In
mountaineering terms, Aconcagua is technically an easy mountain if approached from the north, via the
normal route. Aconcagua is arguably the highest
non-technical mountain in the world since the northern route does not absolutely require ropes, axes, and pins. Although the effects of altitude are severe (atmospheric pressure is 40% of sea level at the summit), the use of supplemental oxygen is not common.
Altitude sickness will affect most climbers to some extent, depending on the degree of
acclimatization. Although the normal climb is technically easy, multiple casualties occur every year on this mountain (in January 2009 alone, five climbers died). This is due to the large numbers of climbers who attempt the ascent and because many climbers underestimate the significant risk posed by the elevation and cold weather. Given the weather conditions close to the summit,
hypothermia is very common. The routes to the peak from the south and south-west ridges are more demanding and the south face climb is considered quite difficult. The Polish Glacier Traverse route, also known as the "Falso de los Polacos" route, crosses through the Vacas valley, ascends to the base of the Polish Glacier, then traverses across to the normal route for the final ascent to the summit. The third most popular route is by the Polish Glacier itself. Provincial Park rangers do not maintain records of successful summits but estimates suggest a summit rate of 30–40%. About 75% of climbers are foreigners and 25% are Argentinean. Among foreigners, the United States leads in the number of climbers, followed by Germany and the United Kingdom. About 54% of climbers ascend the Normal Route, 43% up the Polish Glacier Traverse Route, and the remaining 3% on other routes.
Camps The campsites on the normal route are listed below (elevations are approximate). •
Puente del Inca, : A small village on the main road, with facilities including a lodge. • Confluencia, : A camp site a few hours into the national park. • Plaza de Mulas, : Base camp, claimed to be the second largest in the world (after
Everest). There are several meal tents, showers and internet access. There is a lodge approximately from the main campsite across the glacier. At this camp, climbers are screened by a medical team to check if they are fit enough to continue the climb. • Camp Canadá, : A large ledge overlooking Plaza de Mulas. • Camp Alaska, : Called 'change of slope' in Spanish, a small site as the slope from Plaza de Mulas to Nido de Cóndores lessens. Not commonly used. • Nido de Cóndores, : A large plateau with extensive views. There is usually a park ranger camped here. • Camp Berlín, : The classic high camp, offering reasonable wind protection. • Camp Colera, : A larger, while slightly more exposed, camp situated directly at the north ridge near Camp Berlín, with growing popularity. In January 2011, a shelter was opened in Camp Colera for exclusive use in cases of emergency. The shelter is named
Elena after Italian climber Elena Senin, who died in January 2009 shortly after reaching the summit, and whose family donated the shelter. • Several sites possible for camping or
bivouac, including Piedras Blancas (~6100 m) and Independencia (~6350 m), are located above Colera; however, they are seldom used and offer little protection. Summit attempts are usually made from a high camp at either Berlín or Colera, or from the lower camp at Nido de Cóndores.
History reached the summit in 1897. The first attempt to summit Aconcagua by Europeans was made in 1883 by a party led by the German geologist and explorer
Paul Güssfeldt. Bribing porters with the story of treasure on the mountain, he approached the mountain via the Rio Volcan, making two attempts on the peak by the northwest ridge and reaching an elevation of . The route that he prospected is now the standard route up the mountain. The first recorded The east side of Aconcagua was first scaled by
a Polish expedition, with
Konstanty Narkiewicz-Jodko, , and
Stefan Osiecki summiting on 8 March 1934, over what is now known as the
Polish Glacier. A route over the Southwest Ridge was pioneered over seven days in January 1953 by the Swiss-Argentine team of Frederico and Dorly Marmillod, Francisco Ibanez and Fernando Grajales. The famously difficult South Face was conquered by a French team led by . Pierre Lesueur, Adrien Dagory, Robert Paragot, Edmond Denis, Lucien Berardini and Guy Poulet reached the summit after a month of effort on 25 February 1954. the youngest person to reach the summit of Aconcagua is
Tyler Armstrong of California. He was nine years old when he reached the summit on 24 December 2013.
Kaamya Karthikeyan of India at an age of 12 became the youngest girl to reach the summit on 1 February 2020. The oldest person to climb it was Scott Lewis, who reached the summit on 26 November 2007, when he was 87 years old. In the base camp Plaza de Mulas (at above sea level) there is the highest contemporary art gallery tent called "Nautilus" of the Argentine painter
Miguel Doura. In 2014,
Kilian Jornet set a record for climbing and descending Aconcagua from Horcones in 12 hours and 49 minutes. The record was broken less than two months later by Ecuadorian-Swiss
Karl Egloff, in a time of 11 hours 52 minutes, nearly an hour faster than Kilian Jornet. In 2016,
Fernanda Maciel set the first women's record for climbing and descending Aconcagua from Horcones in 22 hours, 52 minutes. The current women's record is held by Ecuadorean
Daniela Sandoval at 20 hours, 17 minutes. On January 23, 2019 the
Cholita climbers were the first
Indigenous,
Aymara women to climb the mountain in traditional clothing. Their climb was sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of
Bolivia and the expedition is now detailed in a documentary film called 'Cholitas'. On 25 September 2019, an
Airbus Helicopters H145 landed on the very peak of Mount Aconcagua. This is the first time in history a twin-engine helicopter has landed at this altitude. It took a total of 45 minutes for the entire trip, 30 minutes from
Mendoza and another 15 from the base camp up to the peak. Temperatures were reported as low as , with wind gusts up to . This is not the highest a helicopter has landed before, as a single-engine Airbus Helicopters
H125 landed on Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.
Dangers At nearly , Aconcagua is the highest peak outside Asia. It is believed to have the highest death rate of any mountain in South around three a which has earned it the nickname "Mountain of Death". More than 100 people have died on Aconcagua since records began. Due to the improper disposal of human waste in the mountain environment there are significant health hazards Only boiled or chemically treated water is acceptable for drinking. Additionally, ecofriendly toilets are available only to members of an organized expedition, meaning climbers have to "be contracted to a toilet service" at the base camp and similar camps along the route. As of 2015, from two base camps (Plaza de Mulas and Plaza Argentina), over 120 barrels of waste (approx. ) are flown out by helicopter each season. In addition, individual mountaineers must make a payment before using these toilets. Some large organizers will charge up to , while smaller ones may charge per day or for the entire stay; thus, many independent mountaineers choose to defecate on the mountainside. ==Mythological meaning==