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Thin Air is the news letter for the High Altitude Mountaineering Section of the Colorado Mountain Club. There are five issues of Thin Air each year: January, March, May, September, and November.
HAMS will present its seventh High Altitude Mountaineering Seminar this fall. The schedule will be as follows:
Those who have attended in the past may wish to attend again. Most of the seminar speakers will be new and the content will be different. Attendance at the seminar is a prerequisite for admission to the High Altitude Mountaineering School to be given January 1996 (see related article).
The sessions will start at 7PM and run to 9 or a little after. All sessions will be on Tuesday night, except for the forth night which is a Wednesday to avoid Halloween conflicts. The location will be the CMC club room auditorium or a substitute location in Golden during remodeling. The seminar is open to all interested CMC members. Tuition is $20. To register, send your name, address and check to the CMC office and note "High Altitude Mountaineering Seminar" on the check. (Contact Ward Hobert, 279-5113 before 8 PM if further information is desired.)
Despite being delayed by atrocious weather at the start, two teams of CMC'ers summited
Mt. Rainier on the same day for the second year in a row. The team on the Emmons Glacier was forced to "dig in" below Emmons Flats by fierce winds. Leader Randy Eisen reports that climbers passing by asked where they were from and when told Colorado, remarked that they must be with the CMC, since no one else digs bunkers and fortresses like that! In any case, the team of nine persevered and summited in perfect weather on the Fourth of July. Randy has now led three Rainier trips, more than any one else. His considerable experience, good judgment and a strong motivated team made for another safe and successful trip. Meanwhile on the Paradise side of the mountain, Keith Jensen's team of six were also delayed for a day. They left Camp Muir for the summit also on July 4th and summited fifteen minutes before the other group! This was Keith's second successful HAMS expedition in a year. Both teams were made up of students from this year's addition of the HAMS School and they got an excellent opportunity to put their training into action. This year's trip included: Sanjay Desai, Randy Eisen (leader), Dick Falb, Keith Jensen (leader), Andy Jost, Al Kassa, Dennis Kelly, Craig Patterson (co-leader), Laurie Pearce, Lynn Prebble, Michael Sanchez, Denise Snow, Bill Sullivan, Tom Urban, Mike Vodehnal, and Jack Zuzack.
HAMS is pleased to announce another edition of the High Altitude Mountaineering School. The school is open to CMC members interested in extending their training to participate in expeditions to high altitude peaks around the world. The school begins with the High Altitude Mountaineering Seminar on October 10 (see related article) and concludes with an optional trip to Mt. Rainier in the summer of 1996.
The school will train students in the basic technical skills of glacier travel, including crevasse rescue, low angle ice techniques, rope management and shelters. To do this, three field trips will be scheduled in January and February of 1996. There will be one or two additional lectures early in the new year.
Denver Group members entering the school must have successfully completed the Denver Basic Mountaineering School and have a Denver "D" classification. Members from other CMC groups must meet equivalency requirements.
Cost of the school is $80 plus $20 for the seminar. The seminar cost must be paid prior to October 10. members accepted into the school will pay tuition in January. Any interested members should sign up for the seminar now and attend all six sessions. An information packet about the school will be available at the first seminar session and applications will be accepted at the time. Enrollment in the school will be limited.
For more information about the school, contact Terry Root, School Director, at 277-0694 before 9 PM.
We are looking for HAMS school instructors for classes to start in early 1996. If you have experience or previous training in any area of high altitude expedition, trekking or climbing, such as camping, glacier travel or ice climbing, we would like to talk to you.
We can use any level of commitment, from those who can help only one day in an area in which they are knowledgeable, to those who are willing to commit to all three weekend field trips. One field trip is overnight, and the other two are day trips.
We know there is a lot of expertise in the Club membership. Come and share your particular expertise with your fellow CMC members. There will be an instructor meeting probably in December. For more details, contact Terry Root, the School Director, at 277-0694, before 9 PM.
Once again, our Section is sponsoring a series of fall and early winter conditioning hikes and climbs. While open to all qualified CMC members, the trips are intended primarily for persons going on Section outings to Argentina and Venezuela at the end of the year. Trips going through the end of October are listed in the CMC Summer Schedule. Hikes in November and December will be given in the upcoming CMC Winter Schedule. The complete listing follows.
Register with the leader for all trips. One exception is that Steve Bonowski (914-8255) will take registrations for Torreys/Grizzly on September 30 since Paul Wilson, the leader, now lives out of town.
Craig Patterson led this summer's other very successful HAMS trip, an outing to Titcomb Basin in the Wind River Mountains for a week of great peak bagging. Despite a few rainy days, they managed to summit the two highest, Gannett and Fremont, and went on to do two of the premier climbs of the area, the snowy "South Face, Center" couloir on Woodrow Wilson and the classy Wishbone Arete on Sacagawea. This was a tough crew. Eschewing the standard horsepack, they elected to hump all their gear out the nearly twenty miles on their own in a day. We don't need no stinkin' horses! On the trip were Jack Dias, Sherry Durham, Rhonda Lew, Lori McGuire, Craig Patterson (leader), Debbie Reed, and Jim Rickard.
The planning for the two HAMS trips this winter is underway. Leader Craig Patterson is taking twelve climbers for the Ruta Norma on Aconcagua on a demanding three week expedition. On a easier note, Terry Root will lead a team of ten to explore the Venezuelan Andes, provided Terry can find Venezuela on the globe he fished out of the Cheerios box. Both trips are full and both trips leave December 27.
Meanwhile the double team trip to Russia planned for next summer is in doubt. Already the Pamir portion of it has been canceled. No word yet on other trips that might replace it. Bolivia is being planned for June '97.
The World Wide Web (WWW) offers the high altitude mountaineer many good information sources. Many of these sources are from non-profit or government organizations, that use the WWW to fulfill their goals of making information available to the public. The Colorado Mountain Club now provides an information service on the WWW with content on Colorado. This information service at URL http://www.cmc.org/cmc/info_srv.html also offers links to other sources of mountaineering information around the world.
US State Department Travel Advisories/Warnings
http://www.stolaf.edu/network/travel-advisories.html
This resource provides the current travel advisories and warnings from the US State Department. A report for any country that you may be about to travel to can be found here. These contain information that the State Department feels a US citizen traveling there should know. I have used these in the past (my employer supplied copies) and have found them useful, but they paint a bleak picture. Just remember that if they wrote one for Miami, it would sound like hell on earth.
The CIA World Fact Book 1994
http://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/94fact/fb94toc/fb94toc.html
Yes, this is The Central Intelligence Agency and as you would expect, they don't tell everything they know. But there is a lot of information here on each country. While not quite as up to date as the travel advisories, they give more information on the political situation, current international disputes, population, economy, and geography. They also provide a different slant on the country's history from what you will find in the British travel guides available for most countries.
Outdoor Action Guide to Outdoor Resources on the Web
http://www.princeton.edu/~rcurtis/outother.html
This resource at Princeton is one of the most extensive indexes for outdoor information that I have found on the web. There are several links here for information on high altitude sickness.
Straddling the border between Chile and Argentina, the enchanting Lake District contains some of the most outstanding scenery in the Andes and appeals to the climber and trekker alike. In the last issue of Thin Air, we covered some of the unique climbing opportunities of the area. In this issue, we will look at trekking.
The Lake District lies roughly between the latitudes of 36'S and 43'S, a broad area of volcanoes, rainforests, small glaciers, fertile farms and, of course, the huge lakes, remnants of the last great ice age. Its ease of access and great variety make it one of the most popular trekking areas in South America. Most of the access is centered around the destination cities of Puerto Montt on the coast of Chile and Bariloche on the edge of the pampas in Argentina. Both cities are modern with a range of accommodations. Perhaps the most practical are the residenciales, basic lodging in someone's home or a small hotel with breakfast for less the $20. Mountain huts are also economical, less that $10 for lodging plus meals if you choose. Local transport to trailheads is easy to arrange, with both cities having a simple to use local bus system. For information in both cities, check out the local tourist office for lodging and transport, the national park office for maps and the local climbing club for route info.
Separated by the spine of the Andes, similarities end, as these two cities, indeed the two countries, offer different experiences. Puerto Montt is less glitzy and tourist oriented than glamorous Bariloche across the mountains. You'll find the Chilean backcountry has fewer huts and simpler facilities and it's still possible to hike far from the crowds. The Argentine side is more heavily used with an elaborate hut system maintained by the very active Club Andino Bariloche. Even the national character of the two peoples offers differences. Chileans are more isolated geographically, primarily mestizo, and typically more reserved. More cosmopolitan Argentineans, with their waves of past immigrants, speak an almost Italian Spanish, florid, animated, and outgoing. In fact, Italian or German is a common second language in some areas. Both peoples are very friendly and helpful toward the foreign climber/trekker though few speak any English. Here's a sample of a few treks.
The easy trek to Termas de Callao offers soothing thermal baths in a remote setting of rain forest and rugged volcanic peaks. Take the local bus from Puerto Montt to Petrohue on the west end of Lago Todos los Santos. Inquire at the pier where you may hire a private boat to ferry you across the lake to the trail head at El Rincon. A 10 kilometer hike along the roaring Rio Sin Nombre (literally Nameless Creek), with several rickety suspension bridges for thrills, leads to the fine refugio at the hot springs. The hut is small but well appointed and the baths are a relaxing way to end a day of hiking. A shorter hike on the next day meanders up the right fork of the river and over a low pass and ends at a crude shelter on the shore of Lagunas Los Quetros. On the final day, the trail leaves the west shore of the lake to cross another low pass and descends steeply along a deeply eroded path. As you near the lake ahead, there are many small, idyllic farms along the way. At Lago Rupanco, hire another private boat to take you across the lake to Puerto Rico or take another day to walk around the pleasant trail on the west shore. From Puerto Rico, a local bus travels to the city of Osorno. An outstanding feature of this trek are the many interesting views of the spectacular volcanic plug, Volcan Puntiagudo.
A trek over the Paso de Las Nubes (or Pass of the Clouds) leads you into the heart of a dense rainforest along the spine of the continent. The sound of crashing glaciers is heard as nearby Montt Tronador lives up to its name, The Thunderer. This trek is rated moderate based mainly on its short length. However, the trail is steep in places and overgrown in others and you must carry a tent for shelter. From Bariloche take the once a day bus to Pampa Linda from in front of the Club Andino Bariloche whose staff can provide maps and information. Begin your trek by following the old road leading northwest from the tiny settlement of Pampa Linda. In less than a mile, cross a stream where there is a junction. The left hand road is a much recommended side trip to the Otto Meiling Hut, high on the flanks of spectacular Montt Tronador. Spend a day hiking up to this hut and back for the above treeline views of waterfalls cascading hundreds of feet from the terminus of glaciers. Used primarily by climbers, the hut offers lodging and simple meals at inexpensive prices. To continue the trek, take the right hand fork along the banks of the Rio Alerce. After a few hours, the trail climbs steeply to the pass for an excellent view of the glacier carved valleys, north and south, and the steep peaks that contain them. Be on the lookout for condors patrolling the skies above. While you can camp in the pleasant meadows, instead descend the steep north side to the excellent camp sites another hour ahead. Here a thunderous waterfall tumbles out of the snout of the Frias Glacier and the mountains are dramatically sheer sided. The next day's trek involves no elevation gain but is made persistently difficult because of frequent mud and the overgrown trail. Occasionally huge logs lie over the trail requiring you to take off your pack to crawl underneath. The forest is foreboding and dense with a bamboo understory, and the trees are gigantic, draped by lovely orchids and flowers of creeping vines. The trail follows the right side of the Rio Frias, crossing to the left on a log about an hour from Puerto Frias, the end of the trek. From this magnificent, glacier carved spot, one can catch a bus into Chile but perhaps the perfect ending is to board one of the catamarans for the leisurely cruise through the fjord-like lakes back to Bariloche.
The drier ranges to the east of the frontier and close to Bariloche contain a system of huts that provide all the amenities for a delightful multi-day outing. Most of the walking is above treeline in a very rugged range with fantastic views in all directions. The trek described here is difficult, mainly because of sections that involve serious route-finding and steep snow, but you can string together a much easier hike by choosing only certain huts to visit. All huts offer easy return trails back to the highway. Inquire at the CAB clubhouse in Bariloche and then take the local bus to the ski area at Villa Catedral. Either hop on the ski lift or follow the trail to Refugio Frey. Nestled at the entrance to a spectacular basin of soaring rock spires, this hut is typical of all the huts in providing simple lodging, including blankets, meals and refreshments. Next day, climb over the pass following the paint-marked rocks, descend and cross a valley through a lovely forest of beech, only to climb over another pass and ride the scree down to Refugio Jacob. The hut warden likes to feed the local fox, or zorro, for the amusement of the guests. The following day's trek involves difficult route finding, at times on steep snow and rock. Ice axe and crampons may be necessary as fatalities have occurred. Cairns and paint mark the way, but make sure you have explicit directions from the CAB in Bariloche. The route goes through the peaks northwest of the hut before descending Arroyo Navidad to Refugio Segre in a magnificent cirque. The next day's hike to Refugio Lopez is steep and rocky at the start. After crossing a high pass on Cerro Bailey Wills, descend to a valley, then climb again to cross the ridge to the right of Cerro Turista. The large hut, located in a very scenic setting, is less than an hour away. Both a path and a road angle down the 4 km from this popular hut to the tourist town of Colonia Suiza, where there is bus service back to Bariloche.
It's also possible to continue your trek if you wish to other huts in the CAB system to the west and south, coming out near Pampa Linda or Lago Mascardi. Doing so can extend your stay in these delightful mountains to over a week.
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