Friday, December 14, 2007

Aconcagua Expedition underway!

Aconcagua's Polish Glacier descends from the summit diagonally right
Andy Bourne


We just received word from AAI guides Dylan Taylor and Joey Elton, who are leading our December 13 - January 3 Aconcagua Expedition. Here is what Dylan reported:

"Everyone arrived today just fine, and all baggage made it too. The team is very fit and strong, and we ought to see a good success rate with this team. A couple of Spanish speakers in the group (Sarah and Jake) will put Joey and me to shame. Clark has given the team a name, as well as team hats: "ISACS," which stands for "International School of Alpine Climbing Society" - it is pronounced "Ice-axe." Very clever. We are heading out from the hotel at 11:30am, stopping for permits, and then getting a late lunch in Uspallata before arriving in Penitentes for the evening. Hopefully it will be a bit cooler there. It is sultry here in Mendoza."

There are seven climbers on the expedition: Clark Glenn (Lawrenceville, NJ), Max Jones (Hebron, ME), Jake Leyden (Hebron, ME), Ben Small (Wallingford, CT), Kate Belanger (Pottstown, PA), Sarah Bryan (Hebron, ME), and Jesse Rohloff (Santee, CA). From the sounds of it, everyone is strong and has a great chance for success. We look forward to following their progress up the Western Hemisphere's tallest mountain and will be posting dispatches on our current news page, so check in if you want to follow along!

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If you are considering an Aconcagua Expedition, please get in touch with our Foreign Programs Coordinator, Andy Bourne, at 800-424-2249 or at abourne@aai.cc.

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