Aconcagua
fromSoar with the condors to the highest peak in South America and experience the true test of the Andes and stunning South American towns of Mendoza, Argentina, and Santiago in Chile.
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Vacation Style Holiday Type
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Hiking
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Mountain
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Activity Level Challenging
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Group Size Medium Group
Aconcagua, “The Sentinel of Stone” is the highest peak outside of the Himalayas. Located in Western Argentina – the heart of the Central Andes, it is South America’s highest peak and one of the much sought after Seven Summits. While it is a very physical climb, it is one of the more achievable Seven Summits. An ascent of this eminent Andean Peak is a perfect choice for those wishing to experience high-altitude expedition mountaineering and is often undertaken as a preparation climb for the big mountains in the Himalaya.
As the highest peak in South America – and the highest mountain on the planet outside of Asia – Aconcagua represents a significant conquest for any mountaineer. Surrounded by dramatic glaciers, including the 10km long Ventisquero Horcones Inferior, this magnificent 6,961m high peak is not without its challenges but is not considered hugely difficult from a technical point of view.
A true test, it straddles the Andes and is roughly equal distance between the stunning South American towns of Mendoza, Argentina and Santiago in Chile. A rugged challenge, the mountain sits in a predominately arid, hot climate which makes for stable summer climbing but still offers some snow and cramponing high on the peak.
Expedition Highlights:
- Enjoy the warmth and hospitality of European-esque Mendoza and it’’s vibrant people.
- The scenic 360° route traverses the mountain
- Ideal preparation for Himalayan high-altitude climbing
- Watch the shadow of Aconcagua grow larger, cast by the rising sun over the Andean range, on summit morning.
- Look down from the summit ridge on the mighty South Face, climbed by Reinhold Messner, as well as by other infamous climbers.
- All meals during trek. (breakfast, lunch and dinner)
- Accommodation during trek at local lodge.
- Domestic airfares and transportation from Kathmandu to trek starting point.
- English speaking government-licensed Sherpa trekking guide & assistant guide (4 trekkers=1 assistant guide)
- Porter Service (2 Trekker =1 porter)
- Staff cost including their (Salary, domestic airfare, equipments, food and accommodation)
- Trekkers’ Information Management System fees
- 3 nights accommodation at 3. 4 or 5 star hotel in Kathmandu on twin sharing with breakfast.
- All guided sightseeing tour in Kathmandu and entry fees.
- Airport transfers and escort.
- Insurance for all staffs
- All ground transportation on comfortable private vehicle
- All government and local taxes
- International airfares
- International Airport Departure Tax
- Trekking Equipment
- Major meals, Lunch and dinner during your stay in Kathmandu
- Any type of personal expenses, such as alcoholic beverages and drinks, phone and laundry.
- Airport departure tax to be paid in rupees on your departure 1760 rupees
- Entry visa fee
- Rescue & travel insurance, trip cancellation costs, accident or health emergency, evacuation, loss, theft or damage to baggage and personal effects.
- We strongly advise you to take out personal travel insurance.
- Tips & Gratuities to porters and guides
- Day 1 Depart Country of origin
- Day 2 Arrive into Mendoza this morning or the day prior
- Day 3 Complete permitting process and drive to Penitentes (2,720m/8,920ft)
- Day 4 Trek to Pampa de Leñas (2,950m/9,680ft)
- Day 5 Trek to Casa de Piedra (3,250m/10,650ft)
- Day 6 Trek to Plaza Argentina Base Camp (4,200m/13,800ft)
- Day 7 Rest day / Trek to Cerro Colorado (4,724m/15,499ft)
- Day 8 Carry to Camp 1 (4,950m/16,250ft)
- Day 9 Rest day
- Day 10 Climb to Camp 1
- Day 11 Carry to Camp 2 (5,500m/18,000ft)
- Day 12 Climb to Camp 2
- Day 13 Carry to Camp 3 'Colera Camp' (6,000m/19,700ft)
- Day 14 Climb to Camp 3 'Colera Camp'
- Day 15 Summit day (6,962m/22,841ft)
- Day 16 Contingency day
- Day 17 Contingency day
- Day 18 Descend to Plaza de Mulas Base Camp (4,300m/14,100ft)
- Day 19 Trek to Puenta del Inca (2,740m/8,990ft) and overnight in Penitentes
- Day 20 Drive to Mendoza
- Day 21 Depart for home
Having the right equipment on your adventure trips will make almost as much difference to your success, safety, comfort, and enjoyment as any physical training you do. It is essential that you take the time to acquire the correct gear; don’t wait for the last minute to find out your local shop doesn’t have your size. This equipment is expensive, but you can often find great sales online and at your local gear store. The purpose of this gear list is to help guide your purchases.
This list is a guide. While you are required to bring everything on this list, there are numerous options, brands, and versions of each piece of equipment, unless otherwise noted. Using our current suggested brand list we encourage you to shop around, do research, use your experience and the listed features to find the best gear for you.
During your time in the mountains, you will encounter a very wide range of temperatures and weather conditions. At one end of this range is the pleasantly warm and beautiful low land, while at the other end of the spectrum is found the cold and often windy weather of the highest peaks in the world. The equipment you bring must function well in a wide variety of conditions. Your clothing should be warm, lightweight, dry quickly, and allow good freedom of movement. The layering principle, based on several thin layers of insulation (rather than one thick one), covered with an outer weatherproof shell, meets these needs well.
A Note on Packing
For your international flights, we recommend that you pack all your equipment in your two duffle bags. Do not simply pack your backpack (since the straps can be damaged by the baggage handling machines). It is important to lock these bags for their trip. Depending on the airport, you may be able to put your travel locks on after TSA has searched the bags. If not, Lock the bags with Zip Ties. If the TSA cuts off the zip-tie to search your bag, they will replace it. You will still need the travel locks to lock your bags in the hotel and during the expedition. Generally, you will take one duffel up to Base Camp/on a trek , and leave one in the hotel in city hotel with your belongings for your time in the city. Your trek in duffel will only be accessible in the evenings (with items such as changes of clothing, sleeping bag), and your day pack will hold vitals such as water, layering, blister kit, and camera.
Important Notes:
- Don’t cut corners on the quality of gears
- Understand the function of each gear properly
- Acquire your gears well in advance
- Eliminate unnecessary luxuries
- Seasonal fluctuation will impact the requirement of gear
Tips:
- You can always rent gears if you are not willing to invest
- Check the sizes especially of boots before leaving for the mountain
- Wear summit socks while trying the boots
- Water treatment (Steripen, Iodine tabs, Chlorine tabs, or water filtration system)
- Ear plugs
- Camera or phone camera
- Small Aloe Vera for sun burn
- Hand Cream (optional)
- Power battery/recharger/solar charger with cords (optional)
- Soap and shampoo for base camp shower (optional)
- Towel for base camp shower (optional, there are showers available for $20)
- 1 ski/winter hat
- 1 ball cap for sun protection
- 1 balaclava/face mask (must cover your whole face (all exposed skin) with goggles
- 1- 2 buffs
- 1 pair liner gloves
- 1 pair heavy ski gloves (like OR alti glove)
- 1 pair heavy mitts (like OR altimitt)
- 1 pair dark goggles (like Smith turbofan)
- 1 sleeping bag, rated to -20F (like Marmot Col)
- 1 thermarest
- 1 ridge rest
- hiking shoes or light hiking boots for the approach (these will come up the mountain with us as a camp booty and for the trek out from base camp on the other side of the mountain the final day, so keep them light)
- 1 thin long john pants, and 1 pair of medium weight long john pants
- 1 pair of light trekking pants
- 1 pair medium weight climbing pants
- 1 goretex water proof pants, must be full zip
- 1 goretex waterproof jacket
- 1 pair insulated pants, must be full zip (like Mountain Hardware Compressor Pant)
- 1 pair trekking shorts
- in town clothes (some restaurants are nice so a collared shirt/dress is not a bad idea)
- 2 pairs trekking socks
- 3 pairs climbing socks (1 thin, 2 thick (1 for sleeping))
- 2 pair climbing underwear
- swimsuit for pool at hotel (optional)
- 1 pair steel crampons
- Double climbing boots (like La Sportiva Baruntse or Scarpa Inverno)
- Heavy gaiters (like OR Crocodiles)
- 2 long john tops (1 light, 1 medium)
- Synthetic Sun hoodie or trekking shirt, long sleeve (like Patagonia sun hoody)
- Upper body Pile Layer, like Patagonia R1 or similar hoodie
- Synthetic Puffball jacket, synthetic or down, mid weight with front zip and hood or similar (like Patagonia Puffball)
- Heavy weight down parka with hood (like Mountain Hardware subzero or similar)
- Lip balm
- Sunscreen (like All Good 35spf with high Zinc Oxide content)
- Book (optional)
- Alarm (on watch or other)
- Headphones (optional)
- Baby wipes, for staying clean
- Meds: (bandages, triple antibiotic ointment, tums, antacid, immodium, ciproflacin, azithromycin, ibuprofen, aspirin, blister kit, bandaids, etc) keep it fairly small and light to reduce weight
- Prescription Meds, in consultation with your doctor: (Acetazolamide 125mg x 14 tablets, Dexamethasone 4mg x 4 tablets, Nifedipine 30 mg slow-release x 2 tablets)
- Toilet paper (2 rolls)
- Pee bottle (1 liter)
- Pee funnel (women)
- 5 large heavy duty trash bags (for waterproofing duffels, backpack, and caching gear)
- 2 X 1 liter Nalgene-type water bottles with full covers (Camelback-type hydration systems are fin until base camp but are unacceptable above there. They freeze, pop and break so are unreliable.)
- Large internal frame pack, must be 100+ liter (like Mountain Hardware BMG)
- day pack for trek in to base camp (also doubles as a carry on, 45L)
- 2 – 3 large duffels, water proof PVC rugged construction (like North Face XXL) (One will stay at Penitentes with your street clothes and other items not needed for the climb and the second will come with us on the trek to base camp. If you can’t fit all of your gear for the trek and climb in one duffel bag then there will be some extra room in group duffels or bring an extra duffel that you can share with others)
- Travel wallet
- Passport
- Cash
- Light harness (like Black Diamond)
- Helmet
- 1 locking carabiner
- 1 non-locking carabiner
- Tooth paste and toothbrush
- 1 light headlamp with extra batteries
- 2 pairs glacier glasses (one spare)
- Belt for climbing pants
- Collapsable ski poles
- 1 long alpine length ice axe
- 3 stuff sacks
- 1 compression sack
- Neoprene surf booties for river crossings, or something similar
- Print out of team emails and bring with you
- Hand sanitizer (small container)
- Marker
- Pen
- 3lbs personal snack food (real food and stuff that you know you will want to eat at altitude when you don’t feel like eating: nuts, jerky, granola bars, dried fruit, candy, etc.)
- Cup
- Bowl
- Spoon
This detailed gear list is provided for your reference. Each item has been selected over many expeditions to Aconcagua. Please follow these guidelines carefully. Every item on the list is mandatory, and if you arrive in Mendoza missing some of them, you will be required to track them down in town prior to the climb at your own expense which can be difficult and costly. Please make sure you are fully prepared so that your trip and the trips of your teammates goes smoothly.
Best time to climb Aconcagua is from November to March. Anyway, in Aconcagua weather changes are so unpredictable that sometimes it is impossible to reach the summit for lack of experience in making a personal forecast. Aconcagua weather is always related to the weather in Chile (See weather considerations).
There is no technical climbing on the “Normal Route” up Aconcagua. You need experience walking in crampons and with the use of an ice axe but nothing more. However, the sheer height of Aconcagua, along with extremely cold temperatures on the mountain, make it a challenging ascent, even for accomplished mountaineers.
This climb is suited for beginning climbers who are in excellent physical condition with basic mountaineering experience. Although the higher altitude, length of climb and more extreme temperatures make this climb more challenging than Mount Kilimanjaro, the actual terrain on the Normal Route is similar, but it may require the use of an ice axe and crampons. It is also different from Kilimanjaro in that this is a small team, self-supporting mountaineering expedition. It is required that you are familiar with the proper use of these tools prior to your trip to Aconcagua.