Bolivia - Illusion - P. Alpamayo - Potosi - Illimani - Lago Condoriri

Bolivia

Lago Condoriri

Huayna Potosi (19,996’)

Pequeno Alpamayo (17,482’)

Illusion (16,897’)

Extension available for Illimani (21,122’)

Overview

Difficulty Rating: Illusion, PD+; Pequeno Alpamayo, AD; Huayna Potosi, PD; Illimani, PD+
Experience Level: Advanced Intermediate
Duration: 14 days (20 w/ Illimani extension)
Climbers: 4
Guides: 2
Land Cost: $3000 ($4300 w/ Illimani extension)

Dates

Jul 2 - Jul 15, 2010

Jul 16 - Jul 21, 2010 (ext.)

Expedition Code

BVIP-10-07020715

BVIPX-10-07160721

Expedition Goals

Illusion is an easy climb on an aesthetic mountain well-suited for a warm-up.

Pequeno Alpamayo is a classic snow pyramid with the steep, fluted faces and knife-edge ridges for which the Andes are known. Pequeno Alpamayo is a moderate climb in a beautiful lovely setting that finishes up with a breathtaking ridge to the summit.

Huayna Potosi rises 15 miles from the capital city of La Paz and is the most popular climb in Bolivia. The normal route is a moderate glacier climb among crevasses, and a steep climb to the summit. Potosi is a world-class mountaineering peak with a breathtaking summit and indescribable views of Lake Titicaca, the Cordillera Real and the Amazon Basin.

Illimani (optional extension) is known as “The Shining One”, Illimani the highest and southernmost mountain in Bolivia’s most extensive mountain range, the Cordillera Real.

Prerequisites

Participation in this climbing expedition requires intermediate mountaineering skills. You must have a good working knowledge of the techniques for staying warm and dry while climbing, traveling and camping in extremely cold conditions, and the proper use of ice axe and crampons. Additionally, you must be comfortable moving over steep snow and ice up to 70-degrees, following grade 3 ice, and be proficient in commonly accepted belay techniques. High altitude experience up to 14,000 feet, glacier travel experience, and technical ice climbing experience are required. For reasons of personal and team safety and success, it is imperative you arrive for this climb in excellent physical condition.

Itinerary

Day 1 — Arrive in Bolivia; transfer from airport; hotel check-in. Arrive in El Alto (13,123’), where an Expedition-Logistics guide will be waiting to greet you. After a gear inventory and hotel check-in, take some time to relax or explore the city. This evening, get to know your guides and teammates at the welcome dinner and expedition briefing.

Day 2 — Casual wake-up; acclimatization in La Paz; administration & logistics. We will be closely monitoring everyone’s health, as the partial pressure at altitude in La Paz (11,900’) is quite low and mountain sickness is a very real possibility for team members who’ve traveled from significantly lower elevations. To begin the acclimatization process we’ll wander the hilly streets sightseeing and shopping. In particular, we’ll check out the Mercado de las Brujas, or Witches’ Market, on Calle Linares, where we will find real witches selling magic spells and potions, folk and herbal remedies, and handcrafted jewelry. The Witches' Market is also offers one-stop shopping for your last-minute purchases of dried frogs, owl feathers, or dried llama fetuses (you know, for good luck). Throughout the day we’ll catch glimpses of Illimani, which dominates the view from town.

Day 3 — Early wake-up; transfer to Tiahuanaco ruins; overnight in Copacabana. After breakfast we drive to the ruins of the ancient city of Tiahuanaco. In addition to being Bolivia's most significant archaeological site, Tiahuanaco is a portal through which to view the ancient Amyara people and pre-Inca culture. Tiahuanaco was established on the Bolivian side of Lake Titicaca in 400 B.C. The city developed into a major ceremonial center, and was built with many terraced platforms, pyramids, courts and urban centers dispersed over two and a half square miles. The ruins include elaborate courtyards, giant stone figures, and the Gate of the Sun, which is thought to have been an observatory and solar calendar dating to 600 B.C. We overnight in Copacabana (12,500’).

Day 4 — Casual wake-up; visit Isla del Sol; return to Copacabana. Today we continue our acclimatization while navigating the high seas of Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world and a sacred place to the Incas. In the morning we visit Isla del Sol, which was an Inca huaca, or holy shrine; the very place where they believed the world began. Later in the day we land on Isla Suriqui, where we explore Inca ruins and observe local villagers going about their lives in ways not far removed from that of the ancient Incas.

Day 5 — Early wake-up; transfer to Tuni; trek to Condoriri basecamp. This morning we drive to the village of Tuni (13,779’), where we trade in our internal combustion engines for burros. With these gentle, hard-working animals hauling our gear, we make the 4-5 hour trek to Condoriri basecamp on the shores of Chiar Kota, or Black Lake (15,091’). If the approach doesn’t leave you breathless, the alpine setting and views of peaks including Ilusion, Pequeno Alpamayo, Apacheta, Blancacita, Pico Mirador and Condoriri certainly will.

Day 6 — Casual wake-up; mandatory rest day. Today is a rest day to promote recovery and allow for proper acclimatization. It is important to remember that rest and recuperation are vital to the acclimatization process and the prevention of altitude sickness. Our well thought-out and proven system of active acclimatization – incremental increases in altitude and exertion in combination with sufficient recovery time and proper nutrition – has paid off time and again with a consistently high success rate summit days.

Day 7 — Early wake-up; Ilusion summit; return to basecamp. Setting out from camp, we negotiate a heavily crevassed glacier and climb up steep, snowy ridges towards the summit of this beautiful peak and its panoramic vistas. Afterwards, we descend to basecamp.

Day 8 — Casual wake-up; mandatory rest day. Today is a rest day to promote recovery and allow for proper acclimatization.

Day 9 — Alpine wake-up; Pequeno Alpamayo summit; return to basecamp. Leaving camp, we traverse along the base of Cabeza de Condor. Hiking up along a lateral moraine to the base of the Tarija glacier, we rope up and head to the top of Tarija (17,449’). Descending from the summit of Tarija, we downclimb a rocky section, the bottom of which deposits us on the narrow, corniced ridge leading to the summit of Pequeno Alpamayo (17,482’). Afterwards, we descend to basecamp.

Day 10 — Early wake-up; return trek to Tuni; transfer to Zongo Valley; trek to Refugio Huayna Potosi. This morning we pack up and meet our mule-drivers for the trek back to Tuni. In town we load into 4x4s for the drive to the Zongo Valley, from there it’s uphill to the Refugio Huayna Potosi (15,748’), where we overnight.

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