Climbing Cerro Torre in books & videos
I have been fortunate enough in my life to visit Patagonia 6 times and gaze with wonder and awe at the peak of Cerro Torre. Quite simply, one of the best looking mountains in the world and proof that mountains don't have to be judged in terms of height, as Cerro Torre stands a mere 3128m above sea level.
Patagonian Icecap Expedition 2016
The expedition was beset by unsettled weather and enforced route changes due to unseasonal warm weather.
Patagonian Icecap November 2016 & Cerro Mariano Moreno
Details of our proposed expedition in November 2016 to the Patagonian Icecap to climb the remote peak of Cerro Mariano Moreno (3462m). It is the third highest peak in Patagonia and is rarely climbed. It is the highest summit in the Cordon Mariano Moreno massif, in the centre of the icecap and is accessible only by lengthy trekking over the many glaciers.
Expedition Trip Report Patagonian Icecap November 2014
A trip report, photos and video links together with some personal thoughts, recommendations and musings after this years expedition to the Patagonian Icecap in November 2014 (by Richard Hartley of Spanish Highs)
On Thursday we begin our 2014 Patagonian Icecap Adventure
Thursday we leave for Argentina and one of the last true wilderness areas on earth, the Patagonian Icecap. Who knows what adventures it will bring? What surprises it has in store for us?
Lounging at the Altar of the Patagonian Mountain Gods
The Cirque is to be found on the western side of the Cerro Torre massif, at the eastern edge of the great southern icecap which stretches 300 miles long and 50 miles wide between Argentina and Chile. In fact this is the largest piece of ice outside the polar regions.
Insights the mountains & wilderness have shown me this year
There were ups and downs, of course (it is the mountains after all.....ha ha!), but experiences in the Sierra Nevada and Patagonia have shown me some insights I thought I'd share with you.
Oh, Patagonia, to leave you we shall weep!
Poem by Michelle Wakeley about her time spent with us on our recent Southern Patagonian Icecap Expedition
Debilitating effects of Snowblindness, a personal experience
This article relates my own personal experience on the Patagonian Icecap with this painful condition. I am not a medical expert and haven't read up on all the facts, so if you want the medical stuff then do a Google Search. I relate below only my own experience.
Snow wall construction to eliminate drifting on leeward side
Sometimes a basic snow wall is not sufficient to keep the elements at bay. The wind can drop spindrift on the leeward side thus burying the tents. Is there a solution in the way we can construct snow walls that would make them more efficient?
Travel Advice & Recommendations to El Chalten, Patagonia
The town of El Chalten comes as a pleasant surprise. It is tucked away between some rock walls north west of the magnificent Lago Viedma in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina. It has a clean and frontier feel to it and the people are genuinely warm, friendly and helpful.
Rescue efforts fail to aid climbers on Patagonian Glacier
Unfortunately the Mexican did not survive and died from hypothermia. Yesterday, the helicopter could not reach the ice cave where the two guides await. If the weather does not improve, they will have to be evacuated on foot.
The Climax is the Coming Back from a Dangerous Place
We must have upset the weather gods. Unlike previous trips, this time Patagonia threw everything it had as us weather wise. Like other Argentine groups we sat for 3 or more days at La Playita campsite waiting for our chance to climb onto the icecap. During that time we were nearly blown away in gale force winds, got snowed in and once when flooded, had to build drainage diches in the middle of the night to allow excess water to escape.
Cerro Grande, Cerro Adela and Walter Bonatti
The beautiful Patagonian peaks of Cerro Adela and Cerro Grande lie south of the majestic and dramatic peaks of Cerro Torre and Mount Fitzroy. Yet in February 1958 both peaks, all those in between them, were traversed in one amazing day by the incomparable Walter Bonatti and his climbing partner, Carlo Mauri.
Patagonia Icefield Expedition Diary 2010
Report from Jane Fields on her experiences on the Patagonian Icefield Expedition in 2010 Rolling across the Patagonian Steppe on un-surfaced roads on a crowded bus was how this journey began. Nothing for miles but open grassland and hills on the horizon. My daydreams were interrupted by a stop at an Inn in the middle of nowhere where we were treated to coffee and delicious home-made cakes.