Entries from Aconcagua
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 16,200'
We got our first taste of weather today on the Stone Sentinel. It was pretty nice in the morning, with just a bit more breeze than we’ve been used to. We planned to be done with our carry and back at Camp 1 by the early afternoon to beat some forecasted weather. That forecast started to materialize as we climbed to 18,000 feet. We got slapped in the face a bit by the wind, and we were hit with some precipitation, but nothing we couldn’t suit up for and endure. We didn’t spend much time at Camp 2 today since there wasn’t much to see, and the weather wasn’t overly conducive to sunbathing.
Once again, everyone moved really well, up and down, and we were back at camp hiding from the wind by 1:30. The forecast called for snow this afternoon into tomorrow morning. I’ve never actually seen snow fall from the sky and stick to the ground in any appreciable amount here. It’s normally so dry and windy that all the snow just blows somewhere else. But, uh, it is sticking today. It is also blowing into every crevice of our tents, backpacks, and boots. Our trusty crocs are no longer appropriate footwear for lounging around camp. Thankfully we have a rest day tomorrow, so we should have plenty of time to de-snow everything. We’re all hunkered down and cozy for the night here at 16,200 feet. We’ll check in tomorrow, hopefully the sun will be out.
RMI Guides JM, Hannah & Avery
On The Map
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 16,200'
We had perfect weather for our move today. From the time we got out of our tents, to the time we arrived at 16,200 feet we had blue skies, warm temperatures, and just enough of a breeze to keep us from getting sweaty. Everyone did extremely well, and we were relaxing in our tents by 1:30 pm. I took a nap, so I assume everyone else did as well. The only hiccup of the day occurred later in the afternoon when we realized that two of our tents were in a bit of a damp neighborhood. We took twenty minutes to move them, and any wetness that might have occurred was avoided.
The sun goes behind a ridge pretty early here, and once that happens it gets pretty cold. We hung out in the shade for as long as we dared, which wasn’t very long, and have all retreated to our sleeping bags at this point. If everyone still feels good tomorrow morning, we’ll carry to Camp Two.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith and Avery Parrinello
On The Map
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Not much to report from Aconcagua Base Camp today. We had a late breakfast, played some cards, and ate some pizza. It was another beautiful day living in our little tent city, with nary a cloud in sight. The occasional 30 mph gust would have us glancing towards our tents, making sure they were solidly anchored. Tomorrow we will leave the comforts of Base Camp behind, and start the climb in earnest. Everyone is excited to get moving. We’ll check in from Camp 1!
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith and Avery Parrinello
On The Map
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 13,800'
The team was up before the sun hit camp for breakfast this morning. We filled our bellies with pancakes and eggs, and hoped that our bodies would turn those tasty morsels into uphill momentum. It seems like it worked, because everyone did an excellent job on today’s carry.
The carry to Camp One ends up being one of the longest days of the climb, second only to summit day. It is also our first day climbing above basecamp, and our first day with heavy packs. It is our first opportunity to really test ourselves on the mountain. Everyone passed the test with flying colors. We climbed to Camp One at 16,200 ft (that’s 2,400ft above basecamp), cached a bunch of food and gear, and hung out for about 45 minutes. There was not a cloud in the sky. The wind was blowing, but not maliciously. A calm day by Aconcagua standards.
What goes up must come down, and eventually we drew ourselves from our sunny perch to descend back to basecamp. The team did well on the ascent, but I am actually more impressed, and more excited, about how well they descended the mountain today. We moved back to basecamp in under two hours, everyone was under control, and everyone had energy left in the tank. People were even laughing, which doesn’t often happen during a descent of any portion of this mountain.
Tomorrow we’ve got a rest day. We’re going to eat a lot of food (gotta lock in those gains), probably nap a lot, and maybe eat some more food. Hasta mañana.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, and Avery Parrinello
On The Map
It’s a long time to be in the the cold and wind. Keep focused, summit bid coming soon!
Posted by: Brent Wolfe on 1/6/2019 at 9:15 am
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 13,800'
We had breakfast at nine today, our latest of the trip. A casual start to a casual day here at 13,800 feet. Pancakes, eggs, and sausage were on the menu, and we ate until they stopped bringing food. After breakfast, we only had two more items on the agenda. The first of those items was organizing for our carry tomorrow. It didn’t take too long to divvy up group gear. Everyone will carry some amount of group food, fuel, or kitchen equipment tomorrow. This crew was surprisingly eager to grab their respective loads and get packed up, so we were done with task number two by early afternoon.
Task number three, dinner, wouldn’t be until 7, so we all had some time to kill. Lucky for us, basecamp is full of spectacles. Today’s spectacle was provided by an unfortunate member of another team. This particular person was using the bathroom, a common enough event here at basecamp. The uncommon part was that he dropped his phone into the pit toilet. The even more uncommon part was that he recovered it. Using a variety of garden tools and good old fashioned ingenuity, he was able to lift his device from the deepest, darkest depths that exist within walking distance of basecamp. In doing so, he provided entertainment for everyone nearby, and before we knew it, dinner was upon us.
Steak, potatoes, and some wine for good luck capped off the evening. With our final task of the day completed, we are now headed to bed. We’ll get up earlier tomorrow. We’ve got some actual work to do now.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 13,800'
We got an early start this morning from Casa de Piedras. A quick breakfast of oatmeal, some sorting of gear, and we were moving by seven. It was another cloudless morning for us, and it was fairly chilly in the shade of morning. The first thing we had to do was cross the Vacas River. Usually we ride mules across to avoid the frigid waters in the early morning, but today things were moving a little slow, maybe a side effect of New Years celebration. Eventually everyone decided it wasn’t worth waiting, and we forged the mighty river on foot. This particular section was actually very manageable this year. A few of us took off our pants in anticipation of thigh deep water, but it turns out there was no need. It was about a foot and a half deep, and ten feet wide with a few braids. The most notable feature was the cold. There was ice on the edges of the channel, and the water caused painful numbing almost instantly. We took a moment on the other side to re-warm, laugh at ourselves, and put shoes back on, and we were off.
The rest of the day followed the same rhythm that we’ve grown accustomed to. Walk, drink, eat. We pulled into basecamp in the early afternoon, enjoyed some new luxuries, and set up our homes for the next few days. Tomorrow is our first rest day. We will spend it relaxing, rehydrating, and doing some planning for the days to come.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smmith, Avery Parrinello
On The Map
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 10,550'
We’re starting to get into a rhythm here in Argentina. Break down camp, eat breakfast, walk, repeat. The team was very efficient this morning, allowing us to be the first ones out of Pampa de Leñas, and the first ones to Casa de Piedra. It’s not a race, but leaving early means we get to walk in the shade for about an hour and a half. Shade is a very scarce resource in these parts, and we’ll take all we can get. Arriving first to Piedra also means that we get our pick of the limited number of tent sites.
The mules arrived about five minutes after we did. We set up our tents, and were hiding from the sun by 2 pm. Siestas were had and snacks were eaten. A few folks braved the frigid waters of the Vacas river to combat the heat. We really had nothing on the agenda until dinner time. This particular chicken dinner has been called “the best chicken you’ll ever eat” by fellow RMI guide Mike King, and that man knows his chicken.
Seeing as it is New Year’s Eve, we enjoyed a little champagne and jovial celebration. Seeing as it was highly improbable that any of us made it to midnight, we decided that the new year started once the sun went behind the ridge above camp. So at about 9 pm we let out a hoot ‘n a holler as the sun disappeared, and called it a night. Everyone sends their best to everyone at home. Tomorrow we go to Aconcagua Base Camp.
Happy new year!
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, and Avery Parrinello
On The Map
happy new year
Posted by: alice ridlen on 1/1/2019 at 4:06 pm
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 9,000'
Well, the summit is still very far away, but we are headed in the right direction. We left Penitentes this morning at 10:30 am with perfect weather. Temperatures were warm but not scorching, and there was a nice breeze to keep things bearable. Everyone was excited to get some blood flowing after long travel days, and we made it to our camp at Pampa de Leñas in about four and a half hours. It always takes me a few days to adjust to the desert climate, but everyone else seems to be fitting right in. No sunburns, no blisters, just efficient movement through a giant valley.
The only snafu of the day occurred when a localized dirt tornado blew through camp and sucked one of our sleeping pads into the stratosphere. If it entered restricted airspace no one noticed, or no one cared. Against all odds, it fluttered back down to camp. A casual stroll and a quick inspection revealed that it was no worse for the wear.
We’re about to sit down for one of the best meals of the trip. A traditional Argentinian asado, with meats of all kinds cooked over an open flame. Then we’ll go to sleep under the stars, and continue the journey tomorrow.
RMI Guides JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, and Avery Parrinello
On The Map
Happy New Year team! Hope you have a fantastic trip up the mountain! Someone give Hannah a hug from her momma!
Posted by: Shannon Smith on 12/31/2018 at 10:03 am
Posted by: JM Gorum, Hannah Smith, Avery Parrinello
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 9,000'
Hello from Penitentes! Today we ate a nice breakfast at the hotel, and got an early morning start obtaining our climbing permits. It’s possible that one member of the team had to run around town and secure some important pieces of gear, but that’s par for the course. We ended up leaving Mendoza a little later than we had hoped due to some permit delays, but the team did an awesome job hustling once we got to Penitentes. We re-organized all of our gear so that the mules could better haul it, packed a lot of food and kitchen gear, and headed to dinner. Everyone is excited to start walking tomorrow. Once we hit the trail, things get much simpler. Whatever we have is what we have, and we just need to get from point A to point B. The team has done a great job leaping the logistical hurdles that mark the beginning of any long trip. Tomorrow we’ll check in from Pampa de Leñas.
RMI Guides JM, Hannah, and Avery
Happy New Year to the Gorum team!
Clay, we are receiving your Garmin notifications and we are monitoring your progress.
Aloha from Maui,
Love Dad
Posted by: Brent Wolfe on 1/1/2019 at 1:12 pm
wishing you all great success.
Posted by: Bill Bussey on 12/31/2018 at 8:13 am
Posted by: Mike King, Nick Scott, Gloria Roe
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Aconcagua
Elevation: 13,800'
Yesterday we spent the day at Plaza Argentina sorting gear for the mules and enjoying a quiet base camp before the post holiday rush. Today we woke to high winds at base camp and said our goodbyes to the Grajales staff and set out for the 15-mile walk to Pampa Las Lenas. As we retraced our steps from two weeks ago, we had a chance to consider what we had accomplished on this trip and add some closure to what could have been. We concluded the day with a traditional Argentine asado for dinner and plenty of laughs from the difference that two weeks had made on us physically and mentally as we ate alongside groups of fresh climbers just starting their trip. Tomorrow is a short three-hour walk to the park entrance and from there we’ll be in Mendoza to conclude our expedition. Thanks for following along.
RMI Guide Mike King
Gloria, you are AWESOME!!! We are ALWAYS so proud of you (and team) whether you make it to the top or not. We can’t wait to see more pictures. Dana says it’s exciting to live his climbing dreams vicariously through you. :-) BIG HUGS!!!!!!
Posted by: Susan and Dana on 12/30/2018 at 5:18 pm
Congratulations Clayton and Team!!! Seems it’s been quite a journey - looking forward to hearing all about it! So happy for you guys that you found the right conditions and window to summit Aconcagua - amazing!!!! Enjoy the final days of the journey!!!
Posted by: Whitney on 1/14/2019 at 3:43 pm
Happy climbing! We can’t wait to hear how it goes from base camp to camp 1. Stay safe, everyone! Hello to Andrew and Nik!
Posted by: Lynn L. Martin on 1/5/2019 at 6:01 am
View All Comments