February 13th, 2018
Camp 1 (Peter Bilodeau)
Talked to both Luke and Eric today. As planned, Luke and team were able to descend to Plaza Mulas without issue. Time now to let someone else do the cooking and to put on their light hiking shoes. They’ll be in Mendoza tomorrow evening.
Eric and team still have their climbing boots on and they continue to make steady progress. They carried to C2 today and will likely move up tomorrow. Team is doing well.
All is well on Aconcagua.
Phil Ershler
February 13, 2018
Dustin and the team getting some last minute instructions before a kayak tour.
IMG Senior Guide Dustin Balderach called in with a smile in his voice. The team is having a great time in the Grey Glacier area. Their trek from Refugio Paine Grande to Refugio Grey yesterday was blustery but beautiful. The trail took them high above Lago Grey exposing them to the winds from the north that blow down glacier and across Lago Grey. Things calmed down a bit in the afternoon, which allowed the team to hop in the kayaks and take a late afternoon tour. Nothing makes you feel small like kayaking next to huge icebergs and the face of a massive glacier…even at a safe distance!
Today, is the last day on the trail in Torres del Paine for the team. They didn’t waste it. The team trekked up alongside the Grey Glacier up to the viewpoint just past the second suspension bridge. The weather didn’t look that promising for the afternoon, so they opted to make their way back to the refugio…and boy where they glad they did. A pretty good storm kicked up in the afternoon. Driving rain and wind gusts in the 75mph range were made enjoyable by the wood burning stove, hot lunch and comfy couches inside the refugio.
Tomorrow, they’ll hop on the Grey III boat and make their way across Lago Grey to the awaiting van that will take them to back to Puerto Natales. Showers, souvenir shopping and a celebration dinner awaits.
All is well in Patagonia!
Tye Chapman
February 12, 2018
Aconcagua Summit Cross (Nickel Wood)
Weather has been our friend this season. Luke Reilly just called from the summit of Aconcagua. Essentially no wind on top. Crew will descend to high camp shortly for the night. Tomorrow’s goal is Plaza Mulas, base camp on the Horcones Valley side of the mountain. The team has to climb just a bit from high camp and then it’s a straight shot down to Mulas. The mountain boots come off there and the approach shoes go back on for the final day out to the road and Mendoza. Team should arrive Mendoza later on Wednesday. A BIG congratulations to everyone. What a great accomplishment!
Final team for the season is working their way through the camps now. Eric Remza and crew are making their move today to C1. That’s around 16,000’. Carry and a move, carry and a move and that will get them to high camp. Forecast is still favorable so they should be able to make good progress. Regardless of the weather, they’ll still need time to acclimate and the plan for a carry and a move to each camp is what makes that possible. You throw in a rest day, if needed, and weather days, if required, and you eventually arrive at high camp. We’ll keep tabs on their progress as Luke and his crew will be off the mountain and into Mendoza before we know it.
Good news today.
Phil Ershler
From: Dustin Balderach
Sent: Sunday, February 11, 2018
To: Tye Chapman
Subject: Relaxing at Refugio Paine Grande
Hey Tye.
All continues to go beautifully (pun intended) down here in Torres del Paine. We just finished a great big dinner here at Refugio Paine Grande. A super nice lodge located right on the shores of the turquoise waters of Lago Pehoe with amazing views of Los Cuernos and the south side of Cerro Paine Grande. A truly perfect spot. We had another fantastic day on the trail. We don’t climb to the tops of any mountains on this trip, but today was our ‘summit day’. Our long day began down at Refugio Cuernos where we climbed up from the shores of Lago Nordenskojd and into the picture-perfect French Valley. There is a reason why this valley is one of the park’s biggest attractions; it’s absolutely stunning. Throughout the day we heard and saw seracs pealing off the hanging glaciers of Cerro Paine Grande and thunder down the mountainside into the valley. We observed all this safely from the far side of the valley. This was an unexpected surprise for the group who where all mesmerized by the sights and sounds. The entire group made it all the way to the head of the French Valley to the ‘British Lookout’. Well worth the effort! We then made our way out of the valley, past the shores of the deep blue Laguna Scotsburg, and down to Refugio Paine Grande to complete a nearly 12 hour day. The infamous Patagonian wind picked up for the last hour or so. To top it all off, the rain threatened all afternoon but never materialized which means the goretex stayed in the pack for a third straight day. This is a good streak for Patagonia!
Tomorrow we are heading up to check out Grey Glacier spilling into Lago Grey. Hopefully the weather will hold and we’ll be able to kayak among the icebergs tomorrow afternoon!
Dustin
February 10, 2018
The Bader Valley. (Photo by Tye Chapman)
IMG Senior Guide Dustin Balderach called in with another stellar report from Torres del Paine National Park in Chile today. He and his team had a spectacular day up in the Bader Valley!
The day starts out with about 30 minutes on the main trail before heading up an off the beaten path trail (special permit required) up into the Bader Valley. The next couple hours on the trail are broken up by great views of Lago Nordenskjold behind, and the opening Bader Valley ahead. The team had a nice break at the big boulder then powered on up for a couple more hours.
They were the only trekkers up in the valley, happily sharing it with the countless condors flying high above. Eventually they turned around and made their way back to Refugio Los Cuernos for showers and a couple beers. On the menu tonight: salmon. Not a bad day at all.
Tomorrow they’ll make their way over to the French Valley on their way to Refugio Paine Grande.
Another great day in Patagonia!
Tye Chapman
February 9, 2018
Final Stretch to Base Camp (Nickel Wood)
All continues to be fine on Aconcagua. Luke’s team is hanging at C2 today. Weather is clear but a bit breezy. Team has plenty of time. Will likely move to high camp this weekend and look at a summit attempt on Monday or Tuesday. Winds are forecasted to be lower beginning the first part of next week. Bottom line is that the team’s in a good position.
Eric and team pulled into base camp, Plaza Argentina, today. Tomorrow’s always a rest day. They’ll begin their series of carries and moves to progressively higher camps on Sunday. We’ll take it.
Phil Ershler
February 9, 2018
From: Dustin Balderach
Sent: Friday, February 9, 2018 11:50 AM
To: Tye Chapman
Subject: All good at Los Cuernos
Hey Tye,
I’m in the company of some very happy trekkers right now. We enjoyed a great hike today over to Refugio Los Cuernos. We stayed dry all day and most of the major peaks were out of the clouds. First we passed Monte Almirante Nieto, then Los Cuernos del Paine, and finally got our eyes on Cerro Paine Grande. All the while keeping great views of Lago Nordenskod on the other side of the trail. Just a gorgeous day. We walked from one amazing view to another. Very big smiles the whole day, especially since the goretex stayed in the packs!
Now we are sitting around the table at the refugio swapping stories and photos. The local beer and wine is already at work curing sore feet as we watch condors and  clouds swirl around the Cuernos. Another amazing day in Patagonia.
Dustin
February 9, 2018
This past weekend was the 25th Annual Ice Fest in North Conway, NH and I was fortunate to have the chance to travel from Washington State and do some ice climbing. It started with a swing by Holderness School to pick up daughter Audrey, who is a senior. Then, we headed over to North Conway to link up with IMG guides Craig John and Dan Riethmuller for a fun weekend of ice climbing and general festivities. It was great to see my old friend Rick Wilcox again at his IME shop in North Conway. Rick and I climbed Mt Everest the same day (5/15/91) with Rick coming up from the South and me (and George Dunn) from the North. We also ran into Mike, Scott, and George who summited Rainier with Craig, Audrey, and me last year.  This was my first time ice climbing back east, and Audrey’s first time ever (other than the Kautz Route on Rainier). We had a blast! It was cold (glad we brought big down parkas) and wintery and there was ice everywhere. For me it was very memorable to see the famous Cathedral and Whitehorse Ledges (cliffs).  These crags are iconic, some of the most famous in American climbing history, and the home of some of our best climbers.  Add a Super Bowl party at the Nereledge Inn (thanks, Steve) and it was a 5-star weekend! It’s always fun to go to a new place, and when you can do it with some old and new friends, so much the better. One more tick off my bucket list!
Eric Simonson
February 8, 2018
Hiking along the Ascencio River. (Tye Chapman)
“Another great day in Patagonia”, is what IMG Senior Guide reported when he called in this afternoon. The team got an early start from Refugio Chileno this morning and made their way into the Silence Valley. Once past the ranger station / permit checkpoint the trail takes them through a boulder field and then into a dense Lenga tree forest and along the Ascencio River. The weather wasn’t cooperating (rain & snow) so the team opted to call Japanese Camp, a climber’s camp along the river, their turn around point.
Once back down to Refugio Chileno, they dried out a bit and had some lunch. The clouds eventually broke putting smiles on everybody’s faces. After lunch they made their way down to Refugio Torres Central for the night. A couple years ago a puma was sighted just outside this refugio. Seriously.
Tomorrow they’ll make their way along Lago Nordenskjold over to Refugio Los Cuernos, one of my favorite areas of the park.
Despite the less than ideal weather todya, Dustin said this crew is all smiles.
All is well in Torres del Paine National Park!
Tye Chapman
February 7th, 2018
Big Mountain (Peter Bilodeau)
All is well on Aconcagua. Luke and team have made their move up to C2. Weather is reasonably good and members are doing well. First night at the new altitude is always a little ‘tough’ and the team will either make a carry to high camp tomorrow or take a rest day at C2, depending how everyone’s feeling. We have a few contingency days available on the schedule and those days get used for rest or weather as needed.
Eric and team had their first day of walking today. Team is supported by mules the first three days so their packs are light going into base camp. All is well lower on the mountain, too.
Phil Ershler
