We stop to check with the rangers while a few porters play football outside, just behind the sign ‘Plaza de Mulas 4,300m’. They don’t even break a sweat. A rest day at Plaza de Mulas will help us acclimatise and give us time to sort out the equipment for the ascent. The usual strategy is to cache some gear and food at the higher camps and return to sleep at the lower ones, before climbing back with the rest of the stuff as the sleeping altitude is progressively increased. A large commercial group has just arrived: a jumble of duffel bags and boots lies on the gravel by the agency’s white and yellow tent. A spirited girl with black hair and a matching ‘Mountain Madness’ vest is talking with Pablo, the man in charge of logistics. Victor and Rick walk past as I wait for my turn. “Can you please tell Hulk here to stop destroying my tent?” Victor says in a half joking tone. “Hulk?” I grin, looking at Rick’s big, muscular frame.
“Yes, he occupies three quarters of the space, scatters all his stuff around and can’t open the zip without tearing the whole thing down”. Rick looks down sheepishly. Pablo emerges from his conversation and my two friends decide to move on. “Nevermind,” says Victor, “I’ll sort him out”. I wonder. We’re definitely not your orthodox mountaineering team, but I’m proud that we chose to rely only on our forces no organised expeditions, no guides, no porters. Let’s see how far we get. Pablo hands me the VHF radio I requested to keep contact with base camp during the climb, mostly for weather updates, but also in case of emergency. I confirm the dinners we booked with him and recap our ascent plan. “I’m not feeling great,” Roberta says when we emerge from our tents. Her face is swollen and she’s had hardly any sleep. The doctors are already looking after a man with severe acute mountain sickness (AMS) when we get there.
He’s lying on a bed with an oxygen mask, and will soon be helicoptered down to Mendoza. We’re all authorized to proceed with our first cache at Camp Canada, with the exception of Roberta who must stay at Plaza. Barbara decides to remain with her, and after a quick discussion we decide to rearrange our spare days so that the girls can catchup as soon as possible. Gian and Hulk are the first to go in the morning; I follow with Victor, as we seem to have the same pace. The weather is fine, although a fearsome lenticular cloud has appeared on the summit. It’s an ominous sign, but we try to ignore it. We’ve got several days to go, and the forecast shows a window of calm just at the right time for our summit bid. Victor and I climb the steep 700m to Plaza Canada in a very honourable two and a half hours including stops. Alex arrives with the others about an hour later.
