Day 1: La Paz - Paso Zongo - High Camp
Drive for around 1.5 hours from La Paz to Paso Zongo, going up from 3,600 to 4,700 metres. Once at Paso Zongo, have lunch in one of the refuges before starting the 3 to 4-hour trek up to high camp.
Walk up on a well-used path on rock to high camp, which sits on a rock buttress at the base of the glacier, at an altitude of 5150 metres. Get your gear ready for the early start the next morning. You will also have time to rest, eat dinner, and rehydrate.
Turn in for an early night in the refugio.
Day 2: High Camp - Summit - High camp - La Paz
Get up early for a long day of adventure with 9-13 hours of climbing. Wrapped up warm, equipped for climbing, and with your crampons on, you’re ready to go.
Follow a trail on the glacier and conquer two steep sections. You will first encounter one at around 5,600 metres, called the Pala Chica. Here the trail goes through a small ice and snow wall (about 10 metres high).
After this part, keep following the trail on the glacier up to 6,000 metres. From here you will see the summit (6,088 metres).
Experience the thrill of climbing along the last section to the summit on an exposed ridge. At the summit, you will be able to see from Illimani (6,439 metres) in the south to Illampu (6,368 metres) in the north.
After your photoshoot on top, head back down the same way to High Camp. Have a short rest and pack your gear. Then, head back down to base camp to meet your transport for an approximately 1-hour drive back to La Paz. Get dropped back off at the original meeting point in La Paz.
