Travel program of the Aconcagua Expedition:
Exceeding the highest mountain in America
Climb on the Polish route – descent via the normal route.
Day 1: Departure from your home airport via Frankfurt and from there continuing to Mendoza in Argentina.
Day 2: Arrival in the evening in Mendoza and drive to the hotel. City stroll and dinner together.
Day 3: Organization of the permits. Each participant must apply for it in person at the National Park Authority. In the afternoon, the equipment is checked and in case also supplemented. In Mendoza there are good alpine shops and equipment rentals. Dinner together and hotel accommodation.
Day 4: Transfer by minibus to Penitentes (2.580m) 4 hours. Tours preparation for the mule transport. Overnight in a simple hotel.
Day 5: Today it really starts, the first stage of the three-day march to the base camp. Until Punta de Vacas to the checkpoint of the National Park by car and then by foot to “Pampa de Lenas”, walking time 4 hours. (T, B, L, D). During the entire journey to the base camp “Plaza Argentina” the main luggage is transported with mules, we have to carry only a light daypack. This protects our forces and thus helps to better Höhenklklimatisierung.
Day 6: After Casa de Piedras. Today’s stage leads us in the face of the east side of the Aconcagua to our next campsite at Casa de Piedras (about 3250 m). During the stage, we enjoy the views of the Polish glacier.
Walking time: approx. 6 hours
Day 7: To base camp Plaza Argentina. The last stage of the march is also the longest. We walk up the “Relinchos” valley upstream to our fully equipped base camp at Plaza Argentina (4200m), where our kitchen team is waiting for us and welcomes us with a delicious dinner.
Walking time: approx. 7 hours
Day 8: Acclimatization day in the base camp. The first day in the base camp “Plaza de Argentinas” we spend with rest, preparation and sorting of the. Equipment for climbing and of course exploring the impressive surroundings. The fully furnished, permanent base camp offers a lot of comfort: sleeping tents, dining and lounge tents, toilet and shower tents. At any rate, it is important for our acclimatization to rest, to exert little effort and to give the body plenty of fluids! Overnight camping
Day 9-18: altitude acclimatization, high camp construction and summit walk. The next few days we move on the west flank of the “White Guardian” and are busy with the transport of the equipment and the construction of the three high camps, which we need during the ascent of the Aconcagua. Material handling days and acclimatization days in lower camps alternate. The constant ascending and descending between the individual camps requires some endurance, but in turn increases our height adjustment. The ascent is largely ice and snow, but in bad weather the gravel can be frozen. Even snowfall can never be ruled out, so crampons are an important piece of equipment!
Day 19: Descent to the base camp Plaza de Mulas. Along the normal route we descend from our camp 3 “Cholera” to the main base camp of the Aconcagua “Plaza de Mulas”. Here a first foretaste of civilization awaits us.
Day 20: Descent to Penitentes and return to Mendoza
The last, long stage of our tour is also a challenge: we descend via the interim storage facility Confluencia to Penitentes, where our bus awaits us and brings us back to Mendoza today. We look forward to a good meal and a warm shower in our cozy hotel. In the evening last dinner together, where we will toast to an adventurous mountain experience. Hotel accommodation
B …………… Breakfast
D ………….. Dinner
H ………….. Hotel
L …………… Lunch
T …………… Tent
Photo: Simon Steinberger