Mountaineering in Tierra del Fuego
Mountaineering in the Darwin Range 16-26 Jan 2013
All content copyright © Ashley Burke 2013. Not to be copied, duplicated or used for any purpose without permission.
Mountaineering in Tierra del Fuego Mountaineering in the Darwin Range 16-26 Jan 2013
All content copyright © Ashley Burke 2013. Not to be copied, duplicated or used for any purpose without permission. |
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Map showing our climbing routes in Chilean Tierra del Fuego on 16-26 Jan 2013
Our yacht Iorana remained at Caleta Olla for 12 days while we undertook our mountaineering activities. During these 12 days we established our base camp by a rushing stream, about 1-2 hours' walk from Caleta Olla. We made several trips back and forth between Caleta Olla and this base camp, to carry food and supplies there. We also made several trips above base camp when weather permitted. On 19 January we advanced to a high camp on a glacier below Monte Frances, and we stayed here for two nights. We made an attempt on Monte Bove and reached the base of Monte Bove itself but were then forced to retreat to the high camp due to poor visibility. On 20 January we woke to a clear morning and successfully reached the summit of Monte Frances.
On 25 January, Simon and I advanced to a new high camp, at the top of a ridge to the west of our base camp. This was to be our base for an attempt on Monte Italia. We made two attempts on Monte Italia on 26 January, however again we were forced to retreat due to poor visibility high on the ice plateau.
| Date | Comments |
| 16 Jan 2013 | Today we made two return journeys from Caleta Olla to base camp. All gear is now at base camp. Explored upstream from base camp a little way and then returned to the boat for the night. |
| 17 Jan 2013 | Poor weather. Did a day hike to the glacial lake to the east of Caleta Olla. Late that evening after dinner on the boat, we walked up to base camp and spent the night there. |
| 18 Jan 2013 | Variable weather. We took a stash of gear above Base Camp and stashed it above the glacial lake that site beneath Monte Frances. Spent the night at base camp. |
| 19 Jan 2013 | Advance to high camp on a glacier below Monte Frances. Weather reasonable. Some rock climbing, mostly easy but one difficult move. Established camp at 1100m. |
| 20 Jan 2013 | Attempt on Monte Bove. Long walk across large glacier with cloud increasing and lowering. Eventually turned back when route became invisible. Returned to high camp. |
| 21 Jan 2013 | Wind dropped overnight. Early morning was fine and calm. Went for Monte Frances summit (2150m) and succeeded. Visibility poor on top and on the way back down, with weather deteriorating. Packed up high camp. Descended in cloud and rain, abseiled back down the rock climbing pitches and returned to base camp. |
| 22 Jan 2013 | Rest day at base camp. Weather reasonable. Dried out wet gear. |
| 23 Jan 2013 | Bad weather, turned very cold and wet. Confined to base camp. |
| 24 Jan 2013 | Cold, overcast and windy. Occasional rain. Confined to base camp. |
| 25 Jan 2013 | Eric and Chris returned to boat. Simon and I advanced to a new high camp on the ridge to the west of our base camp. This was to be our base for an attempt on Monte Italia. A windy night at high camp. |
| 26 Jan 2013 | Wind dropped but still cloudy. When the cloud lifted we climbed a glacier towards Monte Italia but turned back when clouds came in again. In the afternoon it cleared again so we made another attempt, getting higher this time, but the cloud came in again and once again we had to turn back due to poor visibility. We took down the tent and returned all the way back to Caleta Olla. There a group of British alpinists were camped and we enjoyed a BBQ on the beach. Night spent aboard Iorana. |
Photos
18-19 Jan - Establish High Camp on Glacier
19-21 Jan - Monte Bove and Monte France Summit Attempts
All content copyright © Ashley Burke 2013. Not to be copied, duplicated or used for any purpose without permission. Page created 18 Mar 2013, last updated 17 Apr 2013. |
