The first rays of the sun lighting up the subtle snow covered curves of the glacier below are an astounding sight that I thought I may only see in movies and extreme skiing videos.
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We get up at midnight for the ascent. “We might not go.” is the first thing I hear spoken. Someone had stepped outside and reported the weather and the guides were doubtful: it is a blizzard. Everyone continued to drink their coffee and get dressed without interruption. The weather would pass. It did.
We head out a few minutes past one o’clock. Two persons roped to each guide, the entire group walks single file, in order of first preparedness. Our discussions of who would go faster presently seem pointless, but it is not too long before we pass people beside the trail taking breaks. I am tied up with J. Our first breaks are brief, only to catch our breath without pulling over.
After the initial steep hike to 5500m we stop for our first five minute break. The guide asks how the pace is. I tell him i could go faster. He says no, this pace is good for him. I gain much confidence in our guide then.
Before long I can not go any faster as I have to keep catching my breath. The hike itself, this middle part, is not very steep and may be easy if not for the altitude. Everybody responds in exhausted bewilderment when the guides tell us we are about halfway (5700m).
The sights of the glacier through the dark are breathtaking, if there were any breath left to take. The city of El Alto shimmers on the plain far below; La Paz is invisible in its valley.
We finally arrive at the last 200m pitch between ourselves and the summit. We were warned: this is the hard, potentially technical part. There is so much snow that no technical climbing is required, but the 50 degree grade is brutal. We move carefully but quickly as the summit is within sight.
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At first light, just before this last ascent, we pause. The imposing horned face of Illimani, the single taller mountain for many miles, is the only thing breaking the orange streak across the horizon. The altiplano, rolling sheets of cloud, and a glimpse of lake Titicaca stretch across the rest of the distant landscape. The jagged black peaks of the nearby mountains decorate the vicinity. The gradients of the glacier turn from blue to gold as the sun rises. The circle of the sun breaks from the red streak shortly after we begin the ascent. I gasp at the sunrise, with the one-second sightseeing pauses doubling as necessary rest between steps.
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The last thirty meters we barely pace ourselves, though I continue to pause involuntarily. A group is already at the summit and there is not space for more than several people. We displace them for our turn. A few minutes for a few barely framed photos, the final rush and drop of adrenaline, and to don sunglasses, and it’s time to descend and let the last few take the top.
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6088 meters above sea level. Copyright 2015 All rights reserved.
By now the sun is scorching. We stop to put on sunblock and undress at the first opportunity, but it is not enough. Not wanting to stop except for pictures, I go down boiling in my balaclava. I had never experienced such heat from the sun, at 7 in the morning no less.
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The day is over by 10 o’clock. By then I have a massive headache which I attribute to the sun. Soup for “breakfast” served at the high refuge is great relief. The white slope of the mountain is back in its place: above.
Costs
Back in La Paz for summit celebrations.
Cost today: $46.86
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