Our Argentina Adventures

Part 1

Part 1 of our story recounts our initial foray into the central Andes mountains, in which we spent seven days climbing to an altitude of 17,000 feet.

We flew to Buenos Aires, then on to Mendoza - 26 hours traveling all together. During the short taxi ride from the airport, we admired the large trees lining the streets. Some of the trees looked familiar, like sycamore, cypress and acacia, while others looked exotic. The narrow streets were congested with small cars, large buses, delivery trucks and pedestrians. Busy shops and restaurants where everywhere, and lovey plazas full of shade trees, benches, statues and fountains.

The ambiance was one of relaxed friendliness. The Mendocinos seemed to be accustomed to tourists. So we are enjoying the city, at least the downtown area that we have seen so far. It would be easy to spend several days here, but we are eager to buy our supplies (food, stove fuel, etc) and to start exploring the high country.

2007-12-01:

Ray: This is early winter in the northern hemisphere but for us it is early spring. So the temperature in Mendoza has climbed into the high 80's and the snow in the mountains is melting.

Climbing into the mountains with big loads.

We had been unable to find much info about the area - despite our looking all over Mendoza. Our only resource was a crudely drawn map showing a few valleys and peaks. No one knew of the place, and no one even knew how to get there. Finally we found someone in a gear shop that knew the phone number of a person who could drive us up to our starting point. It turned out that the driver happened to be a well-known climber - Alejandro Geras.

We make our first camp in a lovely alpine meadow called Las Vegas (The Springs).

Contrary to our expectations for this time of year, the ground was bare of snow. The meadow had a pair of spring-fed creeks that in places you could jump across. The ground was small rocks covered by sparse and stunted vegetation. At this latitude we were far above timberline, and nearly at the upper limit of the vegetation zone.

We were now at an elevation of 10,500 feet. As we live at 1,500 feet, and Mendoza is at 2,700 feet. So that was quite a jump in altitude. The altitude is not important, but the jump in altitude is critical to how a person feels. We had just jumped 7,600 feet, so were feeling the effects, i.e. a bit short of breath when exerting, and mild headaches. That was to be expected.

That afternoon we went for a short exploratory hike in the surrounding hills.

Back at camp: Facing east at the edge of the meadow we could see far down the steep mountains to the foothills and beyond to the flatlands. Turning around and facing west we could see glacier-covered peaks towering over us.

Peaks towering over us.

Day 2, we hiked with light packs far up into the mountains, in order to acclimatize.

At one point we encountered a pair of guanacos moseying across the trail just ahead of us. Guanacos are interesting animals, and this is the first time either of us had seen one. They live at altitude, and never go down, even in winter. They were about five feet tall, a beautiful tan color, and looked like a cross between a llama and an antelope. They showed no urgent fear of us, other than they were watchful.

Interesting flowers.

Back at camp.

On our second morning in the meadow we awoke in dense fog after a night of light rain. The fog was so dense that we had to erect very small cairns every 50 feet en route from our tent to the trail so that we could later find our tent again. (returning to camp later that day, we removed the cairns.)

Once on the trail the way was obvious, especially as we had hiked the same trail the day before.

A thousand vertical feet later we broke out of the clouds into a stunning clear sky.

We hiked to 13,800 feet, then returned to our base camp.

Back at camp, looking up into the cirque and the east face of Vallecitos.

Day 4. In clear weather we carried our camp along the same trail.

Time to move camp.

Higher on the mountain, we met these guys. We had seen very few people, but we had met the same few people on the trail every day. The others were following the same general plan, and we became friends. Most notably there was one Argentinean, three Spaniards, three Germans, and two Belgians.

Carrying heavy loads

Day 5. We spent the day accustoming to this elevation and exploring the area above.

At about 14,300 feet we established a new camp. This was a quarter mile above a place called El Salto. Then the next day we climbed higher with light loads. We were acclimatizing to higher altitudes by hiking for several hours each day, then returning to camp each evening to sleep at the lower relative altitude.

From our high-point on day-5, about 16,000 feet, we're looking far down at our Camp 2 in the meadow.

Day 6. We woke at 5 am, just after dawn, packed our warm and windproof clothes; then, finding a small pool of non-frozen water in the nearby creek, we filled our one-liter bottles and set off up the trail in earnest. The sun hit the tops of the peaks and began to bathe the precipices above us in beautiful gold alpenglow. But the morning's sub-freezing cold was amplified by the cold wind.

A stop in what was now ferocious wind.

We had been hiking in running shoes all this time, but today we were carrying double climbing boots in our backpacks. In the early morning we stopped to change footwear and to put on some more clothes. At this point the wind was ferocious and the prospects of continuing higher were intimidating.

Small penitentes

The route was mainly over bare moraine rubble, punctuated occasionally by snowfields. Crossing the snowfields was problematic because they were covered with penitentes that averaged 12 to 18 inches high. Think of a series frozen stalagmites with no room for ones feet between them.

Also, some of the terrain was very steep, almost at the angle of repose, so one had to be careful.

To our good fortune the wind began to diminish, and with clear sky overhead and absolutely stunning scenery all around, the climbing was a joy.

Our high point at 17,119 feet. Mt. Aconcagua in the distance.

From our camp at 14,400 to the col was a big jump in altitude, for our present level of acclimatization. We're not peak-bagging, so in the interest of well-being, we dared not climb any higher.

At 11:30 am we reached our high point at 17,119 feet at a col known as Portezuelo. In the far distance we could see Aconcagua. To the north, the mountain we were on rose another 900 feet above us. The wind had begun to pick up, so after snapping a few photos, we turned around and began our descent.

We descended to our camp, and feeling the effects of AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness) we were reluctant to remain at even this altitude. So we broke camp and carry everything back down to Las Vegas.

Another guanaco sighted on our way down.

After 13 hours of strenuous going we arrived at the Las Vegas meadow on the very last of our legs. We spent the next few hours resting and rehydrating, and felt no further effects of altitude.

Day 7. After a leisurely breakfast we went for a short hike above camp.

Heading down to the road-head.

5pm found us back at the road-head, loading our packs into a minivan shuttle. We were the only two passengers for the ride down.

The driver was again Alejandro, and in our stunted Spanish we asked many questions about the mountains, the flora and fauna, and before long he seemed to take an interest in us. The conversation was non-stop as Alejandro patiently answered our questions and corrected our grammar.

Reaching the nearest town, I pointed to an attractive part of the town situated on a high slope, and Alejandro said "I have a house there, would you like to see it?" We were interested in everything Argentinean, so we said, "We would love to see it." While driving through his neighborhood, we stopped to talk to one of his friends. Tony who had worked in the United States for 30 years as a chef in NYC and Miami. He spoke no English, but was very friendly.

Alejandro in front of his house.

After Alejandro had shown us his house, inside and out, and answered my detailed questions about the house's construction, he treated us to something of a grand tour of the greater region of Mendoza, stopping every now and then to visit some interesting aspect. At one point we even met his brother who was working at a beautiful resort.

After showers and a change of clothes, we strolled a couple of blocks to a busy area of restaurants, and selected our favorite. We began asking the waiter questions in Spanish about the menu and the food. When the waiter brought our food, it was gigantic. When we expressed our surprise, he looked furtively around, pressed his finger to his lips, and said "Shhh."

And so ended Jenny's and my first foray into the beautiful and intriguing mountains. It had been a very fun trip, and we had met friendly people. Another few days in Mendoza and we will be eager to commence our next Andean adventure (part 2 of 3).

Back in Mendoza, resting for a few days.

Heber Orona (on the left), well-known Mountaineer.

Part 2

We rode a bus into the mountains, and arrived at the trail-head late in the day. So made our first camp close to the highway.

Our first camp on this section of the trip.

Mountains towering all around.

Enjoying an early morning cuppa.

It was a joy to hike with light-weight packs for the first three days, but my bare arms and legs became quite sunburned on the first day, and I had to cover them from then on.

Camp and our home-made mule-bag.

Sponge bath.

Filtering water. Gone are the days when we drank straight from a creek. Especially when last year I found hook worms in a spring near here.

The ol' blue jacket, still going strong. We made it for Greenland and used it Antarctica, etc. I am wearing it almost everyday on this trip also.

Penitentes.

Sunset

Jenny and I were taking a rest when someone overtook us with amazing speed. Nearly to us, he called out my name. I recognized him right away, but was so surprised I could hardly speak. One hardly expects to find the world's most famous Sherpa climbing in Argentina! Lakpa Rita has climbed Everest 10 times, and is an amazing source of mountaineering knowledge.

Two hours to set up their tent in a storm.

Swapping double boots for running shoes.

We're heading down to base camp for a few days of R&R.

Headed back up.

Looks like a Meteorite.

Camp at 19,600'

Jenny and her Ray-Way backpack at about 20,000 feet.

At 20,600 feet, the views can't be beat.

20,700 feet

Our highpoint at about 21,000 feet.

We used crampons today, all day.

Daniel Lopez and crew.

Headed out.

R&R in Mendoza.

* * *

We are back in Mendoza after another stint in the high mountains - 23 days this time. Part 2/4 of this NFT completed. WOW, that was fun! Now for 6 days resting and building our nutritional reserves, before going back for hopefully another 23 days.

Jenny: WOW is right! What a fantastic, new experience for me. I loved the adventure of climbing high, and 21,000 feet is now the highest I've ever climbed. It was thrilling! At that altitude the clear sky is a deep, dark blue and of course the air is thin and cold. But Ray taught me the right techniques: a special way to breathe in order to maximize oxygen intake and to avoid harming the throat and lungs; how to use crampons safely (I had never used crampons before), and I'm proud to report that not once did I snag a crampon point on a pant leg.

There were so many new experiences for me, and they were all fun and exciting; besides being in the beautiful and immense Andes, and meeting really nice Argentineans. What an adventure!

R: On this trip Jenny and I were not interested in bagging peaks. We were here for the aesthetics and the experience of climbing and camping in rarified air. We have spent most of these past three weeks at 16,500' to 19,200', and have learned a great deal, and have also found a few problems:

1) After 1 week of high-altitude living our appetites disappeared. Food tasted like cardboard, including pasta, soup, chocolate, candy and cookies. Good way to lose weight, not eating for days at a time. But because of the heavy work load, this was a good way to run out of energy!

2) Of the decades of adventuring, we finally found a case where our corn pasta didn't work for us. Above 16,500 the boiling water was not hot enough to cook it, and instead simply dissolved it. On the other hand, pasta made of durum wheat cooked nicely but to us lacked taste.

We took these photos with two cameras, but they often had a frozen batteries, so she did not get that many.

We used our Ray-Way packs on the 3-day approach, and Jenny used hers above 19,000. Most of the time, however, we were hauling big loads so we had to use our big packs leftover from our early hiking days.

Part 3

2008-01-29

Back at it again.

first camp.

setting up camp.

We hiked down to the bottom of a snowfield on a warm day, and stuck this candy bar wrapper into the dirt - to collect water.

Jenny in the alpenglow.

Fantastic cloud formation over the mountain.

Collecting water again. Up here, this works only in the early afternoon.

Pretty scenery, looking down at the glaciers

Still in running shoes.

Carrying camp.

This is fun!

Our high camp at almost 20,000 feet.

Jenny is collecting snow for melting.

Headed down.

About the mountains themselves, no mountains in the contiguous U.S. are so high, which is why we are here. For example, our recent base camp was about as high as the tallest mountains in the States. (We spent two weeks climbing above this base camp, to 20,500' this time.) We are here, not because we want to climb the highest mountains, but because we want to learn all we can about climbing and camping at altitude - first hand, and we are interested in developing our own clothing and equipment. The Himalayas would be good for this also, but there is no town comparable to Mendoza a few hours away. So this region is very convenient.

Now, in the wake of these two months we are heading home with a host of new ideas for gear, food, and strategy. For example, for this trip we took the same type of clothing that we used in Antarctica. They were perfect there, but we found that they were not in the least appropriate in the ultra high mountains. So its back to the drawing board with them.

We are back in Mendoza after a 16-day stint in the high mountains. That was so fun!! In fact, we enjoyed the entire trip so much that we're thinking of returning next year. But for now, with bodies worn out but minds refreshed we're heading home. We plan to reopen our business Feb 1. A big "thank you" to our customers who have been waiting to place orders.

The main attraction here is the Andes above 16,000 feet, and the town of Mendoza, which is only a few hours away by bus. The bus ride between the two is only $5.00. So after spending 2 or 3 weeks in the mountains we can come down and spend a few days with all the luxuries a city can offer.

We have stayed at the same hotel four times, and the staff is beginning to treat us almost like family. They worry about us while we are away (due to the newspaper stories of frostbite and even deaths in the mountains) and they are glad to see us when we return.---The restaurant next door serves good hamburgers made with Argentine beef, and good French fries. If you ever wondered what French fries tasted like back in the fifties (without all the artificial ingredients and processing), this is it.

Speaking of additives, we don't enjoy eating meats purchased in America, mainly because of all the horrible additives, hormones, antibiotics, and the whole host of other "ingredients" they contain, but here it's a different story.

Vegetarians take note: what happens in Argentina, stays in Argentina :)

Two blocks away is a restaurant with outside seating that shouldn't be missed. There is nothing even remotely like it in the U.S. For $8.00 you can feast on open-range, succulent, char-broiled steak, etc, and have more than enough leftovers for lunch the next day.

A couple of blocks east of the grocery store are a bunch of restaurants that serve excellent food at even lower prices. For example, all-you-can eat parilla (beef, pork, chicken, sausages, etc grilled on an open hard-wood fire), salad bar, pasta etc, and a big dessert table including fresh fruit with my favorite: large figs - all this for $6.50.

The nearest grocery store is two bocks away and is comparable to those in the States. This is where we buy all of our food for our climbing outings. As a rule, the Argentineans are not fat, and this is reflected in their diets. We think the local cookies and candy, for example, are not very good, so no one must eat them :) There is no such thing as pancakes down here, or the like. That said, around town are ice cream shops galore, and the best ones are usually packed with customers. Again, the best ice cream tastes like something out of the fifties, and it comes in dozens of interesting flavors. After a few days of this, it is good for the body to get back in the mountains :)

Speaking of grocery stores, while Jenny is shopping for groceries, I'm sitting the included coffee shop writing this update on my ipaq and transmitting it with WiFi.

A note about the people: The Argentineans are something like 97 percent European descent and the city of Mendoza looks like something you might find in Spain or Italy. The people speak Spanish, and most will gladly help you learn. They don't understand much English, but ironically they seem to like American music, movies, and tv. They have 30 tv channels; only about half of them are Argentine.

By the way, for the guys, here's the good news! The city of Mendoza is absolutely packed with pretty girls. I've never seen anything like it. And now for the bad news: unless you are a handsome Argentine, they won't even look at you :)