Hey all,

I'm heading to Southern Peru and Bolivia and looking to do some climbing in the Cordillera Real or somewhere else relatively close to La Paz. I have a good amount of climbing experience and am looking to share costs and gear with one or two others. I'm hoping to bag two peaks - something smaller and simpler and then a higher more technical climb like Illampu/Ancohuma. Let me know if you might be interested. I'm a 22 year old American male, speak Spanish and English, and will be traveling with a friend who will probably also come on the smaller peak.

Thanks,
Tyler

For the record: Illampu is a whole different ball game than Ancohuma.

The normal route on Ancohuma offers several options for the final stretch to the summit. In September 2009, the easiest way would be the SW ridge. We followed that for a bit on our descent, after climbing to the summit directly from the west. While steeper, it still wasn't all that difficult. The snow was firm and gave excellent purchase. I would rate the west face variation an easy AD, and the SW ridge no more than a hard PD.


The short steep section on the west face below the Ancohuma summit

The crux on the normal route on Illampu is the big steep headwall, which you have to climb in the dark. Once you've climbed that, there is still the long summit ridge - easier than the headwall, but it has a some short steep parts too. In September 2009, I reckon that the headwall alone already made it a D climb. But it sure was a beauty!

Good luck on your adventure,
Cheers, Rob