Dispatch:
Acclimating in the Horizontal Position
Base Camp - Wednesday, June 28, 2000
DISPATCHES
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Norton
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 Listen to Jake's Call
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Hey Mountain Zone, it's June 28th, and this is Jake Norton calling from the Cordillera Blancas, Ishinca Valley. We had a great day just kicking back at 14,000-foot Base Camp today. Sometimes you acclimate through exercise, and sometimes it's just better to simply remain in the horizontal position and let your body do its thing, and that's what we did today, and what a place to do it. It's quite a valley here, lined by dramatic, glacial-polished granite walls that lead to the massive peaks of the Cordillera Blanca.
From camp, we can see Nevado Urus, Toqllaraju and Pallkaraju at 17,778 feet, 19,784 and 20,519, respectively. Basically, the view is dominated by fluted faces, rock bands and hanging glaciers. In that setting, Bissell and I found some time for bouldering problems, and that offered some pretty good exercise and a lot of frustration. Bouldering in New Balance shoes is not all that easy.
We're now getting ready to head over to the new refugio that's built in the valley and stuff ourselves with some pizza before heading to sleep. We've got our first climb tomorrow up Nevado Urus, an easy climb which offers some of the best views in the Blanca.
We're all doing well here and enjoyed an amazing sunset on Toqllaraju just a little while ago and psyched to finally get climbing and skiing. So, off to some pizza and cerveza—talk about roughing it up here in the Cordillera Blancas, Ishinca Valley. Ciao for now.
— Jake Norton, Mountain Link Guide and MountainZone.com Correspondent
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