Supported by grants from the BMC, MEF and Alpine Club, Hamish Dunn and Tom Ripley travelled to the little-visited Cordillera Carabaya, where they made a coveted first ascent of 5,613m Chichiacapac's South Face.
They were almost stymied before reaching the peak. On arrival in the nearest town, they found no one who understood where they wanted to go.
Fortunately, they eventually bumped into an English-speaking catholic priest on a year's exchange, who kindly drove the pair to the roadhead and arranged two donkeys for the approach to base camp.
Dunn and Ripley had planned to acclimatize on other peaks before attempting the main event, but when it snowed heavily at base camp on day three, they decided that when the weather cleared they would simply 'get on with it'.
The most obvious line on the South Face is threatened by seracs, so the two climbed a direct route up the centre, until forced left at the headwall.
The majority of climbing was mixed and somewhat insecure, involving powder snow on loose rock.
The face is over 600m high and the route 700m in length, with an overall grade of TD. Difficulties were sustained at Scottish 4/5, with two crux pitches of 6. The pair found the rock generally awful and protection very spaced.
Reaching the summit in early evening after 10 hours on the face, they were able to make a rapid descent of the West Ridge that night.
After a somewhat harrowing experience neither really felt like undertaking more dangerous climbing, but before leaving the area they were able to put up a VS rock route on a crag above base camp.
The Carabaya is a remote, highly unfrequented (by climbers) but exceptionally scenic region of south Peru, east of the Cordillera Vilcanota and a little north of the small agricultural town, Macusani (4,300m).
The main exploration of this range took place in the 1960s, although several significant peaks were climbed during the previous decade.
Chichicapac is the second highest summit in the range and was first climbed in 1959 by the notable Italian explorer Piero Ghiglione with Forrunaro Mautino. It was repeated a few days later by members of a British expedition.
In 2005, South American expert John Biggar, Spanish guide Pere Vilarasau, and six clients added a new route; the East Glacier and North East Ridge. This was probably the first recorded new route in the range since 1981, a date rather confirmed by a local farmer, who remarked that no other climbers had been there for more than 20 years.
In 2007 Mike Cocker, Jonathan Preston and Stephen Reid also visited the range and made three first ascents. Their main goal had been the South Face of Chichicapac but they judged it too dangerous, so instead made the first ascent of the mountain's North Ridge (D: friable granite to Mild VS). They descended the West Ridge, so making the first traverse of the mountain.
However, the dangers met in the mountains were nothing compared to those on the journey back to Lima.
Severe political unrest meant the three were forced to run the gauntlet of stone-throwing hooligans and spend considerable time hidden away in a hotel, while police fired tear-gas into slingshot welding mobs outside.
Dunn and Ripley note that there is still much potential in the Carabaya for new routes, and as it is a cheap and hassle-free place to reach, is eminently suitable for a first expedition.
The photo shows Tom Ripley on the lower section of the South Face
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