Aconcagua Expedition Dispatch

January 7, 2013 – Waiting Patiently at Nido de Condor Camp

It’s Monday, the 7th of January, calling from Nido de Condor 18,300ft. We just had breakfast; Maria has been fixing the same thing for breakfast each day (pancakes). She makes really nice, light pancakes. Today we had strawberries on top, and we love our scrambled eggs and ham. We had a long night last night. The weather forecasts are proving to be very accurate. The winds did pick up, we were snug and cozy in our tents. We listened to the winds ripping outside, and we were glad we were secure as we were. The guys, both Neil and Dan, have really high oxygen saturations this morning when we measured them at breakfast - in the mid-high 80’s. Which is remarkable actually for this elevation; we’re doing fine.

It takes patience to climb mountains like Aconcagua, and that’s what we’re imploring right now, patience and taking care of ourselves. Yesterday, we did make our first trip to the High Camp, Berlin and I think it was humbling for both Neil and Dan. Seeing that at the same pace we walked lower, they were feeling really winded.

The next time we go up, which might be tomorrow, I have a feeling will go better because of our bodies adapting because of the acclimatization. We are getting the messages from everyone at home and they’re much appreciated. Dan and Neil say thanks. We’re thinking of everyone.

It’s going to come down to a pretty big 48hrs, or maybe 72hrs here. Well see if we can actually climb all the way to the summit of the Americas of Aconcagua. We’ll give it our best, but we will keep letting you know how it goes.

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