Aconcagua: Cifelli & Team Move to Camp 1
Posted by: Dominic Cifelli, Ben Luedtke
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
This morning we awoke up to a beautiful, crisp bluebird morning. A stark contrast to yesterday afternoons snowstorm. We broke camp while the moon set behind the mountains, packed our gear, enjoyed one last base camp meal in our heated dome. Over breakfast we shared a some good laughs about our epic Farkle battles, shared irritations, and how wonderful it must be to fly fish in Patagonia.
We bid farewell to the base camp crew with lots of hugs and encouragement. It’s impossible to overstate how incredible the Grajales team is. Their warmth, attention to detail, and love of this mountain are contagious. In addition to saying goodbye to the people who have supported us for the past few days, we said goodbye to WiFi, electricity, and our heated dome. All small sacrifices for the adventure that lay ahead. The team’s energy is high and everyone is excited for our move to Camp 1.
We started up the mountain, through a glacial gully which lead to a field of glacial debris that I can only imagine is what the moon looks like. We quickly smoked our besties on the way up, which admittedly felt satisfying. We day dreamed of polar plunging in the glacial lakes as we passed by and felt like we were on another planet when we navigated the human sized penetentes. The final push was steep, loose and challenging. Nothing this group couldn’t handle though!
We reached camp just before 1pm and were treated to our tents already put together. I want to give a HUGE shoutout to the porters who ferry our gear up the mountain and help make this experience possible for us. After getting organized and completing our camp set up we relaxed and soaked up some of the beautiful mountain sun.
As the afternoon waned, the temperature cooled and retreated to our tents. Only the promise of Ben’s handmade stew could draw us out. The only thing better than the stew was the conversation on proper blue bag techniques.
Walking through this remote region of our beautiful planet today was nothing short of awe inspiring. I’ve always felt awe is a word that is commonly overused for moments that are often under deserving.
True awe arises as you stand amidst these towering peaks, feeling both insignificant and deeply connected to the vastness of this place. It is in the shared silence, the towering cliffs, the shimmering snow and glaciers, the penitentes, and the endless expanse of sky that you realize the sheer majesty of these mountains. The camaraderie of this team amplifies this feeling, as each step toward the summit becomes a collective triumph, driven by trust, an appreciation of group suffering, a bit of good natured ribbing, and mutual encouragement. Awe is not just about the mountain’s scale but also about the resilience of the human spirit, the raw beauty of this place, and the profound sense of gratitude for being part of something so much larger than ourselves.
RMI Climber Erica Kim
