Entries By james bealer

The itinerary of this Aconcagua climb has been anything but ordinary. The weather saw to that ever since we first tried to move to Camp 1 and promptly had to do an about-face back to Basecamp. Since that day, the guides have had to stay on their toes, rearranging, pivoting, and scraping together a plan that would give us the best shot for the summit. Well, this group's ability to adapt to the changing circumstances on a moments notice may just payoff. Today was originally our day to summit, but the wind had other ideas. So now we are once again resting, eating, and acclimatizing at Camp 2. However, this means that tonight is our night. The last night in fact! The wind and temperatures look ideal for a successful summit attempt. But don’t get excited for us just yet, having had to push the summit day back as far as possible to improve our chances with the weather means tomorrow will be a monster of a day. We will launch our summit attempt from Camp 2 instead of high camp, a move not possible with any other group I’ve climbed this mountain with. If we are successful and make it to the top, we then must head back down to Camp 2, pick up the gear the porters didn’t carry down and continue downhill all the way back to Basecamp! A summit to Basecamp in a day itinerary is no small feat, but having seen how well prepared these climbers are, I firmly believe they can pull it of in good style. Everyone one of them trained hard and came prepared for a difficult climb. Tomorrow will be extremely hard, but if we can pull it off, it will make one hell of a story! Wish us luck!

RMI Guide Nick Scott

Today we rested once again. Our plan had been to move to high camp today, but once again our plans were changed due to the longest stretch of windy weather seen on this mountain in the month of January. Fortunately, the winds are forecasted to drop significantly over the next few days which is lucky for us since we only have the next two days to pull off a summit. Everyone is doing well and adjusting to the altitude perfectly. By the time we pull the trigger on a summit attempt I expect we will be so well acclimatized that we will all sprint to the top of this mountain. All of you at home send us some good vibes and cross your fingers that the winds give the window we need to stand on the top of South America!

RMI Guide Nick Scott

Today was the day! The day we would move from Basecamp straight to Camp 2, or Nido de Condores as it is officially called here. Unfortunately, the wind still did not want to cooperate and the mountain was still going to make us work for every foot of elevation gain. We walked up hill through snow, sleet, grapple, and wind gusts that made us wobble. When the wind came, we put our heads down and persevered making great time to our gear cache at Camp 1. After adding some “training weight” to our packs we turned towards Camp 2, walking into more and more wind and snow. Aconcagua really didn’t want this trip to be an easy one, not that any of them are ever easy. After 5 1/2 hours and 4000 feet of elevation gain we strolled into camp feeling accomplished, but tired and of course very hungry. By the time we put up our tents the wind was giving us a break, but the snow how now doubled its efforts and dropping 6-7 inches of fluffy powder on us in a couple hours. We were all happy to be warm and cozy in our tents watching the snow fall and waiting for dinner to help warm our bellies. Once again, everyone on this team absolutely styled an incredibly difficult day. Arriving in camp smiling and feeling well despite the thin air here at 18,500 feet. Tomorrow is a rest day and hopefully a sunny one at that!

RMI Guide Nick Scott

We woke to another windy day here at basecamp. After reinforcing our tent anchors, we had a delicious breakfast.  The meal was leisurely and delicious, and everyone was in high spirits. We took a walk mid day to stretch our legs and get an incredible view of the mountain.  The rest of the day was spent resting and sorting gear. Tomorrow the weather is supposed to become more favorable, and we plan on moving to Camp 2 in order to best position ourselves for the summit.  

RMI Guide Nick Scott & Team

January 18, 2022

Today we rested at basecamp, avoiding the high winds as much as possible.  The team read books, watched some movies, and ate lots of snacks.  We are waiting for a break in the winds to try and make a final move up the mountain.  

RMI Guide James Bealer

Monday, January 17, 2022

What a crazy 36 hours! We arrived at Aconcagua Camp 1 excited for the true expedition to begin, but little did we know, the mountain had other plans. We crawled in our tents after dinner with moderate winds slapping the tent walls, but what began as moderate mountain winds soon grew into freight train roars. Gust after gust battered the tents as we scrambled to secure more guy lines and add more rocks to the anchors. What started as 40 mph gusts soon grew to 80 mph and greater! It felt as if the mountain was unhappy with our presence on its flanks. The wind was relentless all night, making the guide's job tireless as we constantly left the safety of our tent to check on the security of the others. No one slept a wink as we all constantly felt the need brace the walls of our tent as the roar of the train built high in the mountain and finally crashed angrily into our camp. As the sun rose, the wind flowed unabated but with less severity as it had throughout the night. With the light increasing we were able to survey the damage. One out of the three tents didn’t survive, but all climbers woke unscathed, albeit a little sleep deprived. Despite their experience, it was the guides whose tent was left broken and battered and who had to seek shelter in the emergency dome tent set up by our logistics company for just such an occasion. With the sun rising, the group sipped coffee with 1,000-yard stares until the caffeine kicked in and we were able to process what just happened. With a broken tent and the forecast changing for the worst, the mountain forced our hand. The guides made the tactical decision to retreat back to basecamp to regroup and pick up our spare tent we had left behind. However, this does not mean the adventure is over. We plan to rest where the air is thicker, wait out the bad weather, and continue on up the mountain in two days. Everyone is tired, but in good spirits after such a trying night on Aconcagua. Wind is what this mountain is famous for and it delivered in spades. Two nights of good sleep in basecamp will have us rested and ready to give it another go. Let’s just hope the mountain decides to let us pass.

RMI Guide Nick Scott

Sunday, January 16, 2021 - 11:18 AM PST

The team moved up to Camp 1 at Plaza Canada today, situated at 16,500 feet.  Our packs were noticeably lighter after carrying most of our gear up to camp a few days ago.  We quickly got settled in and shored our tents against the upcoming wind.  Everyone is happy to be above basecamp and starting our push towards the summit. 

RMI Guide Nick Scott & Team

After an impressive showing on our Carry Day we decided to let the group rest their weary muscles at before we begin our progression up the mountain. Lots of eating and sleeping are being done today at Basecamp before the meal quality decreases and the altitude does it’s best to rob you of valuable shut eye. I can definitely feel the excitement in the group as all of us are eager to move higher and test our mettle against the mountain. Send good vibes out to the weather gods for us. We are hoping for sunny skies and light winds from here on out. Two things Aconcagua does not provide often.

RMI Guide Nick Scott

Finally! A day to rest, relax, and check out the worlds highest art gallery! Yes you read that correctly. Today, we all had a nice sleep-in before stumbling into our dining tent for a lazy breakfast. The basecamp air was cold and crisp this morning. A welcome change from the hot, dry weather down in the Horcones Valley that we trekked through the day before. After breakfast, the team was given packing lists to prepare for our gear carry to Camp 1 tomorrow. The first carry of the trip is arguably the hardest day outside of summit day due to the weight of the packs. But for now, everyone is putting the thought of back breaking loads out of their minds and focusing on acclimating to our new elevation here at basecamp. Many have already toured the art gallery and purchased a few souvenirs for those of you reading this at home in the States. We will spend the rest of the day watching the frequent mountain showers pass through camp and waiting for the next opportunity to stuff our faces with the amazing food provided by our logistics company Grajales Expeditions. Everyone is doing well and excited to move higher up the mountain! Fingers crossed we have good weather for our trip to Camp One.

RMI Guide Nick Scott

We woke up early today for the long hike to basecamp. The tents were wet from the fog that rolled through moments earlier and was still visible slowly making its way down valley. After a quick breakfast, we packed our duffles for the trip to basecamp began the longest walk of the climb. It would be 10.7 miles over dry, undulating terrain and across streams fed by snow and glacial melt as we slowly gained elevation. It was the clearest and sunniest day so far. Great for sightseeing, not so great when trekking through a high altitude desert. The summit of Aconcagua even managed to make a brief appearance once or twice along the way. After 10 miles of hard walking we made the final push straight up hill for the last .7 into basecamp. The team crushed the trek coming in two hours under the expected time, far outpacing both guides estimates. This team is Muy Fuerte, as they say here in Argentina. We are definitely feeling the altitude here at 14,500', but it’s nothing a rest day can’t fix. Tomorrow we relax and soak in the base camp vibes while planning our move to the upper mountain.

RMI Guide Nick Scott