"I have traveled throughout the world for decades but our MountainVision trek was far and beyond all expectations. The grandeur of the mountains, the joy of community service, the excellent food, and wonderful service were all world class. Most of all, Jeff is remarkably gifted at building superb teams of adventurous people who truly enjoy each other. In sum, it was an experience of a lifetime."
Day 1 & 2
Departure from US with late morning arrival into Mendoza, Argentina. Equipment check and afternoon briefing at the hotel. For dinner we will have a chance to taste fine Argentinean cuisine and wine.
Day 3
Drive West from Mendoza to Penitentes ski area at 8,500 . Our drive winds along the Rio Mendoza deep into the heart of the rugged Andes mountains where we begin our acclimatization in Penitentes. An afternoon hike is recommended, though optional.
Days 4,5,6 Hike time: 4-5 hours each day
Elevation change: 4,000 over 3 days
Estimated distance: 35 miles
Approach to Plaza Guanacos Base Camp, mules carrying our gear. This approximately 35 mile approach is essential to our acclimatization. Our first two days we follow the same route as Polish Glacier Expeditions. The third day begins our new approach. We continue up the Vacas Valley instead of ascending the Relinchos Valley. The chances of seeing other expeditions on this new exciting route is remote. The chance of seeing numerous wildlife is much more probable. Spectacular glaciers contrasting with a desert backdrop make this approach both surreal and unforgettable. We have an excellent chance of seeing herds of guanacos.
Day 7
Camp at 13,000 ft
Plaza Guanaco Base. Rest and acclimatization day at Base Camp.
Day 8 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 2,000 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 13,000 ft
Carry a load to Camp I at approximately 15,200 . The route goes up the narrow valley between the North side of Cerro Ameghino and Cerro San Francisco. We will be navigating throughout features called nieve penitentes, unique snow and ice formations created by the direct sun. Return to Base Camp.
Day 9 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 2,000 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 15,000 ft
Leave Base Camp. Move to Camp I.
Day 10 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 2,500 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 15,000 ft
Carry a load to Camp II at 16,500 , a pleasant well-protected area with tremendous views of Cerro Mercedario, Cerro Mano and other Andean giants. Return to Camp I.
Day 11 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 1,500 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 16,500 ft
Move to Camp II.
Day 12 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 1,300 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 16,500 ft
Carry a load to Camp III, below the Polish Glacier at 17,800.
Day 13 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 1,300 ft.
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 17,800 ft
Move to Camp III. depending on how group is doing.
Day 14 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 1,400 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 17,800 ft
Carry to High Camp, Piedras Blancas (White Rocks) at 19,200.
Day 15 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 1,400 ft
Estimated distance: 1 mile
Camp at 19,200 ft
Move to High Camp.
Days 16,17,18 Hike time: 15 hours
Elevation change: 3,500 ft
Estimated distance: 1.5 miles
Camp at 19,000 ft
Summit! Weather permitting. We allow several days for our Summit Day in case of poor weather.
Day 19 Hike time: 6 hours
Elevation change: 2,000 ft
Estimated distance: 2 miles
Camp at 12,400 ft
Descend the Normal Route to Plaza de Mulas Base Camp. This will be quite exciting since we will be descending a different side of the mountain.
Day 20 Hike time: 8 hours
Elevation change: 4,000 ft
Estimated distance: 35 miles
Hike out the Horcones Valley, with its impressive views of Aconcagua's South Face. Spend the night in Penitentes.
Day 21
Drive to Mendoza. Enjoy delicious celebratory meal!
Day 22
Fly home.
*This itinerary is subject to change due to inclement weather, unsafe route conditions, and other reasons beyond our control. You may get home earlier...perhaps later. Create a flexible return schedule to accommodate this.
And now in paragraph form:
Our expedition begins and ends in the City of Mendoza, Argentina. The city of Mendoza is a charming town with pleasant wide avenues, boulevards and parks. Our first step will be to check your gear in your hotel room, ideally, after you have rested from crossing the globe. Gear check is a critical step. It is important to pare down to the essential items you will need to climb to the Top of the Americas. Often at gear check we discover someone has brought gear that is not warm enough. More than one experienced Alaskan has forgotten the essential expedition parka! It is difficult to procure gear in South America, though times are changing. Do not count on being able to find what you need once you get down to South America. Mendoza is your best bet to buy or rent gear, although it is not always easy to find at the last minute. Make sure you leave home with everything on your equipment list. If you are having serious difficulty finding a particular item please let us know before you leave for South America! We have a limited amount of rental equipment.
A group meeting will follow gear check. We will introduce your guides and team members and talk about several aspects of your expedition. We will discuss the philosophy and style of the expedition, the effects of Diamox and prescription medications at altitude, sanitation, water treatment, teamwork, and the art of climbing big mountains. Dinner will take place immediately after the meeting at a fine Mendoza restaurant reached via a pleasant walk from the hotel. We will have a chance to taste gourmet Argentinean cuisine, fresh beef, delicious wines (there are plenty of alternatives for non-drinkers and vegetarians in the group as well). Be prepared for a late dinner since dinnertime in Argentina begins at 9:00 PM!
First thing the next morning our van will take us to Penitentes, a ski area on the Argentinean side of the dramatic Andes Mountain Range, a 3 to 4 hour ride from Mendoza, ascending over 10,000 feet through rugged mountain scenery.
The drive to Penitentes is spectacular. Approximately 100 miles after leaving Mendoza driving west through the expansive Central Valley, we reach Uspallata, a small agricultural town where we stop for lunchand then continue heading west towards the Cordillera de Los Andes (the Andes Mountain Range). We follow the Mendoza Valley gaining altitude as we drive deep into the jagged Andes. Imposing peaks and profound valleys line our route until we reach Penitentes. Once in Penitentes we do our last minute packing to arrange mule loads and then have a free afternoon to enjoy a hike or just relax. Penitentes is the beginning of our acclimatization process, and although we are at only 8500’ the time spent here is essential to our slow building process of reaching 22,834’! Our body is a high performance machine and it starts compensating right away to the lower oxygen environment, even in Penitentes, producing more red blood cells which is exactly what we want it to do!
The next three days will be spent on our approach to Base Camp at 13,000’. Mules and their muleteers will carry all of our gear to Base Camp except for our day packs which we carry daily with food, water and a change of warm clothes. We have access to our mules and gear every night on the approach. This makes our hike in very enjoyable. Our approach will involve 35 miles of spectacular colorful high desert scenery. Normally it gets very hot and dry during the day. Occasionally a thunder shower will pass by and have us quickly changing from shorts to our warm clothes. After a 4-5 hour hike the first day, we will camp at Pampa de Lenas at 8,910’ (meaning grassy area with firewood), unload the mules, set up camp, drink matte (a caffeinated tea served in a gourd and drunk with a metal straw) with the local gauchos, and get our permits checked at the rustic ranger station. Early morning we start the day with a glacial river crossing of the Vacas River then slowly gain altitude up the Vacas Valley heading north. The Valley opens up revealing a geography of high mountains, possible sightings of guanacos (cousin of the llama) and condors, and incredible geological features - a perfect setting for a western movie. At the end of our hike for the day, after a 5-6 hour walk, we reach Casa de Piedra at 10,230’ (meaning Stone House) and get our first view of the mountain since we began our approach. From this camp, Aconcagua - the Stone Sentinel, appears more magnificent and intimidating than ever, a giant of Himalayan proportions. We can see the entire East face with the majestic steep Polish Glacier. This is one of the nicest camps of the expedition with a breathtaking first view of Aconcagua and the excitement of getting closer to this colossal peak, mounting, which often makes Casa de Piedra a memorable place throughout the expedition. In the morning we get our daily dose of glacial cold water by crossing the Vacas River again, this time being a mere knee deep walk in cold water since we are much closer to its source here. We continue up the Vacas Valley (instead of ascending the Relinchos Valley). The chance of seeing other expeditions on this new exciting route is remote. The chance of seeing numerous wildlife is much more probable. Spectacular glaciers contrasting with a desert backdrop make this approach both surreal and unforgettable.
We have an excellent chance of seeing herds of guanacos. These magnificent mammals are well camouflaged, extremely elusive and a rare sight in the Aconcagua region. Here is the place to have your camera ready for some amazing photos as we wind up the valley, getting closer and closer to the mountain. This day is important to our acclimatization. By the end of our day’s hike, after 6-7 hours of walking most of us will feel the altitude as we arrive at Plaza Guanaco, our 13,000’ Base Camp.
We will spend a minimum of 3 nights in Base Camp. We want everyone to have the best possible chance to acclimatize and make the Summit. The most effective way to do this is to take the time to acclimatize to the low oxygen environment. Occasionally a person does not acclimatize properly and is susceptible to pulmonary and/or cerebral edema. These are serious conditions that require immediate descent. All precautions will be taken to ensure your safety. We will incorporate rest days into our schedule and climb in traditional expedition style. We will be carrying loads up to the next camp and returning to sleep below at the previous camp. Carry high and sleep low. The next day we will move to the higher camp.
The first day in Base Camp is always a rest day and a good occasion to take a bath and go for a short walk. We will divide expedition loads to carry to the next camp; community gear, fuel, food and individual lunches. Often our loads aren’t heavier than 50 lbs. Although this may not seem very heavy to you, with the combination of high altitude it can be a considerable challenge to anyone. Make sure your pack is at least 6000 cubic inches capacity since some days you will need this much space for the high traverse (to the normal route) for our Traverse expeditions. Often for the descent the packs are huge since we carry everything at once. At this point in the trip our food and fuel supply is low. Everything else that we have been double carrying or cache-ing, including our garbage, has to go down in one carry.
After our rest in Base Camp we will do a carry to Camp I, at approximately 15,200’. This is a challenging day where we gain 2,200’ with a heavy load, up some easy but sometimes tricky, loose terrain. We will emphasize breathing in rhythm with our pace using power breathing, rest step, and other techniques that will help save energy at these elevations. We will incorporate a rest about every hour, and a breather (a short standing break) every 20 minutes or so. As we go higher, this simple breather will became our best friend. Breathers will also be taken more often as we get higher, especially on Summit Day. Breathers are an essential part of high altitude climbing allowing you to keep going for long periods of time.
At Camp I we will cache our loads and descend down to Base Camp with empty packs to spend the night. The following morning could be a possible rest day, or a definite move to Camp I; this will depend on how the group did the previous day, how the group is doing now, and on the weather. On most expeditions we do stay an extra day in Base Camp. This has proven to be a great idea. Base Camp is one of the last comfortable places we will be for a while. If you don’t take the opportunity to get acclimatized at Base Camp, you may end up taking another rest day (or days) in a more uncomfortable camp somewhere high up on the mountain and jeopardize your chance to summit. More than a needed rest, this time in Base Camp is an essential acclimatization period before tackling the peak!
The move to Camp I is always exciting. Leaving behind the comfort of Base Camp, we begin our climb of the highest peak in the Western Hemisphere. At Camp I, teamwork is key, building rock walls to protect our tents from the wind, making level platforms to place our tents on, fetching snow or water for cooking, organizing our gear, etc. It is endless work camp-crafting at high altitude.
Our next step is to establish our Camp II, at 16,500’ approx, with first a carry, then a move. We will have fantastic views of the Andes from this camp. The route is straight forward non-technical hiking to reach this camp, our main challenge is altitude. The load seems to get heavier and heavier at these elevations. If needed, we can take rest days or weather days. We have planned for this in our schedule, and extra food and fuel will be carried for this purpose. The next step will follow a carry to Camp III, at about 17,800’, and then a move to Camp III hopefully the next day. Camp III, at 17,800’ (5,400 mts), is fantastic with overwhelming views. Here you get the feel that you are up high in altitude!
Our High Camp, Piedras Blancas (White Rocks) at 19,200’, follows the same procedure of carry to High Camp, return to sleep below at Camp III, then move to High Camp. There will be more scree, patches of snow, and thinner air in our daily menu with incredible vistas of the Central Andes. We will be surrounded by 20,000’ foot giants. At 19,200’ building camp is laborious and takes a group effort. From here on, we will be taking the Traverse:
TRAVERSE:Climbing Aconcagua via a non-technical route and descending the shorter Normal Route gives you the entire spectrum of the mountain, traveling three different valleys, the Vacas, Guanacos and Horcones, passing four distinct faces of this tremendous mountain. On all of these expeditions mules take our gear to Base Camp (Plaza Guanacos) on the east side of the mountain. After the Summit, we descend the north side via the Normal Route to Plaza de Mulas Base Camp. Mules then carry our gear from Plaza de Mulas back to Penitentes while we hike out to civilization with a light pack. All of our routes ascend Aconcagua via the pristine Guanacos Valley, except for our Normal Route with porter expedition. All Routes descend via the Normal Route.
SUMMIT DAY: Summit day on Aconcagua is a tremendous challenge no matter which route you are on. Reaching Aconcagua’s 22,834’ summit, especially the final 3,600’ to the summit, for many of you, will be one of the toughest physical and mental challenges you will ever encounter. It is the most demanding and serious day of the expedition. It is here where taking the time to properly acclimatize, by ferrying loads and taking extra days in Base Camp, will pay off. It is here where you will be glad you carefully followed the equipment list. It is here where you will feel that you are getting your money’s worth by having expert High Altitude Guides guiding and pacing you closely, and constantly assessing how your body is coping with the altitude. A good window of weather is needed for Summit Day. We have several days for the summit set aside on our itinerary. A calm, windless day is optimal.
ON THE GUANACOS VALLEY ROUTE: After an early start it is not unusual to spend 12 hrs climbing up to the summit, leaving camp with headlamps, from Piedras Blancas at 19,200'’. An hour later we connect with the Normal Route trail, often a cold morning with a light breeze, where -20 F is not unusual for Summit Day, before the sun comes up. Gentle slopes will take us to Independencia, an old abandoned wooden hut at 20,790’. Normally the sun shines here for the first time that day. It is pleasant but still very cold. The next section is called “El Paso del Viento” (meaning the Pass of the Wind), where often there is a strong breeze even on calm days. This pass is entirely in shadow this time of the day and it is critical to move with efficiency through this section, to avoid frostbite, and worse case scenario, to abort our summit attempt due to severe cold or weather.
The next section is called the “Canaleta”, at 21,450’. This can be the crux of the entire climb, depending on conditions. Sometimes it can be covered with hard packed snow. Snow in the Canaleta is ideal. Or sometimes the slope is dry with loose boulders and scree. Pacing yourself becomes difficult, due to altitude and the loose scree and boulders underfoot, making upward progress frustrating and challenging. We often rope people up through some sections where a potential long slip could occur. Note: remember that you DO NOT need a harness for this route. Your guide(s) will carry a rope and webbing to quickly rig a harnesses if needed. After the Canaleta we reach the Summit Ridge, just 300’ from the Summit. This last section takes normally up to 1 hour. From the Summit Ridge you can look down the spectacular South Face of Aconcagua, a gigantic 10,000’ face of rock, snow, and ice. The South Face is one of the hardest and most renowned routes in the Andes, a serious undertaking for even the expert climber.
After summiting we return to High Camp and get a well deserved rest The next day we descend the Normal Route to Plaza de Mulas Base Camp. Here we will spend the night and arrange our gear for the mules to carry out. The next day is a one day walk out to the trailhead where transport will meet us and take us back to Penitentes. After a night in Penitentes we will return to Mendoza where a fun celebration dinner awaits us!!
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MountainVision Expeditions
1024 55th St.
Boulder, CO 80303
Day 1 & 2 
