We would like to extend a hearty welcome to the members of our January 27th Aconcagua expedition!  The team members arrived in the small, vibrant city of Mendoza, Argentina over the past couple of days.  Located in the heart of the Argentine wine country, Mendoza is a fun place to spend some time, and the climbers have been exploring the sights, sounds and numerous verdant parks of the city.

The climbers are joining us from different parts of the US and abroad. Let’s meet the team!

Lisa Tessarowicz is joining us from the beautiful state of Colorado.  Lance Shaw is from the sunny state of California and Sophie Johnston joins us from Australia.

Our guides are Fermin Avila from El Bolson, Argentina and David Nesis from Telluride, Colorado.

Welcome to Argentina! Lance, Fermin, Lisa, Sophie and Dave

Argentina is known for wonderful food and delicious, locally produced red wine

The team spent yesterday finalizing their preparations, reviewing their equipment, securing their climbing permits, and going out for a nice welcome dinner.  This morning the team will head to the small ski resort of Penitentes, located near the trailhead for the Vacas Valley, which they will follow for the first two days of their approach to the mountain.  Penitentes is a couple hours drive from Mendoza, and along the way, the team will stop and have lunch at the high desert town of Ushpallata, which is somewhat famous as the area in which the film Seven Years In Tibet was filmed.

We will post updates as we hear from the team, meaning that we hope to post daily.  The guides will encourage each climber to call in audio posts, so that you can hear about the trip in the words of the climbers.  On occasion, the team could be too busy to call in or the terrain or weather might prevent them from connecting via satellite phone.  If there is no post for a day or two, please keep in mind the axiom, “No News Is Good News!”