* = Clean And Sober Expedition
"Siga escalando montaņas...y no
deslice!"
(Keep climbing mountains…and don't slip!)
Here are waypoints for various locations on the eastern approach to Aconcagua. We were glad to have GPS waypoints for the Normal Route from another web site when we climbed the Vacas/Relinchos approach and crossed to the Normal Route at the base of the Polish Glacier. As we sat for one day and two nights in our tent at 20,300 ft, buffeted by the wind and unable to see more than 100 yards through the blowing snow, we had the comfort that our Garmon 38 GPS receiver was programmed with the key locations down the side of the mountain we intended to descend but had not yet seen. Happily, when we descended the visibility cleared by the time we got down to the Berlin Huts.
Climbing in late-January and early-February, we wished during our approach for better information as to where good water was available along the Rio Vacas approach, so I have included here waypoints for those sources we thought fairly good and probably reliable even during dry periods.
Since we were unable to make it to the summit, data for the
summit below is an estimate made using the government topographic
map.
| Location | Lat (deg min) | Long (deg min) |
| Vacas trailhead | S 32 50.973 | W 69 45.709 |
| Edge of map | S 32 50.000 | W 69 46.150 |
| Water | S 32 48.072 | W 69 47.244 |
| Water (although a potential source closer to Las Lenas camp is marked, it was dry when we passed) | S 32 45.595 |
W 69 48.306 |
| Las Lenas Ranger station | S 32 45.147 | W 69 48.412 |
| Water | S 32.44.484 | W 69.48.441 |
| Water | S 32 41.373 | W 69 50.022 |
| 1st view of Aconcagua | S 32.38.234 | W 69 50.295 |
| Casa Piedre
Camp (this is several hundred yards south of the Casa Piedre shelter) |
S 32 38.088 | W 69 50.291 |
| Plaza Argentina Base Camp | S 32 38.749 | W 69 56.683 |
| Camp 1 (16,020 ft) | S 32.38.300 | W 69 58.676 |
| Col Camp (we did not use this one) | S 32 38.297 | W 69 59.551 |
| Camp 2 (19,000 ft) (we were crossing the glacier to the normal route, so this is a camp location on a moraine on the glacier, about 150 yards west of the standard camp locations among the cliffs to the east of the glacier) | S 32 38.493 |
W 69 59.904 |
| High Camp (20,300 ft.) (this is the junction of the Falso de los Polacos and the Ruta Normal trails) | S 32 38.637 |
W 70 00.890 |
| Aconcagua Summit (estimate from map) | S 32 39.190 | W 70 00.880 |
Horcones (normal) approach
The web sites where we obtained Normal Route waypoints are no longer accessable. Thus, I have repeated the data below, adding one point we got for the turnoff to the park headquarters, which gives a much more accurate reading of distance if you're hiking all the way to PdInca
| Puenta del Inca | S 32 49.490 | W 69 54.580 |
| Park Entrance (Horcones) | S 32 49.469 | W 69 56.526 |
| Ranger Station | S 32 48.630 | W 69 56.490 |
| Confluencia | S 32 45.416 | W 69 57.887 |
| Piedra Grande | S 32 44.130 | W 70 00.050 |
| Hotel Refugio | S 32 39.220 | W 70 03.790 |
| Old Plaza de Mulas | S 32 39.371 | W 70 03.371 |
| Plaza de Mulas | S 32 38.840 | W 70 03.490 |
| Camp Canada | S 32 38.268 | W 70 02.583 |
| Nido de Condores | S 32 38.160 | W 70 01.790 |
| Berlin Huts | S 32 38.260 | W 70 01.270 |
| Independencia Hut | S 32 38.712 | W 70 00.962 |
It should be noted that the steep, deep valleys of Vacas/Relinchos approach mitigate against good GPS satellite geometry, thus lateral errors may be somewhat greater than you are accustomed to.
Useage monitor since 12/12/97