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Cerro Bolsón de los Cerillos

hike | 2022-12-03
5550 m altitude, 3250 m prominence, 117.03 km isolation

Very prominent peak, one of the world’s top 100 by prominence. No other reason was needed to climb it. We are little acclimated from the previous two mountains – Cumbres Calchaquies and Cerro Malcante; and only need a good weather window. And here we go: Sunday morning should be fine for summit. Franco arranged mules, and we headed toward this huge mountain range.

  • Day 1. Begin at El Tesoro farm at 2628 m and 6h00 climb to lower camp at 4100 m. 
  • Day 2. 4h00 climb to high camp at 4700m.
  • Day 3. 6h35 ascent to 5550m summit, 3h25 descent to high camp at 4700m. 
  • Day 4. 6h00 hike to the El Tesoro farm at 2628 m. 
Willy is preparing the mules
People are constantly catching something: dreams, winds, and sunlight.
However, Rob is slightly taller
Cactus plank doors

Day 1

On a gravel road, we arrive at the El Tesoro farm, at 2629m, where Willy and four mules are waiting for us. One mule will carry Willy, another will carry Rockinstraw to the higher camp, and two more mules will carry our gear and food. Preparations are underway; Rob and I are no longer waiting. We agree to wait for the mules higher up on the trail. We begin by walking through a bushy riverbed, then through desert-like sand fields. The river and our paths diverge at 3050m. We climb on steeper slopes; the mules catch us and are hard to beat. We traverse the ridge up to the first camp at 4100m, where we pitch our tents and wait for dinner. We can walk, but Franco says that’s enough for today.

Trailhead
Several kilometres of riverbed
Rob follows the course of the river
Cactus blossoms
Shrivelled cactus
Cactus “forest”
Willy gives the mules a rest
Slopes are not steep to begin with
The lower peaks are finally visible
A large part of the trail traverses along the ridge
Some cacti are five metres or more in height
Views from a lower campsite

Day 2

We get up late, as the next camp is about four hours away. After breakfast, the mules’ preparations begin. Rob and I get an early start. The mules catch up with us 250m up. We continue walking together. Like yesterday, we did a lot of traversing today. We arrive at the upper camp at 4700m after 4h30. Both the lower camp and the upper camp have a water source and enough space for many tents. And again, there is just enough energy for the climb, but Franco says enough is enough. We switch to acclimate mode and do nothing for the rest of the day.

Condor ??
Willy and Rockinstraw are riding a mule
Views from a higher campsite
I sometimes have visitors

Day 3

We get up before sunrise, have breakfast, and climb up. I was prepared for low temperatures, but I really didn’t need to. Well, you never know. We get over the first scree quickly. Then we followed the river and a steeper section, where we used crampons and an ice axe. The last not-so-steep valley leads to one of the many saddles where we turn right and climb up the snow-covered ridge. We are moving slowly for at least two reasons. Firstly, because of the altitude, the oxygen content is lower, and each step requires more effort. Second, the fresh snow is loose, and our feet occasionally sink deep into it. 

Twilight
Perfect weather in the morning, the summit looks just around the corner
I reach 5100m and break my altitude record once again on this trip (until today, it was Cerro Malcante).
A look back
A sideways glance
Franco says again that we must hurry
Looking down

Slowly, step by step, we reach the top. It took us 6h35 from the higher camp. As in Cerro Malcante, we are accompanied by electrostatic… Franco asks us not to stay too long and to descend. So a couple of photos later, we sprint from the top. After a few hours, we reach the upper camp and rest. There’s not much value in going lower, so we spend the night here.

The final metres
Rockinstraw (left), Rob (right) and me (middle) on summit
We’re descending, the clouds are getting darker
We climbed here in the morning with an ice axe and crampons, but didn’t need them on the descent
Upper camp around the corner
In the evening, it gets a bit snowy

Day 4

We get up to make the most of the warmth of the rising sun, have breakfast, and pack up. Rob and I don’t wait for the mules to be ready before we start climbing down. We basically descend the same trail as we ascended, shortening the route in few places. The route from the upper camp is not short but not difficult either; only the midday heat is a hindrance. We arrive at the farm in 6 hours, followed an hour and a half later by Rockinstraw, Willy, and Franco.

In the morning, perfect weather as always
Once below the snow line, it’s back to a hot summer
Along the way, at an altitude of more than 4,000m, we find a couple of dilapidated farms
A spectacularly large plain at the foot of the mountain
I didn’t expect to see sand dunes on a mountain
Rob, enjoying the p1 peak.. oh, no.. he enjoying Cerro Bolsón de los Cerillos – 5550m p3259. I’m enjoying it too

Today is the highest mountain I have climbed; I am happy with this achievement, and it is also for me the 50th ultra peak climbed in 2022. We were planning to climb Cerro Laguna Blanca, but the weather forecast is not good, so we will have to postpone. The next goal is Cerros de Pereyra.


Cerro Bolsón de los Cerillos 5550 m altitude
3250 m prominence
117.03 km isolation
Ranges South America - Andes - Puna de Atacama
Countries/regions Argentina - Catamarca
Argentina - Tucumán
Distance 21.00 km up 21.00 km down
Elevation 2909 m gain 2909 m loss
Time
51h00 up
0h05 other
27h35 down
78h40 total
Trailhead 2641 m altitude -27.0887490, -66.1530000
Difficulties

soft snow close to the summit

Links GPX trail
  • Andes 2022
  • « Ruins of Quilmes
  • Cerros de Pereyra »

Mountain Ranges

Anatolia
Taurus Mountains
Western Anatolia
Andes
Puna de Atacama
Atlas Mountains
High Atlas
Northwestern Atlas
Central America Ranges
Costa Rica-Panama Ranges
Central Central America
Eastern Europe Ranges
Southeast Baltic Plains
Iberian Peninsula
Cordillera Cantabrica
Castile Ranges
Portugal-Galicia
Pyrenees
Malay Archipelago
Java
Nusa Tengarra
Sulawesi
Sumatra
Northwest Europe
Great Britain
North France-West Rhine Area
Southeast South America
Pampas
Sierras de Cordoba
West Africa Mountains
Bight of Benin
Cameroon Mountains

Countries / regions

Algeria
Ain Guezzam
Ain Salah
Aïn Témouchent
El Bayadh
Ghardaïa
Oran
Ouargla
Saïda
Sidi Bel Abbès
Tamanrasset
Argentina
Catamarca
Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires
Córdoba
Jujuy
Salta
Tucumán
Belgium
Brussels Capital Region
Flemish Region
Cameroon
Southwest
Costa Rica
Alajuela
Cartago
Guanacaste
Heredia
Limón
San José
Czechia
Prague
Denmark
Greenland
France
Hauts-de-France
Germany
Berlin
Niedersachsen
Indonesia
Bali
Jambi
Jawa Tengah
Jawa Timur
Nusa Tenggara Barat
Sulawesi Tengah
Sulawesi Utara
Sumatera Barat
Lithuania
Vilnius County
Morocco
Béni Mellal-Khénifra
Drâa-Tafilalet
Fez-Meknes
Marrakesh-Safi
Souss-Massa
Tangier-Tetouan-Al Hoceima
Netherlands
Gelderland
Noord-Holland
Zeeland
Nicaragua
Chinandega
Managua
Masaya
Rivas
Poland
Greater Poland Voivodeship
Masovian Voivodeship
Portugal
Castelo Branco
Leiria
Lisbon
Santarém
São Tomé and Príncipe
São Tomé Province
Spain
Aragón
Asturias
Castilla-La Mancha
Castilla y León
Switzerland
Zürich
Turkey
Antalya
Isparta
Muğla
United Kingdom
England
Scotland
United States
Delaware
Florida
Maryland
New Jersey
New York
South Carolina
Pennsylvania

TRIPS

2023
West Africa II 2023
Iberian Peninsula 2023
West Africa 2023
Central America 2023
2022
Andes 2022
Northwest Europe 2022
Malay Archipelago III 2022
Malay Archipelago II 2022
Anatolia Mountains 2022
Iberian Peninsula 2022
Atlas Mountains 2022
North France-West Rhine Area 2022

archaeology (3) climb (72) food (2) hike (71) p30 (6) p100 (9) p300 (8) p600 (13) p1000 (5) p1500 (34) ribu (4) sight (35) summary (11) ultra (34)

843 km walked, 65 330 m climbed

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