ANDES SUMMITS EXPEDITION - ITINERARY AND DETAILS

EXPEDITION ITINERARY

The expedition will run over three weeks from Sunday May 25th to Sunday June 15th, 2008.

MEDICAL AND RESCUE

For these mountains we should have no altitude problems, provided we acclimatise sensibly, and the team is reasonably fit. The base camps are at around 4300m, set on grass well below the level of glaciation, and easy to return to from higher camps.

ISM will provide the expedition medical kit. Individual members are asked to bring a small personal first aid kit for minor problems like headache, cuts, blisters etc.

INSURANCE

All expedition members must have mountaineering insurance to cover medical and rescue expenses. For UK residents, suitable cover can be arranged through the following organisations/companies:

Snowcard Tel: 01327 262805 Web: www.snowcard.co.uk
BMC Tel: 0161 445 4747 Web: www.thebmc.co.uk
Austrian Alpine Club Tel: 01707 324835 Web: www.aacuk.demon.co.uk (more limited cover)

Non-UK residents can get medical and rescue cover by joining the Austrian Alpine Club. If taking the latter it may be necessary to take out further travel insurance to cover aspects such as cancellation.

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

Mountaineering in the Andes requires all the skills involved in climbing in the Alps - safe glacier travel, ropework for moving together and pitched climbing, good technique with ice axe and crampons. We will brush up these skills during the early stages of the trip. The technical standard on Chopicalqui and Tocclaraju is around Alpine AD. Urus and Ishinka are considerably easier at PD, as is Pisco. As the main peaks can involve technical ice climbing with two ice tools, a grounding in ice climbing is essential for anyone taking part in the expedition. If you are keen to go but feel you need to develop your skills/experience further in the meantime, we can advise on suitable preparation.

FITNESS

A high level of fitness is essential for anyone taking part in the expedition. The summit climbs of Tocllaraju and Chopicalqui in particular are long, demanding days at altitude. Regular aerobic excercise combined with full days on the hill with a rucksack (c.12kg) would give suitable preparation during the 2-3 months preceding the trip.

EQUIPMENT

ISM provides all climbing hardware, ropes, cooking equipment and tents.

Individual members must bring:

• Sleeping bag (expedition or ‘5 season’ quality)
• Closed-cell foam sleeping mat and/or Thermarest
• Rigid mountaineering boots (plastic double boots strongly recommended)
• Rock climbing shoes (comfortable and large enough to take a thickish sock)
• Thermal underwear, fleece shirt or similar, fleece jacket & pants
• Extra fleece top or light duvet, Goretex jacket and salopettes (or pants)
• Mountain mitts/gloves, hat or balaclava, gaiters
• Ice axe, ice hammer, crampons (with anti-ball plate)
• Helmet, harness, 3 locking carabiners, belay plate or fig. 8
• Long sling (240cm approx), 3 prussik loops, headtorch with spare batteries,
• Climbing rucksack (55-70 litre), second sac or kitbag,
• Glacier glasses, sun protection cream and lip salve, water bottle,
• Mug, bowl, spoon, shorts, sunhat, lightweight 'trekking' boots, trekking poles
• Personal ‘travellers’ first-aid kit (headaches, diahorrea, minor cuts, blisters etc).

COSTS

The price for the expedition is £2750 from Lima to Lima. This covers all in-country expenses apart from drinks and meals taken in restaurants. The flight to Lima is excluded from the price so that expedition members may choose their departure airport and arrive earlier or stay longer if they wish. In 2007 these flights cost £650 per person. We are happy to advise on flight options. The supplement for taking a single room for all hotel nights is £90.

Payment schedule. A place on the expedition is secured with a deposit of £600. The balance is due EIGHT WEEKS before departure. In case of cancellation, the following charges will apply: up to 2 months before departure - deposit only; 2 to 1 month before departure – 50% of full cost, within 1 months of departure - full cost. When arranging insurance, please check that it covers cancellation

BOOKING

To apply for a place on the ANDES SUMMITS expedition, please complete the Expedition Booking Form and send it together with a sterling cheque (or bank draft) for £600 payable to 'ISM Expedition'. We will confirm your place as soon as possible.

Click here for expedition Booking Form (print and post)

We look forward to welcoming you to another ISM adventure!