Huayna Potosí

Summit Day!

Man I have been lazy on here.  Oh well.... it is what it is.  This will be more a photo dump once again in order to share and remember this trip years down the road.  I really love Bolivia and this mountain range.  I hope to go back some day.

Out of the 4 of us (Tom, Carlo, Bob and myself) only Bob and I made the summit due to altitude sickness.  The other 2 turned around at about 19,000 feet which is a great accomplishment in itself!  Anyways round trip took us just a few minutes over 12 hours.  Long day but short compared to mountaineering standards on high mountains like this.

This was a trip of a life time for me and I am already looking for the next high mountain to target.  Below each photograph should lay out the day for you.  Thanks for reading!

View of Huayna Potosí on the drive to base camp.  This photo is taken at about 15,000ft which is the same elevation of base camp.

Base Camp:  Cost us $40 each for a ride here and 2 meals.  Such a different world down there.

View at sunset of Huayna Potosí from base camp

Looking down the valley from base camp

Our driver to and from base camp, he is also a guide but we choose not to use guides just to up the pucker factor for us.

Another view of Huayna Potosí from base camp dining room window.  Staring at it all through dinner knowing in 6 hours we would be starting up in the dark at midnight.

Pre-climb meal made by base camp cook.  Eaten at around midnight just before taking off.  Steak, eggs and tomatoes.  What more could one ask for?

Group shot of pre-climb meal

Sunrise looking towards La Paz, taken from about 17,500ft.

Climb baby climb...  some glacier views on the way up.  Taken around 18,000ft

More glaciers, the whole top of the mountain is covered in a glacier.

Bob being lazy and posing for the camera.  ;o)

Sunrise!

Had to snap a selfie on the final ridge to the summit.  That is Bob behind me.  We decided to un-rope on this narrow ridge figuring all a rope would do is take the other person along with who falls.  This ridge is at about 19,800ft.

Bob on the final ridge to the summit.

SUMMIT!  Bob at 19,974ft!

My summit shot!

More summit shots with a little better background of the Andes Mountains.

More glacier shots on the way down.

70ft ice wall at 19,000ft we had to go up and down.

Tom slogging it out.

Carlo taking a quick break at Camp 1 at 17,000ft on the way down.  We skipped this camp on the way up.

Looking back up at the summit just a mile or so from returning to base camp.

Celebration time!  Back at base camp.

Carlo is not feeling to well at the finish.