[TR] Aconcagua - North Face 12/22/2023

[Guye]

Trip: Aconcagua - North Face

Trip Date: 12/22/2023

Trip Report:

On 12/11 I hiked to Confluencia to start the trip. Winds have been the major prohibitive factor affecting summit success this year, and from the start even getting to Confluencia winds were gusting in the 20 mph range. For acclimatization I hiked to Plaza Francia the next day, which was even windier, but being lowish on the mountain still temps were great. 30mph gusts with wind chill bringing temps to about 40F at coldest near Plaza Francia. Apparently a few days later winds were so severe that folks were skipping the hike to Plaza Francia all together, reporting 50+ mph gusts. Make sure to check in with the ranger when you arrive at Confluencia to get the sign off on the permit, and get a medical check before moving to Mulas. Confluencia itself is a really nice camp. If you use a logistics service like I did (Inka basic package) you’ll get fresh food, a place to hang out, and even a bunk if one is available. If you’re fully guided I think the bunk is usually included. There are legit bathrooms there with running water.

The following day 12/13 I moved to Plaza de Mulas. On 12/14 I cached at Camp Canada. A bit of a blizzard rolled in, hammering the high camps with wind, snow, and even collapsing the medical tent (for the second time this season) at Mulas. The camp docs ended up just going tent to tent doing the medical checks. The next day I took as a rest before moving to higher camps.

12/16 I moved to Camp Canada. I met a lot of climbers who skipped this camp for two reasons:

1: to get water you need to walk about 10-15 mins to collect snow to melt.
2: the camp is extremely exposed to wind

If you don’t camp here one or two nights you’re looking at moving strait from 14k to 18k, which in my experience isn’t ideal for acclimatization. I chose to deal with the wind for two nights to use Canada as a stepping stone for higher camps. Definitely stand by that decision. Just make sure you have a tent that can handle 40-50 mph gusts from time to time.

After caching at Nido 12/17, on 12/18 I dropped to Mulas to get more food and gas for an expected long stay at Nido (weather window seemed to have disappeared), and moved camp from Canada to Nido. Nido has great wind protection and even a water source. You dig a hole in the ice of a nearby pond and can extract water from underneath without needing to melt snow. My acclimatization schedule worked pretty well and I wasn’t feeling any AMS symptoms by the time I reached Nido.

12/19 was another rest day. A brief weather window opened up for 12/20 with winds dropping to the 30-40 mph range up top. Wind chill about -20F, which is about as good as it got the whole trip. Around 5:30AM on 12/20 I set out from Nido for the summit. With 4 layers on the bottom, 5 on the top, and full skin coverings the cold temps and windchill were entirely manageable. Up until Plaza Independencia the ascent tracks just to the east of the ridge. Most of the wind on Acon comes from the west, so up until this point there is some wind protection. Above Plaza Independencia, however, you walk on the west side of the ridge with full exposure to wind until you reach La Canaleta. Be prepared for extremely cold temps on this traverse when conditions are windy.

There were two snow traverses requiring crampons. At worst the slope angle was about 40 degrees with a good boot path. Not sketchy by any means but still something I’d want an ice axe for. The Canaleta is this loose path through dust and rock where the dirt is so loose it helps to have crampons on to maintain good footing. One of those “one step forward half a slide back” kind of paths. Above that is the cave, where lots of people will rest before the final summit push. A very important thing to know - the official turn around time for the summit is 3PM, and on good summit days rangers will usually be there turning people around if they don’t reach the summit by 3PM. Once you get to the cave it is about 2 hours to the summit, and unfortunately I reached the cave at 1:45PM. Because of the 3PM deadline, I turned around and got back to Nido by 4PM.

Another good window was forecasted for 12/21 and I moved camp from Nido to Colera. Like Canada, expect high winds. 12/22 around 4AM I set out again for the summit, this time reaching it by noon. Similar conditions with wind and temps. On the way down at 22k ft I ran into a woman who looked hypothermic, dehydrated, and suffering from altitude. Along with another climber and a nearby guide we assisted her down to Colera where she was airlifted to a nearby hospital.

Getting from Colera back to the park entrance took only two days. One to get all the gear back to Mulas, and the next to hike out. The beer in Mulas is $9 but in Confluencia it is only $5 FYI

Gear Notes:
Ice Axe, Crampons, Headlamp, Ski Poles, Animal/Pet, Tent Camp

Approach Notes:
Maintained Trail, Unmaintained Trail, Open Country, Snow on Ground, Scramble