In a great group, even a long and demanding 13-hour trip with cumulative elevation gain over 1800m is fun. Hey, it’s the challenge that makes reaching the goal so sweet :). Seven of us started snowshoeing from the Zopkios rest area at 9:30, headed for the Zopkios Ridge-Zupjok saddle. Excellent team trail-breaking facilitated our progress through heavy snow. From the saddle, we were rewarded with wonderful views of the valley and the surrounding peaks.

After a fun slide down, two of the group decided to turn back while the others carried on, descending further into the basin. It was a lengthy trip along the bottom of the basin, with small hills, creeks and ravines demanding route-finding skills. Around 3 pm and countless snowbridges later, we finally reached the logging road and headed up to the Vicuna-Guanaco col, skirting the cutblock.

In the col at 4pm, we briefly discussed whether to turn around or to continue. The goal was so close! Dan and Malin chose to stay at the col and recharge, while Evgeny and I dropped the snowshoes and followed Chris to the summit. After half an hour of scrambling up wet and partially snow-covered rocks we were at the Guanaco Peak. What an uplifting feeling of freedom and accomplishment at the top! Spent about 45 minutes on the summit and reluctantly started the descent. Mostly retracing our steps and taking an occasional short cut, we reached the Zopkios Ridge-Zupjok saddle around 8:30 when the headlamps went on. A few slippery sections on the descent and a mostly flat long route to the car.

Many thanks to Dan for organizing this Wanderung hike and continuous encouragement, and to Chris for not letting us give up on summiting!