza for a snack and a full dinner later. Nobody wanted to set up tents so we cleared the tables in the mess tent and slept on the floor. I drank enough water to finally get hydrated and slept well. As it turned out, not a single climbing group made the summit today, our originally scheduled day, because of high winds and extreme cold. It was definitely worth losing the extra day of acclimatization by moving our day up.
Sunday January 22, 2012:
Someone in our group said the hike out today on the Normal Route would cover 21 miles but I didn't think that was correct. Five years ago we were told it was 17 plus miles, regardless, it would be a long hike. After a hearty breakfast we packed our gear for the mules to carry and headed out at 10:47 am. We immediately stopped at the ranger station to check out and started anew at 11:00. The descent into the Horcones river valley was moderately steep but once in the valley it was mostly a long slog out, gradually losing elevation until reaching Confluencia, a camp along the Normal Route. The trail dropped steeply to a bridge over the raging waters and regained just as steeply again to Confluencia, where we took a long break before continuing. We reached the trailhead at 6:00 pm. There was a mix-up in coordinating the shuttle and we waited an hour and a half before catching a ride with another climbing group's van but all was good when we got back to Penitentes. The shower was wonderful, the meal was great, and the celebration began. The loud and boisterous evening was shared with a large group of Norwegians, most of whom also made the summit the same day as us.
Monday January 23- Thursday January 26, 2012:
It felt so good to get back to Mendoza and the amenities of the Hyatt Hotel. I checked into getting an early flight home but the outrageous prices convinced Pete and me to just relax and enjoy the next three days in the city. We had our farewell dinner Monday evening but our entire group hung out together on Tuesday. Angel was able to get an early flight home on Wednesday and Lee-Anne went rock climbing with Martin on Wednesday and Thursday. We wouldn't see her again until Friday but Pete, Paul, Colin, and I spent time sightseeing, swimming, and eating meals together. I also enjoyed visiting with climbers from another A.P. group that summited a couple days ahead of us.
Friday January 27- Saturday January 28, 2012:
My flight from Mendoza to Santiago was in the early morning. My layover of twelve hours left lots of time to pass before Pete and Lee-Anne arrived so I caught up on emails and reading. The three of us hung out together until Paul and Colin arrived, then all of us ate dinner together at Ruby Tuesday before catching our respective flights home later in the evening.
Thanks to everyone in my group for making this a memorable trip. That we all made the summit was fantastic but so was how our group bonded together. Everybody got along well and we all looked out for one another and helped each other when needed. This group was the best I've ever been with on a climb, bar none.
A final footnote: all fifteen of Aventuras Patagonicas expeditions represented success in summiting Aconcagua this season, a record that speaks for itself. It's an easy recommendation to consider this company for anyone wanting to climb Aconcagua.
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