Aventuras Patagonicas on Bolivia Classic Climbs

Group meets in La Paz, Bolivia's capital city. La Paz is the world's highest capital, over 10,000 ft in elevation, where you begin the process of acclimatizing as soon as you step off the plane. Gear check and an afternoon briefing will be at the hotel. Because acclimatization is crucial to a successful expedition, we highly recommend that you arrive 2 to 3 days earlier in La Paz, prior to the start of the expedition. Attractive day treks and tours can be arranged from La Paz.

Acclimatization day in La Paz. The main purpose of our second day is to spend another night above 10,000'. This is a great occasion to visit La Paz and its many colonial sites.

Drive towards the beautiful Condoriri Valley to a small mountain village where we hire burros to carry our gear. A pleasant hike of about 3-4 hrs takes us to our Base Camp located by a beautiful lake surrounded with breathtaking views of the Condoriri massif. Our goal will be to climb Pequeno Alpamayo (17,618' or 5,300 mts) the next day.

Early Start, we follow the Condoriri Valley with our head lamps to start the gentle ascent up the main Glacier. After sveral hours of moderate hiking we arrive at the base of the steep pyramid of Pequeno Alpamyo. Spectacular snow and ice climbing to the summit. Descend to Base Camp.

Descend to the trailhead, where we are picked up by a 4X4 and drive to where we will climb Huayna Potosi (19,974'). This is a dramatic drive across the majestic Cordillera Real. We arrive at the foothills of Huayna Potosi and begin our climb to Camp 1 the same day in order to not lose our acclimatization. We may have porters to help us carry community gear only.

Move to Camp 2, our High Camp.

Early start toward the spectacular snowy Summit of Huayna Potosi. Moderate snow climbing will take us to the top. Descent to High Camp and possibly all the way to the base depending on our Group. If we do descend all the way, we will drive back to La Paz for a nice hardy meal and a bath, that same day.

Rest day in La Paz. We will shop for fresh food, clean gear and pack for Illimani, the highest peak in Bolivia, at 21,201 feet.

Drive southeast towards Illimani. The highest peak in the Cordillera Real, it is a massive mountain with three spectacular summits above 20,000'. At the end of this rugged road we meet the llamas and their llama handler who will take our gear to our Base Camp at 15,000'.

Carry a load to 18,000', our High Camp, and return to Base Camp.

Move to High Camp (18,000'). From this camp we will have great views of the cirque of Illimani and across Lake Titicaca.

Summit Day!! Weather permitting. Early start to tackle Illimani's (21,201') steep Southwest Buttress, interesting and careful glacier travel negotiating impressive crevasses. Before reaching the summit ridge we climb a beautiful 40-45 degree face. The gentle summit ridge offers spectacular views of the Andes.

Descent to La Paz. Celebration Dinner.

Next day fly back home, or continue traveling in South America.