ojos del salado

It takes me so long to get round to editing my videos these days that I know some of you die of excitement waiting for the next one to appear. Lockdown has provided me with a window of opportunity and I’m hurtling though them like a snail. Here, finally, are the videos of my trip to Ojos del Salado a year and a half ago.

As we made our way from base camp for an acclimatisation hike on Ojos del Salado in the Puna de Atacama region of the Andes last month, we witnessed a strange phenomenon in the sky.

Christmas for me usually means some new ascents in a mountainous region of Africa or Latin America. When I received an email from Jagged Globe announcing a new trip to Ojos del Salado, I didn’t have any doubts that was the peak I wanted to climb.

Last year I returned from the Himalayas and reported that I may have discovered the easiest 6,000m peak in the world to climb. But there is another place in the world where lots of easy 6,000m peaks can potentially be climbed on a day hike from the road.

It’s a slightly rapid half-post this week. This is because I’ve been climbing the world’s highest volcano and away from all contact with the outside world.

While I’m in Chile climbing the mountain with the most superlatives in the world, I thought it might be interesting to consider just how superlative a mountain can get.

This weekend I’ll be departing for my annual New Year mountaineering trip, and this time I think it’s going to be a bit special. Edita and I will be attempting Ojos del Salado, a peak I’ve been wanting to climb for a few years now.

Last month the Italian climber Hans Kammerlander became the first person to climb the Second Seven Summits, in other words the second highest peak on each continent. According to 7summits.com, 348 people had climbed the main Seven Summits, the highest

Yesterday I returned to the UK again after a short visit to Argentina, and am surprised not to see any snow. Since August, when I left for Cho Oyu in Tibet, it seems that barely a week has passed when

Five years ago when I turned back on Aconcagua, the highest mountain in South America, 500 metres from the summit, I told myself I would never go back. It’s a boring mountain, the guides are too cautious, there are plenty

Ojos del Salado and the Puña de Atacama: the videos

What the devil is a circumhorizon arc?

Salt before breakfast: an ascent of Ojos del Salado

Cerro Vicuñas, the world’s easiest 6,000m peak? Quite possibly

Ojos del Salado — the photos (and a quick message about cheating)

What’s the highest mountain in the solar system?

Ojos del Salado at last: climbing the world’s highest volcano

Which is harder, the Second Seven Summits or the first one?

Aconcagua: when returning is better in every way

The Stone Sentinel: return to Aconcagua (as usual)