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ACONCAGUA HISTORY AND ALTITUDE
On both sides of the "American colossus" lived far away in the antiquity the Araucanos and Aymaras. Later on the Incas coming from far away Cuzco invaded these regions, bringing with them their culture and their sweet language, the "quichua". But we have no information with respect to their raids in the high Cordillera and it seems that the mountain remains isolated from legends because of the height of its passes and the greatness of its high tops, moved only by glacial winds. By extension we know this region as Andes Cuyanos. This was the popular belief, but at the beginning of 1985, in a desolate pathway at about 5.000 m, an Inca mummy was discovered. The body, belonging to a male youngster, is believed to have been sacrificed on the site. Inside the funerary bulk several religious offerings were found: feathers, figurines, etc.
Even after more than 300 years of Spanish dominion we come to the XIX century to learn the real alpine history of the mountain. In 1817 General Don José de San Martin, the first mountaineer of America crossed the high frontier passes between Argentine and Chile, traversing the region of the Andean giants: Aconcagua, Mercedario and Tupungato. To the North and the South of the first of them crossed a numerous army of more than 5.300 men with 9.280 mules and 1.600 horses. He passed on more than 4.000 meters height and entered suddenly in Chile, liberating the land from Spanish dominion. The surprise of an unsuspicious way with a classic strategy was decisive for the success of San Martin an the end of a long Spanish dominion in this region of the Central Andes.
In 1835 the scientific ship of Darwin arrived in Valparaiso. He was one of the first scientists to facilitate data about the mountain.
In the first part of the past century Darwin, the french Pierre Joseph Pissis and General de San Martín permitted us the first studies and scientific data about Aconcagua and surroundings. In 1883 the German Paul Gussfeldt began brillantly the conquest of this mountain with poor equipmen. He had no sure data about the situation of the peak. Leaving Chile in February he arrived up to 6.560 m. His adventure only 500 m far from the top, opens the way to future expeditions. In 1896 the expedition of the British Edward Fitz Gerald tried to find a route different from Gussfeldt's. He came from Argentine and entered initially crossing the Valley of Vacas and trying to find the foot of the mountain comming from Puente del Inca and the valley of Horcones. He found out the way which would later become the normal route. The following year in January of 1897 during the second expedition of Fitz Gerald, the Swiss guide Mathias Zurbriggen who accompanied him in the first intent, ascends alone, on the 14th, for the first time in the history of Aconcagua. Four weeks later with Stuart Vines and Nicolas Lanti he beats it for the second time.
The first argentine who climbed the Aconcagua was the lieutenant Nicolás Plantamura, member of an italian expedition, the 8 of march of 1934. Since these first ascensions and until 1946 the mountain is crowned twenty times by expeditions of different naitonalities. The first Argentine one in 1942 was composed only by military men. In 1949 was achieved the first ascension by a woman, Adriana Bance de Link. In 1944 a group of three Chilean andinists give the primacy to their country.
In 1934 is opened the first route completely inedited. A Polish expedition explores the Cordón de la Ramada which was nearly unknown by that time and they ascend the Mercedario for the first time (6.800 m) (to the North of the Aconcagua and in the province of San Juan). They enter the Aconcagua zone by the deep pass of Relinchos and the East side. They open a new route to the great mountain and from then on this is named "The Polish 'Glacier". This group was formed by Konstanty Narkiewicz - Jodko Adam Karpinski, Jan K. Dorwaski, Stefan Osiecki, Victor Ostrowski and Stefan Daszynski. In 1953 Frederic Marmillod, his wife Dorly, and Fernando GraJales and Lieutenant Francisco Gerónimo Ibáñez from Mendoza find another way, the South West edge, which remained untrodden until 1978.
The exploration of the Aconcagua is going on forward. There is the famous South wall. This wall has a slope of 3.000 m and is scaled in superior degrees in rock and ice. It is extremely difficult and with application of artificial scale above the 6.000 m. When the 25 of february of 1954 the French Pierre Lesueur, Adrien Dagory, Edmund Denis, Lucien Berardini, Guy Poulte and the chief Ren~ Ferlet opened the way of the central spur directly to the top, it was considered as one of the greatest performances of mountaineering technique.
In 1984, Frenchwoman Marie Bouchard become the first woman climber to conquer the South Wall. Before then, in 1982, a Yugoslav team led by Zarko Trusnovec, showing a defiant spirit and fine technique scales via the "direttissima" up to the south summit (south-south).
ACONCAGUA ORIGIN OF THIS NAME
We have to suppose that the early natives noted the ~mmense bulk, because from far away you can see it between its gigantic neighbouts. Its name is evidently native and may be "quichua" from "Ackon Cahuak" and would mean "Stone Sentinel". The Araucanos say it may come from "Aconca Hue", Mapuche expression applied to the river of the same name and which will mean in Chile: "comes from the other side", because old believings supposed that the Aconcagua River was born in the slopes of the hill with the same name.
ACONCAGUA GEOGRAPHIC SITUATION
The highest Peak of America is situated in Argentina, Province of Mendoza, Department of Las Heras. It does not constitute an international limit because acoording to the "divertium acquarium" system its rivers mn all to the Argentine territory.
In the West and Southwest it is surrounded by the deep pass and the Valley of Horcons serving for bed to the river of the same name. In the South there is the deep pass of Inferior Horcones; in the North and East the valley of Las Vacas, running there the homonymous river; in the East begins the water course of the Relinchos, which is enlarging the Vacas river.
Mount Aconcagua is not a volcano, it is a wide marine sediment platform covered by an Andeanvolcanic cape, which forms part of its top. It is a high massif which finishes in two peaks: North an South. The first one is the highest.
ACONCAGUA ALTITUDE
In its totality it stands in Argentine approximately between 70° West lengitude an 32°40' South latitude. There are some controversies about its exact height, motivated by differete measurement systems and their eventual mistakes. According to the measurements carried out by the Geodesic Committee of the University of Buenos Aires its height is 6,959 m with a tolerance of ± 1 m. All around you find a great number of peaks, which rise above 5,000 m. You can apply there all sorts of techniques, beginning with simple ascension and ending with rock and ice scale Because of these difficulties we have first the Cuerno hill with 5.462 m nearly completely covered with ice; then the Tolosa with 5.430 m; Catedral with 5,535 m; De los Dedos with 5,018 m; Mexico with 5,083 m and Almacenes with 4.510 m. You will find all these in the valley of the Horcons. In the valley of the Vacas there is the Santa Maria with 5,100 m, the Cúpula with 5,250 m. and many more which would be long to enumerate.
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ACONCAGUA TREK SRL by Horcones EVT Leg. 13.056 Exp. 1144/06 |
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