Many thanks Lynn for uploading this interesting video "Aconcagua - Normal route, unguided, January 2017"!...This is my very first time to see and hear this excellent material!...I´ve spent a very entertained 37:40 minutes!...GREAT CONTRIBUTION!...Congratulations for reaching the Aconcagua summit!....Mountaineer greetings from Santiago, CHILE! PS: Please continue uploading great mountaineering videos like this one that i will see/listen them attentively here in South America.
Awesome unguided adventure and the video is as organic as it can be. Congrats! BTW, everyone needs a "Matt" to take on something like this. Congrats again!!!
Thank you for sharing your epic adventure, a great insight into the climb. I hope to get to Aconcagua in the next couple of years but so far Mont Blanc is the highest I've been (also unguided). I'm not an emotional guy but by the end of your video I had a bit of a tear in my eye.
I'm so glad the video touched you! It certainly was a life changing experience for me. Best of luck to you; I hope you can get down to Acon soon! It's an underrated mountain for sure.
18.53, I use to call that spot "first row sitting", because of the amazing panorama, all the way to Mercedario. Nino de Condores is a unic place. Congratulation for you trip.
Hey nice vid and even nicer trip! I did the Annapurna circuit this year by myself and half the people I know quietly thought I was crazy. Turned out to be fine, with good prep. I won't be doing Aconcaqua on my own though :-). I had a stroke in 2014 and I used Annapurna as a goal and reward to help me get healthy. Sore knees and fried lips but it was sweet!
That's awesome to use Acon as a goal to help you get healthy. That's the best way to manage a tough recovery - with a great goal to keep you motivated. Best wishes on your continued healing!
Hey awesome video! I’m planning a Mt Blanc trip and this is definitely something that I would like to do after. Would you be willing to share a very rough breakdown of costs for the trip excluding travel getting there. Thanks!
Mt Blanc will be awesome! Honestly I can't remember that there were very many expenses besides travel to Argentina. We had most of our gear before we decided to make the trip. We spent a few hundred on a hotel, a hostel, and an airbnb. We also probably spent a few hundred on food and fuel once we were in country. The biggest thing was, of course, the climbing permit. My recollection is that it was $900 USD at the time. Best wishes!
Lynn Hall, hallo. I am planning on summitting the Aconcagua in December of this year. You seem to have climbed it with relative ease. In how many days did you climb it and did you use Diamox? Are there any tips or advice for persons who want to climb the Aconcagua unguided? My previous experiences are the Kilimanjaro (5,860m), and the Inka route to the Machu Piccu (4,200m). They say not to do it in 12 days, but I did the Kili in 9 days. 12 days should be more than enough to acclimatize, what do you think? Highly appreciated if you would give me your thoughts on the this.
Hi! I’m really interested in climbing and hiking but I don’t know where to start. I’ve started an exercise plan and plan on tackling Kilimanjaro this summer! I have a question about your climbing! Do you bring your own food? How about tent?
Hi Lynn, Congrats for your Aconcagua... I will climb Aconcagua next year. Can you let me know your itinerary including how many hours from starting point to Plaza de mulaz and to C2. C2 to summit..
Hi there, I'm excited for you! Honestly it has been a few years since this climb and I did not document my time for each segment. My memory is that it took less than nine hours to reach Plaza de Mulaz. Above base camp I think I averaged perhaps 500 feet of climbing an hour - pretty slow! Many people can go faster, for sure. The itinerary was: Day 1 - Hike to Plaza de Mulas Day 2- Rest Day Day 3 - Carry to Camp 2 Day 4 - Rest Day Day 5 - Move to Camp 2 Day 6 - Rest day at Camp 2 Day 7 - Summit Day 8 - Descent to Plaza de Mulas Day 9 - Descent to trailhead Good luck and happy training!
Very impressive! It was my understanding that guides were required? Obviously I am wrong. Did you have to complete anything to go by yourselves? Also, do you know if the helicopter evacuations are sponsored by Argentina or are you charged?
Hey, thanks! Great clarifying question about the guides. It is required to hire a logistical company but the level of support is up to you. The basic service is a mule, a camp site at Plaza de Mulas, and latrines. You can add services including hot meals at P/Mulas, showers, wi-fi, all the way up to the complete guiding experience. We chose Lankos Alto Montanas for the most basic services and loved them. They are also nice enough to post basic forecasts on the main tent walls every night and that is also helpful. In addition, we paid them to stay at their hostel the night before in Penitentes and for one meal each at P/Mulas. (The meals are expensive, by the way: $35 USD per person. It's best to have cash for that. Also best to have cash for wifi.) As far as evacs go, I'm not 100% but my understanding is that some of is it covered by your permit? (Sorry, I can't help but end that statement with a question mark. I'm just not positive! Ascend slowly, take rest days, drink lots of water, and hopefully you won't have to find out!) Best wishes. Let me know if I can be of any other help.
Many of the logistics companies do not have websites. When you get into Mendoza to purchase your permits, it is easy to find them to arrange for the mules. We used Lankos Alto Montana and we highly recommend them.
Give yourself lots of time in case the weather doesn't cooperate at first. A lot of people don't summit because they can't wait long enough at Plaza de Mulas. Have fun! :)
Yeah, so the idea is two-fold: 1) climb high on the mountain and then sleep lower to help acclimatization as you wait for your main summit push, and 2) cache gear higher on the mountain so that when you do climb high to stay high, you don't have to carry as much. Otherwise when you push for the summit your pack will lightly be way too heavy and you'll exhaust yourself. It works out really well to accomplish both by making these day hikes to establish high camp. Most teams have two tents on the mountain, so that's the first thing you take (keep the original tent set up down at base camp.) You can also take propane and the food you'll need. I dropped off warm clothes I wouldn't need until summit day, such as the big down mitten. Also crampons, and if you bring them, helmet and ice axe. (I'd recommend helmet and crampons but not ice axe) It's a good idea to bring the gear to Argentina in big duffels, and then you can store this gear back in the duffels at high camp. Another idea is to use big white burlap bags that your logistics company might provide to transport your gear on the mule to plaza de mulas. Once you have the gear at high camp in the duffel, just pick a spot and put medium size rocks on top so that if there's a high wind event, the gear won't blow away. You'll see lots of people doing the exact same thing. Let me know if I can help with any other questions!
Great adventure!! I´d love to do it in the same way, unguided, carrying my stuff. How heavy were you??. Would love to know the equipment you used!. Greatings!!
Hi Lynn, thanks for the detailed documentary about your trip. I am planning to do Aconcacgua next January (2018) and I would prefer to do it without a complete service guide/tour company. Your video made me realize it is possible. Would you be willing to exchange a few emails to help me prepare?
Hello Steganographer, Have you decided if you are going guided or unguided ? I would like to tag along if you are going unguided if solo ? Please let me know if you email, mine is nareshsunkar@gmail.com. Thanks in Advance
Hi Naresh, I have to postpone till next year (December 2018/January2019 ) as this year I am not ready and work has creeped in. If you are up to postponing to next year, I still plan to do it self-guided, so we can plan, as it is never too early to plan for this natural beauty...
Hey Stegano, Thanks for your response. Oh..Its too bad, I wish to join with someone, May be I will go again next year, But I'm definitely shooting for this December. Do you recommend any Logistic company based on your talks with Lynn Hall above? Another question I have is " can i find the Logistic company and a High altitude porters when I arrive in mendoza a week early?"
Hey - How did the windburned perform at 18K? I am very curious about which stove to bring, that or an a white gas stove. Also- how much fuel did you take? I would appreciate it! Congrats on the summit. Awesome video.
Congrats fellow Colorado resident! Someday Cerro Aconcagua would be my "Everest". Until then I need a rematch in Mexico. You had an amazing summit day. Thanks for sharing. So was this the typical 21 day adventure? Longer? Shorter?
Hey Tim! Always great to talk to fellow Colorado mountaineers. We spent 11 days on the mountain. Flew out on January 4, arrived at the trailhead on January 8, trekked out on January 18th. We had a few days leftover to do some site seeing. Hope you can get down there soon! It sure is awesome.
@@lynnhall4112 Hi Lyn, loved watchign your video. thanks for putting it together. very interesting! In regards to the timeframe you moved up the mountain would you say its very achievable for most folks or was it pushing the limits of acclimatization? I have previous EBC high altitude experience for reference with no problems though was on diamox on that one(though I wouldn't take diamox on aconcagua) cheers! John
I used thick, wicking baselayers. I most often used that green Brooks softshell. My hardshell was REI but I didn't often use it; I usually chose my Northface fleece. Finally, I had a MountainHardwear puffy which is critical. Don't forget a few short sleeves for base camp! The temperature varies greatly down there. Good luck!
We didn't use or bring an ice axe but we did use crampons. If the same terrain and snow coverage was at a much lower elevation, I wouldn't have found the crampons necessary, but up there everything is a little bit more difficult.
Hi Lynn, Great Video!! I'm planning to climb this December, I have doubt about my capacity to do solo unguided, but I have been above 19,000 ft Asl twice and good with altitude (not even a head ache last time at Kilimanjaro, without acclimatization). I have couple of questions if you don't mind. I can email you. Please let me know your email. Thanks In advance!
I think it was $900 and change? Under $1,000, but yes, pricey! Here's the important part: they only take cash!!! Depending on your banking, it can be hard to acquire cash in Mendoza so I would bring enough for this fee and also any incidentals (wifi, dinners, showers) you might want at base camp. Have a great time!!
Hi Luis, for summit day we only used crampons, no ice axe. We wish we would have brought helmets because there were so many guided groups ahead of us kicking rocks down. I wore double plastic boots. Happy trails!
Hi Lynn, Me and some friends really appreciated your video and found it very helpful. Would you be willing to swap emails since me and my friends are planning on going next December in 2018?
![Chris Langan - The Interview THEY Didn't Want You To See - CTMU [Full Version; Timestamps]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/9miVG2xT5jY/mqdefault.jpg)
Many thanks Lynn for uploading this interesting video "Aconcagua - Normal route, unguided, January 2017"!...This is my very first time to see and hear this excellent material!...I´ve spent a very entertained 37:40 minutes!...GREAT CONTRIBUTION!...Congratulations for reaching the Aconcagua summit!....Mountaineer greetings from Santiago, CHILE! PS: Please continue uploading great mountaineering videos like this one that i will see/listen them attentively here in South America.
Awesome unguided adventure and the video is as organic as it can be. Congrats! BTW, everyone needs a "Matt" to take on something like this. Congrats again!!!
Congrats!Lynn.I am perparing to go there and just saw your vídeo
Amazing adventure !!!, congratulations on the summit,
Congratulations--and thank you for demystifying the mountain a bit!
one day to bc and then only c2... nicely done! Nice video, thanks for all that info. Planning to go there...
Congratulations!! Alcanzaron la cumbre de la montaña mas alta del continente.Ojalá regresen nuevamente .Mendoza es un lugar maravilloso.
Thank you for sharing your epic adventure, a great insight into the climb. I hope to get to Aconcagua in the next couple of years but so far Mont Blanc is the highest I've been (also unguided). I'm not an emotional guy but by the end of your video I had a bit of a tear in my eye.
I'm so glad the video touched you! It certainly was a life changing experience for me. Best of luck to you; I hope you can get down to Acon soon! It's an underrated mountain for sure.
18.53, I use to call that spot "first row sitting", because of the amazing panorama, all the way to Mercedario. Nino de Condores is a unic place. Congratulation for you trip.
The panorama was awesome!! Okay, 18,530 it is. I'm happy to finally know for sure :)
nice video of the adventure. enjoyed the narrative.
Hey nice vid and even nicer trip! I did the Annapurna circuit this year by myself and half the people I know quietly thought I was crazy. Turned out to be fine, with good prep. I won't be doing Aconcaqua on my own though :-). I had a stroke in 2014 and I used Annapurna as a goal and reward to help me get healthy. Sore knees and fried lips but it was sweet!
That's awesome to use Acon as a goal to help you get healthy. That's the best way to manage a tough recovery - with a great goal to keep you motivated. Best wishes on your continued healing!
Congrats guys! I aspire to do this some day. I am from Colorful CO too. Maybe I'll see you guys on a 14er some time!
I hope you go for it! Yes, definitely see you on the peaks around here :)
I was there at Plaza de Mulas just a couple of days later! (January 14th, I guess)
Awesome!! I hope you had a great expedition.
Thanks!! I didn't made the summit this time but was the best experience I had!
Congrats!
awesome video!
Hey awesome video! I’m planning a Mt Blanc trip and this is definitely something that I would like to do after. Would you be willing to share a very rough breakdown of costs for the trip excluding travel getting there. Thanks!
Mt Blanc will be awesome! Honestly I can't remember that there were very many expenses besides travel to Argentina. We had most of our gear before we decided to make the trip. We spent a few hundred on a hotel, a hostel, and an airbnb. We also probably spent a few hundred on food and fuel once we were in country. The biggest thing was, of course, the climbing permit. My recollection is that it was $900 USD at the time. Best wishes!
Panorama view from the top shows lack of glaciers and snow accumulation does not bode well for growing population down stream that depend on runoff
congratulations!
I'm impressed!
Lynn Hall, hallo. I am planning on summitting the Aconcagua in December of this year. You seem to have climbed it with relative ease. In how many days did you climb it and did you use Diamox? Are there any tips or advice for persons who want to climb the Aconcagua unguided? My previous experiences are the Kilimanjaro (5,860m), and the Inka route to the Machu Piccu (4,200m). They say not to do it in 12 days, but I did the Kili in 9 days. 12 days should be more than enough to acclimatize, what do you think? Highly appreciated if you would give me your thoughts on the this.
Thanks for sharing!!
Hi! I’m really interested in climbing and hiking but I don’t know where to start. I’ve started an exercise plan and plan on tackling Kilimanjaro this summer! I have a question about your climbing! Do you bring your own food? How about tent?
Hi Lynn, Congrats for your Aconcagua... I will climb Aconcagua next year. Can you let me know your itinerary including how many hours from starting point to Plaza de mulaz and to C2. C2 to summit..
Hi there, I'm excited for you! Honestly it has been a few years since this climb and I did not document my time for each segment. My memory is that it took less than nine hours to reach Plaza de Mulaz. Above base camp I think I averaged perhaps 500 feet of climbing an hour - pretty slow! Many people can go faster, for sure. The itinerary was:
Day 1 - Hike to Plaza de Mulas
Day 2- Rest Day
Day 3 - Carry to Camp 2
Day 4 - Rest Day
Day 5 - Move to Camp 2
Day 6 - Rest day at Camp 2
Day 7 - Summit
Day 8 - Descent to Plaza de Mulas
Day 9 - Descent to trailhead
Good luck and happy training!
cool video. What kind of tent did you use?
Very impressive! It was my understanding that guides were required? Obviously I am wrong. Did you have to complete anything to go by yourselves? Also, do you know if the helicopter evacuations are sponsored by Argentina or are you charged?
Hey, thanks! Great clarifying question about the guides. It is required to hire a logistical company but the level of support is up to you. The basic service is a mule, a camp site at Plaza de Mulas, and latrines. You can add services including hot meals at P/Mulas, showers, wi-fi, all the way up to the complete guiding experience. We chose Lankos Alto Montanas for the most basic services and loved them. They are also nice enough to post basic forecasts on the main tent walls every night and that is also helpful. In addition, we paid them to stay at their hostel the night before in Penitentes and for one meal each at P/Mulas. (The meals are expensive, by the way: $35 USD per person. It's best to have cash for that. Also best to have cash for wifi.) As far as evacs go, I'm not 100% but my understanding is that some of is it covered by your permit? (Sorry, I can't help but end that statement with a question mark. I'm just not positive! Ascend slowly, take rest days, drink lots of water, and hopefully you won't have to find out!) Best wishes. Let me know if I can be of any other help.
Thanks. That's very helpful. Congrats again!
im thinking of climbing Aconcagua in a similar with no guides etc but with mules to base camp could you possibly give me some links ?
Many of the logistics companies do not have websites. When you get into Mendoza to purchase your permits, it is easy to find them to arrange for the mules. We used Lankos Alto Montana and we highly recommend them.
Lynn Hall thanks this genuinely really helps are there any other things you could suggest?
Give yourself lots of time in case the weather doesn't cooperate at first. A lot of people don't summit because they can't wait long enough at Plaza de Mulas. Have fun! :)
Lynn Hall aha right thank you that really helps with planning
How much did it cost from airport to summit?
can you please explain the caching process more (such as what to stach and where to keep the stach)? thanks!
Yeah, so the idea is two-fold: 1) climb high on the mountain and then sleep lower to help acclimatization as you wait for your main summit push, and 2) cache gear higher on the mountain so that when you do climb high to stay high, you don't have to carry as much. Otherwise when you push for the summit your pack will lightly be way too heavy and you'll exhaust yourself. It works out really well to accomplish both by making these day hikes to establish high camp. Most teams have two tents on the mountain, so that's the first thing you take (keep the original tent set up down at base camp.) You can also take propane and the food you'll need. I dropped off warm clothes I wouldn't need until summit day, such as the big down mitten. Also crampons, and if you bring them, helmet and ice axe. (I'd recommend helmet and crampons but not ice axe) It's a good idea to bring the gear to Argentina in big duffels, and then you can store this gear back in the duffels at high camp. Another idea is to use big white burlap bags that your logistics company might provide to transport your gear on the mule to plaza de mulas. Once you have the gear at high camp in the duffel, just pick a spot and put medium size rocks on top so that if there's a high wind event, the gear won't blow away. You'll see lots of people doing the exact same thing. Let me know if I can help with any other questions!
Lynn Hall that helps a lot. Thank you!
Great adventure!! I´d love to do it in the same way, unguided, carrying my stuff. How heavy were you??. Would love to know the equipment you used!. Greatings!!
Hi Lynn, thanks for the detailed documentary about your trip. I am planning to do Aconcacgua next January (2018) and I would prefer to do it without a complete service guide/tour company. Your video made me realize it is possible. Would you be willing to exchange a few emails to help me prepare?
Absolutely! What's your email?
Just sent a message. let me know if you don't receive it.
Hello Steganographer, Have you decided if you are going guided or unguided ? I would like to tag along if you are going unguided if solo ? Please let me know if you email, mine is nareshsunkar@gmail.com. Thanks in Advance
Hi Naresh, I have to postpone till next year (December 2018/January2019 ) as this year I am not ready and work has creeped in. If you are up to postponing to next year, I still plan to do it self-guided, so we can plan, as it is never too early to plan for this natural beauty...
Hey Stegano, Thanks for your response. Oh..Its too bad, I wish to join with someone, May be I will go again next year, But I'm definitely shooting for this December.
Do you recommend any Logistic company based on your talks with Lynn Hall above? Another question I have is " can i find the Logistic company and a High altitude porters when I arrive in mendoza a week early?"
Hey - How did the windburned perform at 18K? I am very curious about which stove to bring, that or an a white gas stove. Also- how much fuel did you take? I would appreciate it! Congrats on the summit. Awesome video.
Congrats fellow Colorado resident! Someday Cerro Aconcagua would be my "Everest". Until then I need a rematch in Mexico. You had an amazing summit day. Thanks for sharing. So was this the typical 21 day adventure? Longer? Shorter?
Hey Tim! Always great to talk to fellow Colorado mountaineers. We spent 11 days on the mountain. Flew out on January 4, arrived at the trailhead on January 8, trekked out on January 18th. We had a few days leftover to do some site seeing. Hope you can get down there soon! It sure is awesome.
@@lynnhall4112 Hi Lyn, loved watchign your video. thanks for putting it together. very interesting! In regards to the timeframe you moved up the mountain would you say its very achievable for most folks or was it pushing the limits of acclimatization? I have previous EBC high altitude experience for reference with no problems though was on diamox on that one(though I wouldn't take diamox on aconcagua) cheers!
John
Very inspiring!! Thank you for sharing. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind sharing your layering system? What hardshell were you using?
I used thick, wicking baselayers. I most often used that green Brooks softshell. My hardshell was REI but I didn't often use it; I usually chose my Northface fleece. Finally, I had a MountainHardwear puffy which is critical. Don't forget a few short sleeves for base camp! The temperature varies greatly down there. Good luck!
How long did it take you to get to Plaza de Mulas from trailhead?
I think it took me around eight hours. My partner, Matt, was an hour faster I think. Have fun!
Thanks Lynn. Also, did you bring/need/use an ice axe and crampons for summit day?
We didn't use or bring an ice axe but we did use crampons. If the same terrain and snow coverage was at a much lower elevation, I wouldn't have found the crampons necessary, but up there everything is a little bit more difficult.
would 4 weeks from leaving to arriving back in England be enough time ?
Yeah, that would probably be perfect! If you finish more quickly, lots to do in Argentina and Chile.
Hi Lynn, Great Video!! I'm planning to climb this December, I have doubt about my capacity to do solo unguided, but I have been above 19,000 ft Asl twice and good with altitude (not even a head ache last time at Kilimanjaro, without acclimatization). I have couple of questions if you don't mind. I can email you. Please let me know your email. Thanks In advance!
nareshsunkar@gmail.com
Hi Nareesh, I just sent an email. Hope you get it! Lynn
How much is the unguided permit/climber for the normal route? I'm having trouble navigating the Spanish websites. Great video and good work!
I think it was $900 and change? Under $1,000, but yes, pricey! Here's the important part: they only take cash!!! Depending on your banking, it can be hard to acquire cash in Mendoza so I would bring enough for this fee and also any incidentals (wifi, dinners, showers) you might want at base camp. Have a great time!!
Today they will force u to camp at Confluencia one night.
That's a bummer!!
could you tell what equipment did you use?
Hi Luis, for summit day we only used crampons, no ice axe. We wish we would have brought helmets because there were so many guided groups ahead of us kicking rocks down. I wore double plastic boots. Happy trails!
i guess that you save a lot money going without guide
Yes, and also you have greater flexibility to wait for the best weather window.
What tent would you recommend me or special clothes?
Hi Lynn, Me and some friends really appreciated your video and found it very helpful. Would you be willing to swap emails since me and my friends are planning on going next December in 2018?
Absolutely! Leave your email address and I'll copy it down right away and delete your comment.