Huascaran Index

Huascaran - 6,768m / 22,200ft

Southwest Slope - Garganta Route

Cordillera Blanca, Peru

June 15 - July 2, 2006

Itinerary	Gear List	Terms & Conditions
Peru Photo Gallery	Registration Form	English - Spanish Key Words

Join IMCS guide Fred Wilkinson to climb Huascaran, the highest peak in the Peruvian Andes and the fourth highest peak in the western hemisphere. Standing close to the city of Huaraz in northern Peru, Huascaran is part of the chain of dramatic ice peaks known as the Cordillera Blanca. Huascaran, although of modest technical difficulty, is a mountain of Himalayan proportions and an objective to be taken very seriously. All prospective team members should be aware that six climbers (3 Austrians and 3 Americans) were killed in June 2002 by serac falls/avalance. Our team summited the mountain and all climbers returned home safely but these unfortunate incidents remind us that climbing big mountains has inherent risks - and these risks can be minimized by an experienced team working together. Cooperation and communication is the key to having a safe and enjoyable experience.

The Cordillera Blanca ("Range of White") is perhaps the largest and most beautiful South American mountain range, 180 km long and 20 km wide, with many glaciated peaks above 6000m in height. Only in Asia will climbers find peaks in greater concentration and of higher elevation. Peppered with glacial lakes and hot springs, Inca and pre-Inca ruins older than 3000 years, the scenery is breathtaking in its majesty and scale. Imagine the Alps, but 1500m higher, and without cable cars, armaments, or crowds, and you've got the Cordillera Blanca.

Actually two separate summits of a conjoined massif, Huascaran Sur is the higher, with Huascaran Norte lower, at 6654m. The Parque Nacional de Huascaran was created in 1975 following suggestions by Peruvian mountaineer Cesar Morales Arnao, and encompasses 3400 km square, effectively the entire Cordillera Blanca above 4000m. Much like the US National Park Service, though on a much smaller scale, the primary goals of the park are to protect the area's natural resources and archaeological sites, promote tourism to the area, and manage visitors' impact.

Huaraz is the city most utilized by climbing expeditions to the area, with relatively easy access to higher villages and towns. This area is the most popular climbing and trekking venue in Peru and the reasons for its popularity are clear: access to it is very easy, there are few bureaucratic problems, the climbing is brilliant, and the mountains are as beautiful as those found anywhere in the world.

Huascaran Sur at sunset (click for full size image)

The climate in climbing season is typically cool and dry, with stable blue skies. The climate in the Cordillera Blanca is built on the interplay between moist air from the Amazon basin and dry desert air from the Western plains. Normal years have a standard monsoon and dry season, but El Nino years bring with them an unsettling of these patterns. The primary climbing and trekking season runs from mid-May through early September.

The weather during this time period is characterized by several days of stable weather followed by one or two of bad weather, which comes over the mountains from the East. The high elevation and strong sun makes for significant daily temperature changes Climbing conditions are unique due to the Andean snowpack, high elevation, and strong sunlight. Whereas in the northern hemisphere south-facing slopes get the most sun, in the southern hemisphere it is the north faces that are warmest and thus form the best neve and climbable ice.

The Cordillera Blanca is a very young mountain range, created five to eight million years ago by tectonic uplift, the primordial plain thrust upward to become the continental divide and deepening the adjacent river valleys. Subsequent glaciation tore through the valleys and exposed huge granite faces as well as the complex folds and faults of nearby sedimentary formations. Metamorphic bands developed between the two, with significant coal, iron, and lead deposits across the range. Short valley glaciers persist in the area, in addition to the remnants of the Pleistocene ice cap. Glacial retreat has occurred periodically, leaving behind distinctive moraine bands and high elevation lakes.

Land Cost: $3,750

Dates: June 16 - July 3, 2005

Registration

Stone face made by the Chavin civiliazation.

A registration packet is available at IMCS, which includes an application form,release of liability form and a confidential medical form. All must be properly and honestly filled out and returned along with a $700 deposit before we can accept you as an expedition member. If you have any questions or are wondering about any of the prerequisites, please call, e-mail our office and make an appointment with Maury McKinney, Brad White or Rick Wilcox.

International Mountain Climbing School, Inc.
PO Box 1666
2733 Main Street, Route 16
North Conway, NH 03860
(603) 356-7064
guides@ime-usa.com