This Boys in Love

Here is the trip report of a new route I climbed a wee while ago, but have only just got around to writing it up! Enjoy…




So I’d had a fun time in the last few weeks away on my trip. Learning how to ski and hanging out with my parents was all good fun but I still had the burning desire to head out into the wilderness and suffer. Earlier I the year my good friend Garry and I had climbed a new route up the intimidating east face of Mt Anne in Tassie south-west. We had both commented how it would be amazing to come back and solo a new route up the face.

The forecast for the weekend was good so I readied the battle gear midweek and left after work on the Friday night. Arriving at the trailhead well after dark I set off for the 2 hour slog up to the hut. Recent rain meant the first 200m soaked my pants, lucky I had my synthetic bag. With the tunes cranking I trudged ever upwards with a pack full of rope and climbing gear. I had gone pretty slim with food and fuel, leaving little breathing room if something went wrong. I arrived at the hut shortly before midnight and flaked the rope to make a sleeping mat.

Shortly after falling asleep a strange scratching sound woke me. It must be the resident hut mouse. I tried to scare him and he finally settled down. That is until I heard him a foot from my head.

‘don’t you dare!’, I thought to myself.

Next thing I know he’s jumped into the small opening in my bag and going for my face!! After a quick struggle he jumps back out and hightails it to his hole in the corner. I think we were both shaken! Luckily he didn’t bother me further and I was soon catching Z’s till my alarm sounded at dawn.

I struggled to stomach some porridge and tea before setting off to make my way across the plateau. The track was covered in ice. With every footstep I climbed, the self doubt grew stronger. The talus(scree) was covered in snow and made going slow and treacherous. It would be too easy to break a leg out here on my own. Everything I saw through the eyes of a coward. Everything was an excuse to go back to safety. Lack of food, the cold, how dangerous this all was. But somehow I kept that little voice quiet and battled on.

Halfway across to the wall I broke the ice of a lake to drink, having run out of water. I filled the bottles here, unsure as to where I’d find water next. Soon I came to the descent gully to the foot of the face. I barely recognised it from summer, being filled deep with snow. Not having crampons or an axe I gingerly made my down. With only 10 metres left till the 30m abseil I slipped. I had enough time to think, ‘this is it, im gone.’. sliding down only a few metres to go, my leg caught in a bergshrund and stopped me going the distance. I sat in the snow for 10 minutes to compose myself before abseiling down, pulling my ropes, and committing to the looming face above.




I stopped to brew up and guzzled as much food and water as I could spare. I knew the hard time I had ahead of me! The hardest part was deciding on which line to take. With only one route on the face a had a lot to choose from! I spied an obvious corner system and set off toward that. The first fifty metres were short steps of vertical rock, all capped with wet slippery mantels to gain the next crack. I finally made the base of the corner to learn it was fused for the first 5 metres or so. An awesome free route, but not so good for solo-aiding! I traversed left to the base of a thin seam that appeared to crack to a crack up high. I only had one 60m rope, so that meant jugging and cleaning every pitch with my rucksack on my back.


With the belay organised I started up the next pitch. Hooking for a few moves off the belay I tentatively climbed higher on some good peckers. Finally I made it too the wider crack and some good gear. I say wider crack, but it never grew above half camalot size. 40m out from the belay I was back on dodgy A2 gear without a whole lot left on the rack. A small roof blocked my view of where the crack went and the gear was running out. Starting to get pretty scared that id be left out hanging in the middle of no-mans land without retreat options, I had no other choice but to keep climbing and hope for the best. Luckily as I hooked over the roof, a thin crack led me upwards. Finally arriving to a detached column I slung the top of it to clean the pitch.

After jugging back up to the pillar I faced a rather big problem. All around the pillar was fused, not allowing any gear to make an upwards pull anchor to belay myself with. I felt fairly confident that the number 4 behind the pillar would push the pillar off the cliff if I fell. After 15 minutes of trying to get anything from upside-down hooks to peckers an idea came. I slung the rope around the middle of the pillar so it cinched down tight. The whole column would be my belay. I prayed I wouldn’t detach it completely. Straight off the belay I had to made awkward moves of average pecker after pecker. Soon I was looking down past a rattly cam into the deep abyss of the face. I came to a ledge that felt wet and slippery. Another adrenaline fuelled mantel saw me standing precariously on grass and dirt. I reached high and plugged in a good piece. Relief washed over me. I was some plugging and chugging my way up the final A1 cracks to the summit of the first wall. I found a good belay to clean the final 40m pitch and faced a tough decision.

The true summit lay beyond a labyrinth of ledges and steps. Time consuming ground when your on your own. I sat down to take stock. I had enough food to see me through the day, but no more. And my fuel would run out at breakfast. Feeling my sleeping bag, it was still soaked from sleeping in it with wet clothes the previous night. All these factors made it an easy decision to traverse off and make tracks home. Slogging my way up the steep snow back to the tracking was back breaking work. After gaining the flat track I was able to move fast, glad to be back in the horizontal. It grew dark as I was reaching the hut. Realising I wasn’t too far from the trailhead I continued. Arriving at the car, beaten, tired, but with the biggest shit-eating grin of my life. With a new 140m aid route completed I was one happy camper. I finally made it home 18 hours after waking that morning in the hut and collapsed into bed, my mind full of thoughts of the conquered dream.



"This Boys in Love, 140m, 16 A3"

1. 50m, 14 A1. Up steep broken ground heading towards the base of the large Left facing corner on the left of the face. At base of corner head left 5m to belay beneath thin crack in middle of face.
2. 50m, A2+. Hook up off the ledge to gain the thin crack. Much small gear leads you up and up before belaying on top of large detached pillar.
3. 40m, A3. Spicy peckers off the belay lead to mantel into base of A1 crack to the summit. belay up and right in obvious crack.

FA Simon Young(solo) 3/10/2009

From here traverse off left along back to main walking track, hairy in places! is possible to continue rambling up to the top buttress, time, cold and lack of bivy gear led me out back to civilisation.

Suggested Rack:
doubles of cams from teeny micros to #2 camalot
singles #3 & #4
double set of wires
all sizes hooks(cam hooks useful)
selection of pins, mostly blades/peckers
testicles, preferably large(had none on FA, but would have been useful)

Hatun Machay

the weather everywhere was crap. everyone seemed to be gravitating back towards Huaraz, out of the hills. we had heard whispers from friends about an amazing sport-climbing area called Hatun Machay. apparently Peru´s premier rock-climbing area. we went to investigate at the local office that organises transport to and from the refuge that serves the area. we were amazed at how easy everything was, with a bus leaving every day.

we packed all our gear ready for a few days in the sun. it would be nice to clip bolts and relax! we made our way down to the office and at 8am the bus left for the 1.5 hour drive. the bus had many people from all nationalities. everyone was in good spirits and ready for some laughs.

we arrived at the Refugio and were greeted by views of the amazing rock formations that make up Hatun Machay. there are currently about 120 routes established, but the potential is endless. with 10 lives you wouldnt get halfway through it. we eagerly walked the 15 minutes to the crag and set about climbing as many classics as we could! out of shape from the mountains it was a struggle but we managed to climb routes up to 6c+(23). we climbed in the warm sun all day before making our way up to the hut for some dinner.

the hut is recently built and a great theing to have. for only 20 soles per night you´re provided with a kitchen, utensils and a comfy bed! we sunk some of the beers we had brought, and settled into laughing in front of the fire. there were some great people up there, i only wish my spanish was better!

in the morning we were woken by the many cute dogs roaming around. after a hearty breakfast we made our way once more down to the crag! towards lunchtime we were joined by our friends, the pro skiers. these three girls(and guy) were here carrying skies up the big hills to ski down. all this to raise money for a local charity. it was pretty impressive what they had been up to! maybe when im in europe i can get a free lesson!! the rest of the day was spent laughing, climbing and having a ball! Rob and i decided to head back to Huaraz with the skiers to enjoy some amazing local food cooked by Zarela.

i was sad to leave such an amazing area. i looked at changing my ticket to stay and head back to Hatun Machay. theres a drill and bolts available for putting up new routes and i was keen as mustard! unfortunatly though, it would cost more money than i could justify. maybe next year!

if your in Peru or even south america i'd recommend a visit to Hatun Machay. Andres, the owner, has done a fantastic job of creating a climbers paradise. give it a few years and it will become a global destination! get in quick! you can check out all the information at www.andeankingdom.com!

Dreaming Big...

the suggestion of Taulliraju had gotten both Rob and I excited. this would be what we were after, a long, hard and sustained outing that would push us to the limit both mentally and physically. we were thinking of trying the Italian Butress(VI, WI6, M6) but had also heard rumors that the un-climbed direct might be in condition. the plan was to take food and supplies in, and have a sniff about to see what was in.



after stocking up on coffee, food and plenty of snacks we made our way once more to the trailhead of the Santa Cruz valley. this time however we were early enough to do the approach in a day. our young arriero was very helpful and by late afternoon we were pitching basecamp and staring up at the imposing south-west face of Taulliraju. i was awestruck, it was the most beautiful thing i had ever seen in the flesh. we picked up our small binoculars and starting trying to see what was happening up on the face. a passing trekker lent us his much better pair and we could get right up close, and soon see how things looked.

the direct looked good. at least through the binoculars! if what looked like ice didnt prove to be the infamous powder on rock the Andes often serves up, there would only be a short rock section to join the two ice smears. being fit, acclimatised and psyched out of our heads, we would go try and get the first ascent of this incredible line. we would never forgive ourselves if we didnt at least try!

after a rest day prepaing food and a meagre rack we settled into to reading books before heading up to bivy on the glacier the next day. at 5am however disaster struck. the pitter-patter of rain drops slowly started increasing on my tent, and soon it was pouring steadily. poking my head out of the entrance it looked grim. barely able to se the moraine, this weather wasn´t just a passing shower. all day it poured down rain while up high it snowed. through the day we passed time reading in our tents getting more and more frustrated. we just wanted to go have an adventure, failure or success, it didnt matter as long as we could push the boat out and see what happened.

i finished my book shortly before Rob finished his. we swapped and kept this up till dinner time. hopefully this would clear during the night and we could depart a day late. all through the night it kept up and we woke to the same routine. more tea and reading passed the day. the weather showed no sign of improving and we were running out of time. with a plane to catch we made the decision to bail. up high would have too much snow and need to settle for a day or so and we just didnt have the time. an Arriero passed us with un-burdened donkeys and we soon arranged to be out that day.

all afternoon we walked and walked till we were out. tired at the end we were both disappointed we didnt even make it passed basecamp. when the locals continously tried to rip us off it was the last straw. nearly exploding with rage we caught a taxi and got out of there. soon we were back at Zarela's having showers and going out for beers to drown our sorrows. oh well, maybe next year. id much rather dream big and fail than never experience the restless nights before you push it to the limit, and discover what your truly capable of!

Up & Down & Back Again

so Rob was feeling pretty average the whole way out of the Ischinca valley. unable to keep food down he was soon gripped by fever on the taxi ride home. after 24 hours back in Huaraz he was feeling much better. a course of antibiotics had done him well. feeling well enough to consider eating some food we went to a local restaurant with a good reccomendation. we tucked away a hearty meal felt fat and contented. it was here we met Nate and Marcus, two americans that had been about for a while. Marcus was heading home the next day and Nate had 48 hours until his Dad and a mate were showing up in Huaraz. he put the question forward;

'Are you interested in heading up to climb Churup?'

Churup is a close by mountain that features some more technical climbing at a lower altitude. i was a biut hesitant at first, i didnt want to leave Rob on his own so i said i'd think about it. the next day Nate was still keen as mustard, and Rob wanted a little bit more time to start feeling better. it was on! i quickly packed up what we´d need and we were soon waiting out the front of the hostel for our taxi. a short drive later we were at the trailhead. we started walking, the track being familiar as we had hiked it for acclimatisation. this time, however, the packs were much heavier! we were both feeling fit and moved fast up to the first lake. getting many strange looks for all the other tourists. by now im used to that, 'you must be crazy' expression people have written all over their faces upon seeing big packs!

a few hours after starting we found our campsite. a beautifully secluded beach next to an amazing lake. above us loomed the mountain in all its glory, flanked by seracs and glaciers. we settled in to resting, hydrating and getting ready for a midnight start. we had to be down in town by about 1830 the next day, the taxi would be waiting for us at 1700 at the base of the trail. we would have to work hard and move fast!

the alarms rung and we snapped into gear, getting tea and breakfast on. like a well oiled machine we were soon heading out across the scree(talus) on route to the glacier. we steadily made our way onwards and upwards in the dark. feeling our way up the glacier. soon we arrived at the base of the route and we put the rope on for the first time. a steep traverse led us to the base of the rockband that provided the meat of the hard climbing. Nate took the first pitch. some amazing mixed climbing, without much gear for saftey saw us 70m higher. the climbing was easy enough to savour, and not worry about having to change undies later on!

Nate passed me the rack of gear and i made my way up and left, finding the traverse line that led to easier ground. some enthralling climbing led me out and out. with much hooking and torquing of my tools i was soon back onto snow. that had been some of the best mixed climbing i had done. Nate swung through the belay and led through a final band of rock and onto the headwall snowslopes above. we were moving fast and climbing well together, everything going well! the sun met us during the second pitch of snow. we continued to pitch it up the 65-70 degree neve and soon Nate cried down that he could see the summit ridge. i could scarcely believe him, it felt like we had much longer to go! he was right though, and soon we were taking in the panoramic views of the entire mountain range. a break for some water and food that i had neglected to eat on the route was warmly welcomed.

we made our way down the ridgeline to the first of the abseils. these were all fixed down a buttress of terrible rock. each abseil saw small rocks whizzing by us, threating to hit us, or worse, cut the rope. we kept at it and made it safe and sound back down to the glacier. here we packed the rope away and started down to our camp. we were soon down. its amazing how an approach seems so much longer in the dark! we checked the clock at camp, we had made it in 12 hours round trip! with plenty of time to spare we packed up and made our way down the hill.



arriving back at the trailhead much earlier than expected we were glad to find a waiting collectivo. we made our way down and cancelled the arranged taxi. i made my way to Cafe Andino´s for a beer and some food to celebrate. all the guys were there already so it was great! Rob was feeling better so we started thinking what was next.

with out too many ideas Nate piped in a great suggestion, why not try the fearsome Taulliraju. we were sold instantly. No one had tried this amzing mountain yet this season. it stands proud at the head of the Santa Cruz valley. Giving the impression of an impregnable castle, where all the bad guys live in the clouds. we were keen to go face those bad guys head on....

The Ischinca Valley

After a few days of chowing down on some of Huaraz's finest food (mostly at cafe andino´s), we were about ready to go back into the thick of it and try the only other real goal we had for peru. this would involve walking up the Ischinca valley to climb the classic West Facce of Tocllaraju. this is a well know route that involves mostly 55-60 degree ice with a steeper pitch to exit onto the summit ridge.

there was a local transport strike on by all the collectivo drivers that meant we had to get up early to get a cab to the strart of the trail. we had rand ahead and arranged some donkeys. they were waiting on arrival and we were soon underway. the walk up the valley was beautiful. many rock towers rose either side, making me wish i had more time to go rock-climbing! three hours later we arrived at basecamp and settled in next to some brits we met in at Alpamayo, Lester and Ben.

we had an afternoon to kill which was spent packing to move to the high camp the next day. near the camp theres also a fun little sport route. some other guys had a top-rope on it so i went over and had a play. unfortunately i only had my trainers on, but it was fun none the less!

we woke the next day and made the final preperations to head up and climb our route. the weather didnt look too amazing but we left camp anyway. 45 minutes up the track it started snowing pretty heavily so Rob and I huddled under a big boulder and weighed up our options. it started to clear and we decided to just carry some of the gear up the hill to high-camp, then sleep in base camp before heading up the next day. this wuoold hopefully allow the weather to clear a bit, and allow the fresh snow to settle out a bit.

the next day saw us slogging back up the same hill. luckily half our gear was already up there so the walk was much easier! we found a great little sheltered spot at about 5150m. a lot of people camp a little bit higher, but that sites in the open. we set the alarms for midnight and settled in to try and get some sleep. in the late afternoon we had a visitor.

a couple of alaskans had decided to try the normal route in a single push from base-camp. they had, however left at 8am that day. not exactly an alpine start. we had been watching their slow progress from our camp before we noticed there was only one person on the ridge now. soon after Torsten joined us for some tea. his friend, Andrew, had decided to keep going! Torsten soon made his way down, telling us to keep an eye on Andy. as darkness fell he was still going up!

a restless night for both of us saw us soon rolling out of our warm sleeping bags and getting ready for the route. we left camp at 1am and were soon slogging up the glacier towards our goal. there was a nice path up most of the way from people who had climbed the normal ridgeline. we broke off the path to get to our route and were instantly plugging steps in soft snow. soon we arrived at the base of the face and were confronted with a monster bergschrund. we found a way through, involving some overhanging ice for a few metres and were on the face proper now.

i led off up the 60 degree nevé, finding perfect conditions. we led in blocks of three pitches, so as t stay warmer not belaying for two pitches at a time. after five or so pitches were arrived at the first obstacle, some dorment seracs. we skirted to the right a touch and blasted onwards and upwards. daylight had crept up on us now and the warmth was a welcome feeling. the lower face had been freezing! soon we punched onto the lower angled ridge that led to the summit. here the snow was deep and at 6000m it was really hard work. stopping for breath every 10 steps or so we were soon standing on top. unfortunately clouds blocked most of our views. it was snowing lightly so we started making our way down. a few abseils and some downclimbing saw us trudging back across the glacier to our camp.

we ate the remainder of the food and packed our stuff and made our way down. my knees felling the full impact of a heaving load! soon however we were down, frying up eggs bought from the local canteen. we were keen to have a go at the nearby Ranrapalca, but a rest day was in order first! the weather the next day wasnt really too amazing. we decided to see what it was like the day after and make decision to stay or go then. this peak wasnt particularly inspiring so we both wouldnt mind leaving without its summit.

the next morning saw Rob bringing his breakfast back up and feeling crap, with some sort of stomach bug. that settled the deal, we arranged some donkeys and made our way down. at the bottom we caught a taxi with two other Spaniards. on the drive down Rob was cold with fever, shivering while we were toasty in the backseat. at the hostel they were full, but Zarela found us a couple of beds. Rob went straight to bed to rest. he couldnt eat, so i went out and made up for it. smashing the menu at cafe andinos i was soon full and content.

with rob sick there wasnt heaps i could do so i just set about trying to get my belt on the usual notch after having taken it in a bit! there could be plenty of worse places and things to do than hang out and eat...

Alpamayo

it took only a few days to start feeling a bit better and get ready for our first proper mission. we were heading up the Santa Cruz valley to try and stand on top of Nevada Alpamayo (5940m). alpamayo is one the most famous peaks due to its beauty so we wanted to do this one first. we had both dreamed of this one for a while!

an early start saw us riding in a taxi with all our gear to the collectivo depot. colletivo´s are communal taxis, that pickup and drop people off all along the way. its quite a good, cheap if somewhat hairy way to travel. a few hours of bumpy, cramped driving later we were at the trailhead of the valley. here we organised a donkey driver and two donkeys(nando and jorje). we had heaps of kit to bring to base camp and for only $20 a day its a good way to avoid the back-breaking loads! you only get one set of knees!

the valley was a beautiful one, full of fellow trekkers and climbers. there were, of course, the usual serious, professional german hikers. for them its not about laughing and joking, its a very serious matter. 3 hours after starting we made our way into Llama corral, a grassy clearing where we would camp for the night and rest the donkeys. we pitched our tent and got busy relaxing. there we some local dogs about which were the cutest things ever, it was hard not to let them into the tent!!

at the reasonable time of 8am we broke camp and started walking again. the valley was now nice and flat so the going was nice and easy! we came to the end of the valley quite quickly and started making our way up the hill to where alpamayo basecamp is located. loads of switchbacks made the going fairly straight forward, however we were starting to notice some altitude. we rocked up into basecamp shortly after lunch and got busy organising ourselves.

we were able to talk to some current inhabitants about the routes condition and soon learned that the french direct was the route that everyone was doing. with lots of gear left in place on the route, we would gun for this line. (along with everyone else!) Jono, the californian dude, had changed his ticket to join us before heading back home to work. he was on a tight schedule, so that meant we were too! we packed the bare essentials for high camp and settled into bed for the night.

a dawn start saw us climbing the moraine slopes, past the moraine camp and on to the glacier. we had 1200m height to gain so our work was cut out for us! the glacier was pretty chilled out, except for one massive crevasse we had to step over, staring down into the gloomy darkness as we did so. 6 hours after leaving basecamp we were at the col camp, where we would climb from. at 5500m it was the highest id ever been. soon i started feeling lousy, with headaches and nausea. a concoction of drugs and rest saw me feeling slightly better. we set the alarms for midnight and tried to get some sleep.

everyone else decided to get an early start too, so we ended up being the last group to the base of the route. a bit disapointed we waited in the bergschrund for our turn to climb. the group above us were moving quite slow, and there wasnt a good chance to pass them so we just had to wait! leading in blocks of three pitches each we soon had some daylight to climb by. the route topped out right on the summit for some spectacular views! we had some food and realaxed in some sun before making the 8 abseils to get back down off the route.

once back at col camp jono had to pack his stuff and make his way down the hill so he wouldnt miss his flight. rob and i just relaxed. i still didnt feel great so had a hard time eating anything. after a sleepless night we decided to make our way down. i was struggling to recover. my body being completely depleted of energy, i had nothing left to give! its the most tired ive ever been, altitude makes big-wall soloing look easy...

getting down the galcier was super-fast as its all downhill! we stumbled into basecamp and just sprawled ourselves over the soft grass. we got one of the locals to fry us up some chips and eggs for a few bucks and started feeling heaps better. we arranged some donkeys for the trip out the next day. we had already arranged a driver to meet us, but we got a new one so we didnt have to wait an extra day!

a 7am start saw us making our way down the valley. with light packs, we again moved fast down the never ending valley. soon however we were done. we payed the donkey driver his deniro and got a collectivo down the hill. with another car infront of us, both drivers were racing down the windy roads. i felt like i should be james bond, hanging out the window with a gun shooting at the car ahead!! the first collectivo we caught broke down, luckily another one came along soon after and we we soon showering in huaraz and making our way towards some food.

at the trusty cafe andino, we went nuts and pigged out on all the food we could eat! i had lost some weight, which i desperately needed to try and put back on! so for a few days thats my main focus, eating carbs, proteins and fatty foods ready for our next mission tommorow. we´re heading into the ishinca valley for a short, 4 day mission to climb the classic west face of toccalarju.

now for some more burritos....

Acclimitisation blues...

after a few days in huaraz, getting used to the thinner air it was time to go higher. we set of for a day walk up to laguna churup, a beautiful lake at 4450m. this would be a good chance to let our bodies acclimatise. we caught the taxi up and were soon walking. taking it nice and slow, it was still an effort not to lose my breath! an hour and a hlaf later we we casually munching on some food by the lake. i felt pretty good. we had enought time to stay up there for a few hours before making our way back down to the taxi.



once back in huaraz i started feeling a little seedy, but thought it would just pass. we went to the famous cafe andino for some food and tea before making our way to the markets. by now i was feeling much worse, with nausea and headaches. we picked an entrance to the markets and went in. we had gone into the meat section. with dead chickens and ox tongues inches from my face i had to get out of here. i found a fast way out and struggled to catch my breath. fighting a wave of nausea i thought i was winning the fight. until the enemy sent another wave that saw me heaving up the tasty sandwich from cafe andinos into a nearby drain. feeling better for the release i made my way home to the hostel where i lay down and tried to rest. i drugged myself up and started feeling sorry for myself. soon i was leaking out both end in an effort to empty my bowels completely. i think the altitude, combined with an upset tummy led to these miserable 24 hours.

after a sleepless night i was feeling slightly better in the morning. we had originally planned to head up the jacca valley to climb vallunaraju, an easy peak with a summit height of 5680. i felt well enough to come up to the refugio, and would see how i felt from there. we had recently met an american called jono, who had decided to come with us. so we piled into a taxi which proceded to drive to the doorstep of basecamp. they really know how to do it in peru! after a diaster with the pasta we were soon settling into bed. i wasnt feeling particularly good so i popped some pills and tried to get some sleep. during the night i felt awful. i was struggling for breath, feeling like someone was sitting on my chest. my head pounded and my heart raced. we had set the alarm for 3am, and when that went off i checked my pulse. it was 120bpm. with such a sore head and a high pulse i decied i just needed another day to rest. the others set off and i was sorely disappointed to no be going with them.

going back to bed i slept for quite some time. after some time i started feeling better, helped along by some altitude drugs. at around midday i went for a walk up to glacial lake above the hut, it was quite spectacular! after milling around for a while, and throwing some stones i made my way back down for some tea. after a litre of cocoa leaf tea i was feeling much better. i had made the right decision to hang back for the day. Rob and Jono came back just after 1pm, they had made good time to the summit and back. a couple from moab had sandbagged us into thinking the route would talk heaps longer, so the taxi wouldn´t show up until 4! as far as places to lounge around go, we weren´t doing too badly! the taxi showed up a touch early and we piled in and made our way back down to the hostel. soon we´re going to be heading out to grab some big burritos before having a pleasant rest day tommorow.

then hopefully we ´ll be heading up the santa cruz valley to try and have a shot at climbing the famous alpamayo! see how we go!!