Saturday, January 3, 2004 – Hotel Fundador, Santiago, Chile

Today was a travel day. I had breakfast at my hotel in Cusco, Ecuador, packed and checked-out by 8:30 AM. I was picked up by Boris who took me to the airport for my one hour flight to Lima, Peru.

I had been scheduled to use a day hotel in Lima during my four hour layover, but decided to just stay at the airport instead. I ate lunch and sent some email as I waited for my 3:50 PM flight to Santiago, Chile.

I had a row to myself on the three hour Lan Peru flight and watched a movie en route. Upon arrival in Santiago, I took a van service to the Hotel Fundador in Santiago’s commercial district where I checked in at 10:00 PM. Santiago’s time zone is two hours earlier than Lima’s.

Sunday, January 4, 2004 – Hotel Fundador, Santiago, Chile

I ate breakfast at the hotel’s breakfast buffet where I met Wally & Leila Berg, principals of Berg Adventures International whom I last saw in Russia.  The members of our group were scheduled to arrive throughout the day so I decided to walk around Santiago.  On my first trip out at 9:00 AM, I found the shops to be mostly closed so I returned to the hotel and wrote in my journal for a while.  I went out again at 11:00 AM and found the shops still closed.  When I returned to the hotel, I was told that on Sundays, most shops never open.

At 1:30 PM, Leila rounded up a half dozen people who had arrived and we went to lunch at a Peruvian restaurant.  In true Chilean style, we did not return from lunch until 4:00 PM and I rested for a couple hours before our first team meeting, which was held in the hotels conference room at 6:00 PM.  During the two hour meeting, we had a chance to meet the other climbers and western guides in our group and have Wally explain the itinerary and answer questions.

After our meeting, we had a couple drinks at the hotels bar before deciding to walk a half mile to an Italian restaurant at 9:00 PM for dinner.  The restaurant was in a square where there was a live performance of ‘The Nutcracker’ being performed.  At 11:00 PM we returned to the hotel where I went to bed.

Monday, January 5, 2004 – La Casona Hotel, Copiapo, Chile

Our flight to Copiapo was a few minutes late taking off and by the time we had made one stopover, we did not arrive until 2:00 PM.  We loaded our gear onto the bus which would transport us around Copiapo Province for the next ten days and drove fifteen minutes to town where we checked-in to La Casona Hotel, a small inn near the center of town.  The guides will stay in another inn down the street.  I unpacked my gear and walked around town for an hour.

At 6:30 PM we met for a group photo.  Our official welcome dinner was held in town at Bavaria, a nice restaurant in the center of town which opened at 8:00 PM.  After a few minutes of rearranging most of the tables in the place so that we could sit together, we had a grand dinner and got to know each other better.  Dinner broke up at 10:00 PM at which time most of us walked back to the hotel.  I shared a two room suite with Gary & Bruce, who knew each other from previous trips.

Tuesday, January 6, 2004 – Laguna Santa Rosa, Atacama Region, Chile   (3550 meters)

I got up at 7:00 AM and walked to the town to get some local currency at an ATM.  I ate breakfast upon return and then separated my gear so I could leave some things behind that I would not need during the camping portion of our trip.

At 9:00 AM, Wally rounded us up for another photograph, which he up-linked to the BAI website to accompany the first trip cybercast.  We loaded the bus and two 4-wheel drive vehicles with our gear and then set off for Laguna Santa Rosa.  BAI had hired Southern Cross Adventures, a local company to supply logistical support for the trip.  The SCA people included Jaime, the head guide, Hernan & Fernando, local guides, Waldo, the cook and the bus driver.

There was some confusion as to when dinner was to be served.  Wally kept assuring us that it would be out at any minute, but when it had still not come out by 9:00 PM, he went to check on its progress.  Apparently, Jaime had told Waldo not to start dinner until he returned from an errand, so he had not yet started to cook.  Leila took over and by 10:00 PM, we had chicken and vegetables.

I turned in at 11:00 PM.  The wind, which we had expected to be constant for the next three weeks, had completely stopped, and we enjoyed a great first night of camping.

Wednesday, January 7, 2004 – Laguna Santa Rosa, Atacama Region, Chile

The wind was still non-existent and the sun was bright when I woke up.  We met for breakfast at 7:30 AM and enjoyed eggs, toast, cheese and tea.

After a couple hours, we left at 10:30 AM for a hike up one of the surrounding peaks.  After four hours we were still at least 200 meters from the summit.  The wind had been picking up all afternoon and by this time was quite fierce.  We decided to turn around and got back to camp at 4:00 PM after climbing almost 900 meters.  Snacks including salad, cheese & crackers were served upon our return.

I went back to my tent and rested for a couple hours before dinner.  At 7:00 PM we ate spaghetti, chicken, salad and watermelon.  At 9:00 PM I headed back to my tent and spent some time reading before going to sleep.

Thursday, January 8, 2004 – Laguna Verde, Atacama Region, Chile  (4380 meters)

The wind seems to die down at around 10:00 PM each night and then pick up again around noontime.  I slept very well last night, as did most members of our expedition.

I got up at 7:30 AM and we had breakfast at 8:00 AM.  We planned to move camp at 10:30 AM, so there was plenty of time to get organized for the 50 KM drive up to Laguna Verde.

At 12:30 PM, we stopped for lunch at Rio Las Lamas, where a waterfall cascaded over a ten meter rock wall.  It was unusual to see any water or accompanying vegetation in the surrounding landscape.  Several of us went swimming in the shallow river.  There was a sign indication the altitude was 3912 meters so we reset our altimeters.

I got up at 7:15 AM and headed over to breakfast.  Joel has not been feeling well for several days and will probably miss our hike around the lake today.  We packed for a day hike, made sandwiches for the trip, and then set-off at 10:40 AM.

We hiked clockwise around Laguna Verde, our group quickly spreading out into a long line.  There were some spots where we had to ford streams or cross shallow sand bars.  Most people took their hiking boots off, but mine were high enough to avoid getting my feet wet.  The weather was very nice and cloud cover prevented it from becoming too hot.  We hiked for five hours along the crusty shoreline and then came to a spot where we radioed base camp and requested that the bus come out to pick us up.  We estimated that our hike had covered twelve miles, which at 4380 meters, was a good workout.

Wally has solved the altitude controversy.  Apparently a team of surveyors established an altitude of 4380 meters for Laguna Verde last year, so we will use that figure.

We got back to camp at 4:00 PM and I rested for an hour before tea was served.  Wally discussed how we should dress and pack for our hike up Mulas Muertas (Dead Mules Peak) tomorrow.  At 18,500 feet, this will be our highest climb so far.  I took a soak in the hot springs which was very nice.  Dinner was served at 7:00 PM, after which I returned to my tent to pack for tomorrow.

January 10, 2004 – Laguna Verde, Atacama Region, Chile

I did not sleep at all last night.  At 5:00 AM, I got up and walked over for tea and breakfast.  We packed picnic lunches and then went back to the tent to pack for our hike up Mulas Muertas.

When we got back, we went to the dining tent to talk about our adventures today.  Wally was quite angry because he thought we had abandoned Donna leaving her to be carried down from the summit by Fernando.  We did not have any knowledge that Donna had been injured so badly and certainly would have helped carry her down if we were aware of her problem.  As it turned out, someone had misinterpreted the radio call about Donna being carried down...it was her backpack that Fernando was carrying.

Dinner was at 7:30 PM after which I decided to go back to my tent to try to get some sleep.

Sunday, January 11, 2004 – Laguna Verde, Atacama Region, Chile

Today is a rest day.  Leila, Donna and Jaime left at 7:00 AM and will call us later in the day to report on Donna’s knee injury.  It does not look like she will be climbing Ojos with us.

Breakfast was at 9:00 AM, during which Dave pointed out that we were one day behind schedule.  This seemed to surprise Wally, but we were able to adjust by cutting short our stay at Laguna Verde and moving up to Camp One on Ojos tomorrow.

The ride to Camp One in the 4WD truck was harrowing.  The terrain ascends 900 meters through a sand valley.  We tried to follow tire tracks, but often veered off the tracks in search of a harder surface.  We only got stuck once, but Fernando, our Chilean guide/driver was able to rock the vehicle free.  It took 1 ¼ hours to reach the camp where we found a half dozen tents already pitched.  I talked to one man who had attempted the summit yesterday, but had gotten turned back by weather.  It is extremely windy here.

We got back to Laguna Verde just before Max’s group returned from their hike to locate the ruins.  They had found evidence of a man-made stone wall which could have been part of a structure.  There was a piece of wood in the wall that appeared to have once served a purpose and Gary took a sample to get it carbon dated.

Wally had talked with Leila and Donna will be OK.  She’ll have to sit-out the attempt on Ojos, but the doctor said she could resume ‘normal activities’ in three days.  Whether ´normal activities’ including climbing Aconcagua remains to be seen.

Dinner was at 7:30 PM.  Since I had not slept well for the last three nights, I got some sleeping pills from Norb, took one, and returned to my tent to try to sleep.

Monday, January 12, 2004 – Atacama Camp One, Ojos del Salado, Atacama Region, Chile

I slept better last night than during the last two nights, but still not as well as I would have liked.  I got up at 7:30 AM, organized some gear, and then went for breakfast.

We took the tents down and then I helped pack up some of the kitchen supplies.  We will need to make three, two hour round trips, using both 4WD vehicles to move all our gear and personnel up to Atacama Camp which we have named Camp One. 

At 10:30 AM, Grant held a class in knot tying while the kitchen gear made it’s way up to Camp One on the first shuttle.  We ate lunch at 12:30 PM, and then viewed some of the photographs Wally had taken so far, some of which he had up-linked to the BAI website.

The vehicles returned and the first group of eight climbers left at 2:20 PM.  The ride up to Camp One was a bumpy as yesterday and we had to get out and push once.  We arrived at 3:30 PM and spent a couple hours setting up nine tents.  Large rocks were required to secure the tents against the wind.

At 6:00 PM, we had tea in the mess tent.  Dinner was served just before the last group of climbers arrived at 7:00 PM  Wally discussed the plan for tomorrow, and then we went to bed so we could get an early start in the morning.

Tuesday, January 13, 2004 – Refugio Tejas Camp Two, Ojos del Salado, Atacama Region, Chile - 5835 meters

Our group got to Camp Two at 3:00 PM, exactly five hours after we started.  Shortly after we arrived, however, we learned that the 4WD vehicle with the group gear could not get up the mountain.  By 4:30 PM, no one else had arrived at Camp Two and Max told us that without food, water or shelter, we would have to return to Camp One.  But a half hour later, the second group of climbers arrived and it was decided that the guides would hike back down to where the 4WD vehicle had stopped and ferry the important group gear up on their backs.  We also learned that the third group of climbers had turned back to Camp One and would not attempt the summit.  There was a German group at Camp Two which was nice enough to offer us some food.

We had originally planned to go sleep at 5:00 PM and wake up at 11:00 PM for our summit attempt.  But we did not start to get the group gear until after 7:00 PM, so we will not be able to climb tonight.  We will spend a second night at this altitude, postponing our summit attempt by 24 hours.  This was actually welcome news for most of us as we were exhausted by the climb and the additional day of rest will do us good.

The tents started to arrive at 7:00 PM, but by this time it had started snowing heavily and it was necessary to erect the tents in a blizzard.  Most people slept three to a tent, but Dan and I did not have a roommate as there were 11 people for four tents.  I decided not to take a sleeping pill tonight as tomorrow would be a rest day and I wanted to save two pills for tomorrow night.

Wednesday, January 14, 2004 - Refugio Tejas, High Camp, Ojos del Salada, Chile  (5700 meters)

I didn’t sleep at all last night.  The lack of oxygen at this altitude had me hyperventilating most of the night.  Dan and I had unknowingly set up our tent on a small slope and kept rolling over towards one side.  When I exhaled, the warmed air from my lungs would condense on my mustache necessitating me to wipe it dry every twenty minutes.

At 8:30 AM I got up and went to the cooking hut where sixteen people had gathered in the 16 square meter space.  Much discussion was going on as to how we could adjust the schedule to attempt Ojos tonight and still make our pre-arranged flights back to Santiago tomorrow and on to Mendoza the next day.   It was decided that only Tom, Dan and I would attempt the summit at 1:00 AM tomorrow.  Dick, Norb, Richard and Dave will hike up towards the glacier this afternoon, but return when they reached an altitude of 6065 meters.  Then they would hike back down to Camp One this evening without attempting the summit.   The rest of the group who were at High Camp would hike down to Camp One this afternoon without going any higher.

Tom, Dan and I ate dinner at 3:30 PM and were in our tents ready for bed by 4:30 PM.  I took two sleeping pills to make sure I got some sleep before getting up at midnight for the 1:00 AM start.

Thursday, January 15, 2004 - La Casona Hotel, Copiapo, Chile  (290 meters)

We awoke at 11:30 PM and slowly dressed.  It had snowed a few inches during the evening, but now the sky was clear and we could see the Milky Way just off to the north of the summit.

We ate breakfast of cereal and eggs and then waited for enough water to boil so we could each carry three liters.  Using only MSR stoves, it took over an hour to boil enough water at this altitude.

At 1:40 AM, we gathered outside the hut and started climbing.  In addition to myself, Dan and Tom, we had four guides; Wally, Max, Jaime and Fernando.  We climbed at a relatively easy pace, but after an hour I began to doubt my ability to climb 1150 meters and then safely return to Camp One.   I started slowing down and at 6,000 meters, I decided I would return to High Camp and focus my energy on Aconcagua next week.  Jaime accompanied me down a steep section, and then I continued down on my own while he went back up to join the others who had continued the ascent.   It took only a half hour to reach High Camp, but when I looked back up at the mountain, I could not see any headlamps moving near the glacier.

By 3:45 AM I was back in my tent where I stayed until 11:00 AM.  When I finally emerged, I was surprised to see Jaime, who told me he had gone back up the mountain but realized his toes were starting to freeze and was forced to turn around at 6:00 AM.

Jaime had a radio and when we checked on the progress of the other climbers, we learned that Tom had developed blurred vision at 6500 meters and was now in the process of heading down with Fernando.  Dan, the strongest member of our group, was continuing up with Wally and Max.

Tom got back to High Camp with Fernando at 11:30 AM and he and I were told to pack our gear and head down to Camp One where one of the 4WD vehicles would take us to Laguna Verde, where the bus was packed and the others were waiting to drive us back to Copiapo.   Wally, Max and Dan would take the other 4WD vehicle back to Copiapo later tonight when they returned from the summit.

Tom and I hiked down to Camp One in 1½ hours and then waited 20 minutes for the SCA people to finish packing the truck.  We drove the one hour obstacle course through the sand dunes and then found the bus waiting for us where the valley meets the main road.   They had driven up five minutes from Laguna Verde to save time and been waiting there for four hours for us to appear.

At this point, we learned that Dan, Wally and Max had reached the crater at 6800 meters, but were totally exhausted and could not continue.  They were less than 100 meters from the summit.

The bus ride back to Copiapo took five hours.  Most people tried to sleep with varying degrees of success.  We arrived back at La Casona Hotel and checked-in at 6:30 PM, assuming the same roommates we had had there last week.  People went in different directions for dinner.   I walked to an Internet Cafe and spent an hour on-line.  On my way back to the hotel, I ran into Donna, Tom & Dick and decided to join them for dinner.  We walked to a pizza place in the local mall and had a great meal.

We returned from dinner just before midnight and as we lingered in the lobby, Dan returned in the truck with Wally, Max, Grant & Jaime.  They all looked terrible.

I talked with Dan for a while before he went to bed.  I was wide awake and watched TV for a couple hours.  My roommates, Bruce and Gary returned from a night out at 5:30 AM.

Friday, January 16, 2004 – Hotel Fundador, Santiago, Chile

I was wide awake at 6:00 AM and decided to use the hotel’s computer to type my journal.  People started waking up at 8:00 AM and I would stop typing and have breakfast in stages with various people as they arrived in the dining area.  Joel went to wake up Gary & Bruce and we learned their exploits of bar-hopping all night and of being followed back to the hotel by two guys they had met in a gay bar.

We packed most of our stuff and then went to a great seafood restaurant named Sabores del Mar for lunch.  Everyone had previously picked-up their laundry except Tom & Dick, who did not realize that the laundry was closed for siesta between 2-4:00 PM.  We were leaving for the airport at 3:00 PM.

Back at the hotel, we finished packing and then loaded our gear onto the bus for the twenty minute ride to the airport.  Somehow we were able to check almost a ton of gear without paying any overage charges.  We milled around the airport for an hour until our flight was called at 4:45 PM and we started to board.  Just at that moment, a taxi pulled up in the drop off area with Tom and Dick’s laundry.

The 5:15 PM Lan Chile flight to Santiago took 1½ hours.  I sat next to a guy who manages a 700 employee gold mine for Placer Dome in the Atacama Region.  He was interested in our climbing activities as he had climbed Ojos himself some fifteen years ago.  I was more interested in learning about the gold business.  His open-pit mine produces only 2 grams of gold per ton, yet is very profitable!

We said goodbye to Samatha who was not scheduled to climb Aconcagua and was flying back to the US tonight.  We collected our luggage and loaded it onto two vans which fought their way through Santiago’s rush-hour traffic and got to the Hotel Fundador at 8:00 PM.  Bruce and I were sharing a room tonight.  I had a drink with Richard in the bar before he went out, but decided to skip dinner myself as I had eaten a huge lunch.

Saturday, January 17, 2004 – Grand Ritz Hotel, Mendoza, Argentina

I had scheduled a wake up call for 6:00 AM, which was a good thing as I was finally sleeping.  I showered and went downstairs for breakfast.  Our shuttle to the airport was at 8:00 AM and Leila had started the boarding early so we were able to leave on-time.  I'd forgotten to say good-bye to Donna who was cutting her trip short due to knee problems, but will try to get together with her when I get back to Connecticut.

Norb was the first to check-in for the Lan Chile flight to Mendoza, Argentina and was charged $27 for excess baggage weight.  By the time I checked-in however, the excess baggage charges had been dropped.

I took a nap in the afternoon, and then walked over to the local casino where I promptly lost $200 US.  I stopped at an Internet Café before having dinner at a sidewalk café.  After dinner, I saw several other people from our group eating across the street, and joined them for a few minutes before heading back to the hotel.

All during lunch and dinner, children would come up to our outdoor tables selling small items.  Most were not invasive, but it got old after awhile.  Another practice I noticed was that whenever a group of diners go up to leave, any leftover food was immediately grabbed by people standing in the shadows, before the bus people had a chance to clear the tables.  At least the food was not going to waste.

I got back to the Ritz at 10:00 PM.  Tonight and tomorrow night, I have a single room.

Sunday, January 18, 2004 – Grand Ritz Hotel, Mendoza, Argentina

There have been a lot of organizational problems on this trip.  Wally & Leila have pointed the finger squarely at their local provider – Southern Cross Adventures, but it is hard to pass the buck when it is your name on the door.  All of the local guides who were with us on Ojos de Salado have been fired and SCA is suppose to provide us with additional guides tomorrow.  One of the partners of SCA, a guy named Ken, will also be going with us to Aconcagua.  Even Max, one of BAI’s guides who came down from Canada with Wally & Leila and is married to Kristy from BAI’s office in Alberta will not be with us in Argentina.  The disorganization has turned many people off and I am sure it will reflect poorly on BAI in the long run.  Some of the people who were with us in Chile have cut their trips short because of the organizational issues or for medical reasons.

I slept until 7:30 AM and then showered before going up to the fifth floor for continental breakfast.  I did not see anyone from our group, but went ahead and ate anyway.

At 10:00 AM, we met in the lobby to ride over to get our permits to climb Aconcagua.  It is necessary for each climber to appear in person with their passport. Included in the initial cost of the trip was the $300 US fee for each or us to climb.  The fee includes emergency evacuation by helicopter if anyone should get injured and was unable to get off the mountain under their own power.

In the afternoon, I walked around the city for awhile, admiring the magnificent trees which give an neighborhood affect to the entire city.  There are many parks and recreation areas.  I met up with several other people from out group and we had pizza again in a restaurant on the pedestrian mall.  I continued to walk around the city in the afternoon, and won back the money I had }lost in the casino yesterday.

I ate dinner with Tom, Dick & Grant at a sidewalk café around the corner from our hotel.  I needed to send some emails before we left in the morning so I left early to visit the Internet café before going to bed.

Monday, January 19, 2004 – Plaza Confluencua, Parque Provincial Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

I got up early and packed my gear.  We separated our city clothes from our climbing & camping gear, and left a bag of the city clothes in Mendoza.  When we return, we’ll stay at a different hotel & Leila took a van full of bags over to The Hotel Aconcagua.

Confluencia is a small tent city in a large gulley created by a raging river.  There area a half dozen tent-restaurants and even a tent-hotel.  We have our own tents to set-up, but won’t be able to do so until the mules arrive.

Tuesday, January 20, 2004 – Plaza de Mulas, 4300 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

I got up late and then realized that my glacier glasses were broken so I tried to fix them before going to breakfast.  We ate at 8:00 AM, and then went back to the tents to pack up our gear for the long hike today.

We started hiking at 9:20 AM.  We crossed the river on a frail-looking bridge, and ascended a steep section for a half hour.  The trail leveled off and we entered a broad valley which seemed to go on forever.  We stopped several times during the day and my biggest concern was preventing sunburn as I was wearing a short-sleeved shirt.

The wind picked-up later in the day and so did the incline.  The final hour was very tiring.  The first group of us arrived at Plaza de Mulas at 5:15 PM and the rest of the people came in sporadically over the next hour or two..  We waited in our new dining tent for the others to arrive.  We agreed that we had hiked about 25 KM with an altitude gain of 1000 meters.

We selected our tents from the group which our guides had set-up for us and moved-in.  After spreading out our gear, Dan and I learned that our tent had been set-up in the wrong place so Marcos & Pablo moved it 100 meters to a spot next to the river.

We ate dinner at 8:00 PM and were fed copious amounts of food.  I went to bed an hour later.

Wednesday, January 21, 2004 – Plaza de Mulas, 4300 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

Plaza de Mulas is a large compound with over 100 tents.  Many are commercial enterprises offering food, internet, post office, hot showers and night clubs.  Across the moraine, about a half mile walk, stands the permanent, three storey Plaza de Mulas Hotel.

I did not sleep at all again last night.  I considered moving to the hotel to get some rest but decided it was too much effort to walk over and then back again before breakfast.

There was quite a bit of helicopter activity this morning.  Helicopters are used for emergency evacuation, movement of park rangers & medical personnel as well as carrying 55 gallon drums of human waste off the mountain.  Everything else is transported by mules.  We observed several people being helped down from high camps on the mountain yesterday to the Plaza de Mulas base camp, and one was even being carried.  I could not tell if the helicopters were coming to evacuate climbers or if they were here for routine purposes.

Breakfast was at 8:00 AM after which I went back to my tent to try to get some sleep and rested for a couple of hours.  At lunch, we learned that 79 year old Dick Jessor, who had injured his knee yesterday while crossing a stream en route to Plaza de Mulas was unable to continue and would be evacuated by helicopter tomorrow morning.  Our group has now been whittled down to nine climbers.

In the afternoon, I walked 20 minutes over to the hotel where I used their internet service to check email.  The hotel seems quite adequate for such a remote location.  I tried to sleep again in the afternoon, but was only able to rest again.  Dave gave me some sleeping pills which I will use tonight.

Dinner was at 7:30 PM.  We discussed our plans for tomorrow and said farewell to Dick who would leave at 6:00 AM tomorrow.  I returned to my tent and was in my sleeping bag before 9:00 PM.

Thursday, January 22, 2004 – Plaza Canada, 4900 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

A few people got up early to see Dick off on the first helicopter flight from base camp.  I organized my gear into items I would leave at Plaza de Mulas, items I would give to a porter to carry up to Plaza Canada, and items I would carry myself.  Argentine porters have formed an unofficial union and offer to carry loads up the mountain for outrageous prices.  I was only one of two or three people who used a porter, but I considered it was an important edge to ensure I had enough energy to climb to the summit in a few days.  I spent $360 US over the next three days to have porters carry 14 kilos of personal gear up through three high camps.

We ate breakfast at 8:00 AM. And then went back to take down our tents.  Today is a beautiful day and we all are hoping it will stay this way for a few more days.  We started hiking at 10:30 AM.  Today’s hike ascended 600 meters and took 3 ½ hours.  We stopped several times for short breaks and took a longer break at The Conway Rocks.  I was pleased that I was not short of breath at all during the climb up and hope the combination of proper acclimatization, slow pace, plenty of water & Diamox are making a difference.

Plaza Canada is a somewhat level area just below the current snowline.  We set-up our tents and collected the gear the porters had brought up.  I took a nap in the afternoon.

The guides gathered snow to melt for drinking as there is no running water above Plaza de Mulas.  From here on, we will sleep three to a tent to cut down on the number of tents which need to be hauled up the mountain and to create more body heat to warm the tents.  Dan and I will share our tent with Tom, who is Dick’s son.

We ate dinner at 6:00 PM.  Patricia was now cooking in the open on MSR stoves sheltered by rocks to prevent the wind from blowing out the flame or in the vestibule of her three-person North Face tent.  We ate soup and noodles.  I was in my sleeping bag by 6:30 PM.

Friday, January 23, 2004 – Nido de Condores, 5380 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

I slept on and off during the night.  We woke up at 7:00 AM but stayed in the tent until 9:30 AM when the sun hit the campsite and it was a little warmer outside.  We ate breakfast, packed our gear, and took down the tents.  I gave a porter 14 kilos of my gear which he will take up to the next camp for $6 US per kilo.

We started up the mountain again at 11:40 AM.  Today’s hike ascended almost 500 meters up a steep slope by a series of switchbacks.  We needed several breaks along the way.  About halfway up the slope, we heard someone yell ‘ROCK’ and looked up to see a 6” diameter rock cascading down the mountain right towards us.  Even with the warning, it shot between Tom and I at head-level with about ½ meter to spare on either side.

We reached Nido de Condores (Condor’s Nest) at 3:30 PM and set-up our tents.  The porters arrived and we paid them, and then we spent a few hours napping.

For dinner we had freeze dried food.  Hot water was brought to our tents and we mixed it with the packages and ate in the tents.  I was not able to eat much dinner and also had a headache.  Dan, the only one of the three of us in our tent who had eaten all of his dinner, complained of stomach problems.

The wind really picked-up and it was difficult to sleep as the flapping nylon tent roared like a freight train all night.

Saturday, January 24, 2004 – Plaza Berlin, ______ meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

The wind kept us up most of the night.  We stayed in our tents until 9:00 AM when the sun hit the campsite and we were able to go outside with Down clothing.  Slowly, we packed and ate breakfast.

Wally did not think that Dee should go further so she will be returning to Plaza de Mulas with Leila today.  The final eight of us were ready to start climbing at 11:00 AM, but waited an additional hour and a half for the guides and kitchen people to get ready.  I gave 10 kilos of gear to a porter and will pay $8 US for it to reach high camp at Plaza Berlin.

We left at 12:30 PM, Grant followed by Norb setting a good slow pace.  We took breaks every 45 minutes and slowly ascended the switchbacks up this face of Aconcagua.  We passed one man being helped down between two others and he did not look very good at all.

We reached Berlin Camp at 4:45 PM and were pleased to see out tents already pitched.  After a prolonged controversy, I collected my gear from Zekial, the porter and laid out my sleeping bag.  (Zekila had celebrated his 23^rd birthday a few days ago by climbing from Plaza de Mulas to the summit and back in ten hours.  The speed record, however, is less than half that.  We would take five days.)

Dan, who had had stomach problems all day, went to bed immediately.  I ate dinner, took a couple of sleeping pills, and was able to get some sleep in advance of our 5:00 AM summit bit tomorrow.

Sunday, January 25, 2004 – SUMMIT DAY – Plaza Berlin, ____ meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

We woke up at 4:00 AM and dressed for a 5:00 AM start.  Patricia had distributed breakfast food to our tents last night so we were able to eat quickly in our tents as we dressed.

The weather was spectacular.  Aconcagua is known for it’s high winds and Dan, who was here in 1999, had been forced to turn around only a hundred meters from the summit after spending a couple hours in a prone position to keep from being blown off the mountain.  Today, however, the wind was manageable.

We got going at 5:30 AM.  Our group consisted of eight remaining climbers and six guides.  The climb was much steeper than anything we had done in the last week.  As the sun rose behind the mountain, it cast a triangular shadow of Aconcagua which stretched out 100 kilometers onto the surrounding valleys.

We climbed in one group and reached White Rocks at 8:30 AM where we took off our headlamps and stored them in our backpacks.  We continued up, passing through my previous altitude record of 20, 320 feet and arrived at Independencia Hut at 10:15 AM.  Wally and Marcos were concerned that we were climbing too slowly and told us that if we were not on the summit by 4:30 PM, we would have to turn around and head down.  We split into two groups in an attempt to let people climb at their own pace.

After a short break at Independencia, we hiked up a steep hill, turned left and began the traverse of Cuesta del Viento, an exposed scree slope.  We took a couple more breaks during the long traverse and arrived at the base of The Canaleta (The Long Haul) at 12:30 PM.  I had fallen behind the first group when I stopped to shit at the beginning of The Cuesta del Viento.  Although I had desperately been trying to catch up, every time I caught the group during one of their breaks, they would leave as soon as I arrived.  I was getting very tired.

The Canaleta was very steep.  It probably averaged 30 degrees, but has sections which were also 50 degrees.  It is usually very difficult to climb because you are climbing on scree and for every two steps you take, you fall back one.  We were fortunate in that a week ago, a major snow storm had blanketed the mountain.  The snow was melted now, except on the trail, which had been trodden down.  Our entire route to the top was a four foot wide path of snow, perfect for crampons.

With Pablo’s encouragement and threats I struggled up the Canaleta.  I knew I was well within the turnaround time and took breaks every 25 meters.  I reached the summit at 3:00 PM, 9 ½ hours after starting.  There were about 20 people on top celebrating, including Tom, Dan, Richard & Bruce.  Dave and Norb were still on the Canaleta, but it was obvious there were going to make it.

We started down at 3:20 PM.  We passed by Dave who would plant his ice axe between his two feet, move up six inches, rest, and then plant his ice axe again and repeat.  Norb was fifty meters behind with Wally.  Paul had developed back trouble before the Canaleta and returned to base camp.  Seven of the eight climbers who had started out this morning would summit.

The descent was as difficult as the ascent.  I made it down to the base of The Canaleta and rested for a half hour.  Marcos short-roped me through Cuesta del Viento and down to Independencia Hut where I took another half hour break.  The first five of us regrouped at Independencia and then continued down with Marcos in the lead and Grant in the rear.  We finally reached Berlin Camp at 7:00 PM and I used my remaining few ounces of energy to crawl into my sleeping bag.  I heard Dave, Wally and finally Norb finally get back between 8-9:00 PM.

Monday, January 26, 2004 – Plaza de Mulas, 4300 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

We awoke this morning to commotion coming from Ken’s tent.  As he was lighting an MSR stove in his tent’s vestibule, the stove exploded spreading flame on the ground.  Someone from another camp was walking by and tried to stomp it out wearing plastic boots, which caught on fire.  No one was injured, but there was some damage to the boots and Ken’s sleeping bag.

I was anxious to get off the mountain so I packed up all my gear without waiting for a porter and headed down with Grant at 9:30 AM.  Richard and Dan had already left thirty minutes prior and the others were in various stages of packing.  We descended through Nido de Condores and Plaza Canada, 1600 meters down to Plaza de Mulas.  Part way down the mountain, I met a porter coming up and negotiated a reasonable fee for him to take my pack down the mountain.

When we got to Plaza de Mulas, Leila and Dee were waiting at a new food-service tent which served us a good lunch.  The other people arrived slowly throughout the afternoon until Norb showed up with his friend Mark Van Dyke who had not been part of our group, but had hiked with Wally before and had gone up the mountain again to help Norb descend.  Dan and I set up our tent, collected the gear we had left and started organizing for our 20 mile hike out tomorrow.

Happy hour started at 6:00 PM, followed by dinner, a delicious feast of empanadas, beef in gravy and pie which we enjoyed with our guides.  I went to bed at 8:30 PM and had my first good night’s sleep in over a week.

Tuesday, January 27, 2004 – Plaza de Mulas, 4300 meters, Cerro Aconcagua, Mendoza Province, Argentina

Wally had arranged for Norb to ride a mule out the 20 miles to the park entrance.  It sounded like an adventure so I quickly ponied up the $80 US and arranged my own mule.  Dee also decided she would ride the 20 miles instead of walking.  More than one person advised us that we would sorely regret spending 5 hours on the back of a mule.

The mules come from the park entrance every day carrying supplies to Plaza de Mulas and other places lower on the mountain.  They return the same day carrying backpacks and sometimes people out.  Norb, Dee and I were scheduled to leave on the mules around noontime, while everyone else would start walking down right after breakfast.  The riders had agreed to take down the tents to enable the others to leave earlier.

We ate breakfast at 8:00 AM and then went back to pack our gear.  The mules would pack out most of our gear, allowing people who were hiking to carry only a light daypack with water, food and small personal items.  I went back to my tent to sleep as Richard, the first in our group to leave, headed out of camp.

A short while later, Dan came to the tent to inform me that no mules would be coming today.  I quickly packed, assuming that this meant that I would be hiking out.  As I emerged from the tent, I learned that the mules were not coming today because a dam inside one of the glaciers had burst releasing a huge amount of water which had washed out a bridge sixteen miles down the valley.  Not only were the mules not coming, but no one was able to leave Plaza de Mulas because the river was uncross able.

Having anticipated our return to civilization, we were all disappointed and explored other means of getting out including helicopter rescue, crossing the river by raft or even by Tyrolian Traverse (hand-over-hand on a rope set up across the river).  In the end, we all just decided to spend another night at Plaza de Mulas and see what had developed by morning.

I walked over to the hotel with Norb & Dave to use the internet.  We returned at 1:30 PM and I ate some pizza for lunch with Bruce & Dan.  Leila treated some blisters on my feet while I discussed the possibility of a Kumbu Ice Fall trip with Wally this September.

Late in the day we got word that the river was receding and some people had managed to cross.  Wally decided that we would all hike out very early tomorrow morning.

I went to my tent and read for a few hours.  Just before dinner, after nine days of perfect weather, it started to snow.

Wednesday, January 28, 2004 – Hotel Aconcagua, Mendoza, Argentina

The snow did not last but I got very little sleep due to the noise coming from the nightclub we were tented near.  Dan’s alarm went off at 5:30 AM, but I was already up packing to leave.  We took the tent down and went to eat breakfast at 6:00 AM.  By 7:00 AM, we had organized our gear and were ready to hike out.  We hiked at our own pace and Dan & I reached Confluenza in four hours.  There was a new means of crossing the river which involved jumping from one room-size boulder to the next with the aid of a hand rope.  The old bridge did not look washed away, but there were signs indicating that no one could use it.

Dan stopped at Confluenza to have lunch with Grant and wait for the other people.  I was anxious to get off the mountain so I continued down for another two hours to the park entrance.  I had planned to hitchhike out the twenty miles to Penetentes where the mules would deliver our gear this evening.  As I passed the lower park gate, I was stopped by Park Rangers and asked for my trash receipt.  Leila had collected all of these receipts and was probably three hours behind me.  I was able to convince the ranger that Leila had the receipt and I should be allow to go free.  Then to my surprise, he told me he would phone the expedition service BAI had used on Aconcagua, Fernando Guerilas, and they would send someone to pick me up.

Within 40 minutes I was back in Penitenties and had found a place to take a shower – my first in ten days.  I washed the clothes I had been wearing and took them outside to dry.  I had a pair of long underwear and a fleece vest and was able to get into a pizza place to have some lunch in that attire.

At 4:00 PM, I purchased a dozen cold drinks and rode out to the park again to meet the other people and bring them back to Penetenties.  All but five were back so we left a pickup truck to wait for them and I headed back to town with seven others.  We sat in the restaurant drinking and eating pizza for several hours before everyone else showed up.  Then we waited a couple more hours for our gear to be delivered from the mules.

After a three hour bus ride back to Mendoza, we checked into the Hotel Aconcagua at 10:30 PM.  I went to sleep, but Tom, with whom I was sharing a room, went out to dinner with Bruce and a few others and did not return until almost 3:00 AM.

Thursday, January 29, 2004 – Hotel Aconcagua, Mendoza, Argentina

I woke up at 7:00 AM and had breakfast.  We did not have much scheduled today and I was able to get some laundry done and catch-up on my emails.  I found a great leather store near the hotel and selected a few gifts to take home.  After bring my purchases back to the hotel, several other people went over and purchased leather products also.

We had a farewell luncheon at a restaurant on the pedestrian mall.  Almost everyone ordered huge steaks which they could not finish.  Bruce not only finished his portion, but ate half of Leila’s also.

I spent some more time online in the afternoon, making plans and reservations for the next few weeks.  Dave had suggested we eat dinner at an elegant restaurant he knew named ‘1884 Restaurante – Francis Mallmann’.

At 9:00 PM, Bruce, Dan, Richard, Norb, Dave, Tom and I took two taxis to the restaurant.  The place was empty when we arrived, but most people do not go out to dinner until 11:00 PM.  We toured the wine cellar, and then were seated for a wonderful meal.  I decided I should have lamb and even ordered a glass of wine.  Dave and Bruce (who had not eaten meat for several hours) ordered an enormous rib which was over two feet long and was served in a wooden trough.  Most of the food was cooked outdoors in a clay oven or fire pit.  The meal was excellent and we did not leave until after midnight.  The entire meal was 502 pesos.

Bruce, Tom & Dan stopped for a drink on the way back to the hotel, but I was too tired to join them and returned directly and went to sleep.

Friday, January 30, 2004 – American Airlines flight to Miami

I woke up at 7:30 AM, showered and walked over to The Hyatt Hotel with Tom for breakfast.  Richard, Bruce and Norb met us there for the Hyatt’s $5 US breakfast buffet.

I said good-bye at breakfast as most people were taking a shuttle to the airport at 9:30 AM.  I walked over to pick up some pictures I’d had developed, and then spent a couple hours typing my journal.  I met Dan for lunch at the hotel and then spent an hour packing.

Dan and I are on a 7:00 PM flight to Santiago, Chile where we’ll connect with different flights back to the USA.  I’ll arrive tomorrow morning in Miami and then take another flight up to New York.

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