Trip Reports

Bolivian Climber - 30 Jul to 20 Aug '16

Written by Leader Paul Donovan, August 2016

"Success - the Bolivian Climber team summit on four out of their four objectives: Peak Austria (5,300m), Terija Peak (5,300m), Huayna Potosi (6,088m) & Illimani (6,462m).

With all (except Regis, who was meeting us in La Paz) team members gathered together at LHR Terminal 3, we checked in and made our way to the Gate and on to Miami for a 5 hour wait for our next flight - a 6.5 hour night flight direct to La Paz, arriving some 22 hours after departing the UK. It was well worth it as we got our very first views of La Paz and El Alto just as the morning was breaking. Our base for the next 2 days was the Ritz Apart Hotel - a five star hotel.

After a days rest, some good food and a good nights sleep, we were ready for our city tour with our guide, Cesar. This included a trip up the cable car to El Alto for some great views over the city, as well as visiting the tourist areas of old and new La Paz. Our next stop was Copacabana, a well-placed town on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Here we watched the sun go down from high above the town on Calvary Hill, visited Isla del Sol and it's many wonders before making our way to Tuni Condoriri and our first night under canvas.

Here we met one of our guides (Pablo) and cooks (Santos & Wesley) and together we established camp, which was for one night only. The following morning, we made our way to Condoriri Base Camp where we would spend the next five days and nights. As we trekked in, the mountains opened up ahead of us, providing us with some spectacular views. Our first objective was Point Austria, which sat at 5,300m. What a great route that led us gradually and well paced (thanks to Pablo & Ignacio), to the summit. Not only were we blessed with great views across the Altiplano and Lake Titicaca but it was also possible to make a phone call!

A day on the Alpamayo Glacier allowed us to refresh those previously learned skills as well as developing some new ones. A rest day followed - well if you can call a trek up to the Condoriri Mirador at 5,000m, a rest! Here we gained views of Objective number 3 - Huayna Potosi and it's infamous west face. An afternoon of 'faffing' gave us the opportunity to organise our gear and clothing for an early start the next day!

The day began with a wake up call at 04:00, after which came breakfast and kitting up for our ascent. By 06:00 we were at the glacier and made steady progress in our four roped teams. By 09:00 we stood on top of Terija Peak, looking across at the summit ridge of Pequeno Alpamayo, although it was completely covered in cloud. A short rocky descent led us to having to negotiate an interesting crevasse to reach the base of Pequeno Alpamayo. Here the terrain and consuming weather gave cause for concern and we bid a hasty retreat retracing our steps back to Base Camp. With Terija Peak under our belts and some thoughts of what could have been, it was time for us to walk out to the Altiplano.

The team were now up for our next objective - Huayna Potosi. A brief stop in El Alto gave us a chance to eat pizza, drink coke (other soft fizzy drinks are available!), stock up on supplies before driving to Cumbre Zongo for a night. A short steep trek led us to high camp, from where we made our attempt on Huayna Potosi. Summit day began at 01:00 with us slowly getting our things together and having breakfast before an 02:00 departure. We made good progress in the light of our head torches, reaching the base of the Northern Ridge well ahead of sunrise. One hour later 7 team members and 3 guides were on the summit of Huayna Potosi (6,088m), to witness a spectacular event sunrise. The team stood in amazement of their achievement. Again, after the customary summit photos, it was a descent back to Cumbre Zongo, stopping only for a quick lunch at high camp. By 14:30, we were all back in La Paz and the luxuries of our hotel for the next two nights - quite surreal! Time to recover for our final objective - Illimani - bring it on!

Our 3.5 hour 'road' journey to Illimani Base Camp took us through some fantastic mountain scenery with great views of Illimani most of the way - wow! - she just keeps getting bigger to closer we get! After an alfresco lunch we trekked into Base Camp, set up camp for the night and enjoyed a wonderful sunset. The morning brought us the warmth of the sun by 09:00. We reorganised our kit to assist our porters and were soon ready for the 1,000m ascent to High Camp (5,478m). With High Camp established after a tough ascent, fatigue, lethargy and illness hit members of the team, resulting in four team members and two guides commencing a summit bid at 02:00. In the glow of a full moon, the two roped teams made steady progress, reaching the 'Stairway to Heaven' at 05:00 and the summit by 08:00. What an achievement! With the mountain only half climbed, the teams made a cautious descent over icy terrain to reach high camp by 11:00. After an hours rest, a further 1,000m descent saw all teams members reunited at Base Camp for a well earned rest and some celebration!

We retraced our steps back to La Paz for our final two nights before heading back to the UK. Here we had time to relax and reflect on all we had achieved over the past three weeks - what a journey! Just 11,500km and 16 hours flying time and we were back in the UK saying our farewells.

Many thanks to Grisell and Fabricio for their organisation and support throughout.

A big thank you to our Guide Team: Cesar, (our city & cultural guide), Pablo, Ignacio and Illarion (our climbing guides), our Kitchen Staff: Wesley and Santos and our many Porters, including all our Mules and Donkeys - too many to name individually.

Congratulations and thank you to the Climbing Team - Ben, Fred, Paul, Anna, Dewi, Regis, Rich, Francesco and Kevin for their personal achievements and for putting up with me during the 22 day trip.

Llongyfarchiadau Pawb
Paul Donovan
Bolivian Climber Expedition Leader – July/August 2016 « Previous report | Next report »

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