This update is about our ascent and descent of Licancabur and associated science activities. This summary spans two days:

Summary

• Day 1: We ascended midway up the mountain [mid camp] in order to spend the night.
• Day 2: The next morning we ascended to the summit and then descend into the volcanic crater where the lake is located. We would then climb out of the crater and descend to our vehicles after completing science activities.
  

Day 1: Base to Mid Camp


[photo by Clay Woosley]

Our climb up the mountain to the mid camp was similar to our practice climb up Licancabur that I reported previously.

The biggest difference is that our destination for the first day would be what we call "mid camp." This is halfway up the mountain and is where we would pitch our tents that night. The other big difference is that our packs were heavy with water, sleeping bags, and some gear. We also had Bolivian porters that carried up water, tents, food, and some other equipment.

Mid Camp

We made it to mid-camp. Mid-camp consisted of a rocky, square walled-in area that Rob, Christian and some others put together over past years. The purpose of the walls are to shield us from the fierce winds that blast this part of the mountain.

See the images below:



Macario stands within the walled in area that marks our mid camp.



Christian, head of logistics, directs some tent setting activities.



Tent assembly begins



Rob starts assembling the tent that we will stay in tonight.



Tents are almost assembled. Night [and cold] will fall fast.



Andy discusses something at the entrance of our tent.

Here are some more pictures of Mid Camp taken by Clay Woosley:


[photo by Clay Woosley]


[photo by Clay Woosley]

We fired up a small portable stove in order to eat some pre-packaged food. The food was not bad. I decided to go to sleep. I wore my cloths and my borrowed down jacket within the sleeping bag. I listened to the wind blast against the tent. With each gust, the temperature dropped a few degrees. Luckily, our camp did not get as cold as we feared. However, in the morning all of my water that I had stashed outside of the tent was frozen.



A view of Laguna Verde from mid-camp.



Our porters prep for our ascent to the summit during the next morning.

Day 2: Mid Camp to the Summit

Here are the kinds of things that I thought about during the climb: Step by step. Each step requires thought. Will that rock slide? Will my foot slip off of the rock? Each step requires exertion. I feel the weight of my pack. But when it gets cold I'll need the stuff in that pack. But I hope that it is not cold up there. Plus I am here to do a job. I need my gear that is in the pack.

We take breaks in order to drink fluids or "hydrate." The physician says: "drink four liters per day." The water needs to be spiked with sugar and salt. One day I only drank one liter. Later, I paid the price, getting too dehydrated.

Another snapshot from my brain during the climb: It is no joke up here. Water, clothing, food [and the kind of food] are all critical factors. I think about my lab and my less healthy habits in Pittsburgh that are still adequate for city life. Luckily, I don't smoke. We are all gasping for air, even after taking Diomox for several weeks. I don't know how a smoker could make it up this mountain. I think about walking up Negley Ave., one of the steeper streets in Pittsburgh. Somehow I am keeping up with my more experienced colleagues. Many have been up this mountain before. Finally we reach the summit.

Day 2: Summit

The summit is spectacular. It is a fine view after all of this climbing, practicing, adjusting to the altitude, Diomox pills, our drive through Chile at gradually higher elevations.

Here is a pan of the summit. It does not fully capture the experience. No photograph could.


[click the image to see a larger version]

The summit.


[photo by Clay Woosley]



Part of the team at the summit.

Now imagine cold wind. We put on our warmer clothes. This is one of the quirks about the mountain. You start sweating as you climb. Then the wind starts blowing, and you get freezing cold. Getting cold lowers your resistance to illness. If you are not careful, you can get sick. I was sick the other day. Through a logistical delay for the team and luck, I recovered in time to experience the climb.

I stop long enough to take the above pan. This summit is good for photos and wind, but we are really here to do science at the lake. We must head down to the lake. It is in the Licancabur volcano crater.



The lake.

Day 2: Crater Science

We head into the crater. My first thought: later we will have to climb out of this thing!

I immediately take the following vertical panoramic image:


[click the image to view a larger version]


[photo by Clay Woosley]

As has been noted before, the lake is entirely frozen.

We get inside. Andy, Nathalie and the rest spring forward to do science. I fumble for my cameras in order to record their activities.

I start with Andy, Ross, and Rob who are nearer to me:



Andy, Ross, and Rob begin science next to the iced over lake.



They filter water for analysis of lake chemistry and for Lynn's life assessment.

I quickly move counter-clockwise around the lake to Nathalie and Clay who are taking ice samples.



Nathalie and Clay get into position to start taking ice samples by chipping into the lake with an ice axe.



Nathalie points to a red speck. This might be the same kind of "red shrimp-like creature" that they found the year before when the lake was not iced over.



Each sample is carefully placed in a sample container.

Last year they found red copepods [shrimp-like creatures] living in the lake. Today they find red specs trapped in the ice. They chip off chunks with a rock hammer and place them in sample bottles.

Andy and Macario head across the lake in order to download data from a weather station that has been beside the lake for a year.



Walking around the edge of the lake to the weather station



Andy and Macario get started with the weather station.



Weather station [view toward lake]



Andy and Macario inspect the weather station and Andy downloads data that was collected for the past year.



Andy changes the batteries on the station.

We can't stay in the crater long because we have to get all of the way down the mountain before it gets dark and cold.

Soon we pack up, head from the lake to the rim of the crater, and then began our gradual descent.

Day 2: Descent to the Vehicles

The descent takes a long time and is over rough terrain. Macario took us this way because the easier route is covered with ice or snow.



This is what the ground is like on a good part of the trail. On the bad parts, I did not have the time and physical balance to take a picture!



After what seems like a long time we get to the midcamp.



The team fans out in the distance, nice shadows fall on the terrain from the mountain.

[Video: Andy and Ross Coming Down]

A movie of Andy and Ross coming down.



Soon we see the vehicles.

I can barely believe it. Going to one of the highest lakes on Earth is an experience I will never forget. Today we climbed and descended for over 8 hours. We get into vehicles and head towards the Refuge. The rumor is the we will have llama for dinner. Yum.