El Almirante Nieto - Pushing boundaries

To develop, you need to leave your comfort zone but pushing too far can be overwhelming and counterproductive. The magic happens at the edge of your comfort zone. This is where growth happens. But when you undertake something at the edge, you sometimes have to acknowledge your limits and call it a day.

After waiting over a week for good weather it was finally time to return to Torres del Paine. This time, armed with climbing gear and stacks of papers. Our objective: El Almirante Nieto, a stunning 2640-meter peak. Our first stop was the national parks administrative office.

We needed to collect a crucial signature. The signature of big boss as he was described to us. Big boss was the final obstacle standing between us and our final climbing permit. Ahead of time we had secured the first of two permits via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (a requirement for foreign climbers). Once you’ve figured out the process, it’s pretty straightforward. More about that another time.

We had heard horror stories about getting the signature of Big Boss, whose official title is Superintendent. The head of the park rangers in Torres del Paine. Online we had read about a process filled with critical questions and skepticism. Local climbers had prepared us for rangers wanting to check your climbing equipment to make sure that you have everything you’ll need. Most annoyingly, this check was supposedly carried out by rangers without any climbing experience. Not all climbs are the same, so gear requirements vary greatly from climb to climb. We bring the gear that we need for a safe climb. Nothing more, and most certainly nothing less.

We had printed all the necessary forms ahead of time and filled them in to the extent possible, hoping to make a good first impression. At the office we were asked to take place and wait outside an office. A park ranger went in and came back out a few seconds later. “He will be with you in a minute”. Fifteen minutes later, the door flew open and a ranger with big boss attitude emerged. From the look on his face it was clear that he had forgotten all about us. He was clearly too busy to deal with yet another pair of climbers. He looked at us, glanced at our backpacks and asked if we had brought the forms. We smiled and handed them over. He quickly scanned through the pages and said “alright”, signed the last page and stamped the park's official seal at the bottom. Just like that, we had our permit!

With the paperwork sorted, we set off to our base camp. In Torres del Paine National Park there are strict rules about how and where you can camp but with a climbing permit those rules are significantly less restrictive. You’re basically allowed to camp wherever it’s required to carry out your climb. During our preparation we had identified two places where we would sleep. A base camp and a high camp. The ranger station at Los Torres would serve as our base camp. By climbers, this is a frequently used base camp. It offers basic amenities like a toilet and running water. A flat-ish looking spot on the map just below the start of our route would be our high camp. Getting to base camp was a straightforward hike. When we walked the O-Circuit a few weeks earlier, we also walked this path so we knew exactly what to expect. When we got to the ranger station we introduced ourselves and handed over a copy of the climbing permit to the rangers on duty. The station was staffed by two young rangers who were clearly having a great time celebrating Christmas in the mountains. Throughout the time we spent at the station, they were either cooking or sitting in the sun enjoying their deliciously looking creations.

On the morning of the second day the winds were strong and with only a few hours of hiking to our high camp, we decided to wait it out a bit. According to the weather forecast the winds should die down around lunchtime. We spent the morning drinking coffee and chatting with the rangers. After lunch we headed for high camp. The first part of the journey follows the path to the Torres viewpoint. Just before you reach the viewpoint you turn off the trail and on to the moraine.

After about an hour and a half navigating through the moraine we had made it to our high camp. Luckily we weren’t the only ones who had ever thought of sleep here. Along with a small but surprisingly straight patch of dirt was a tiny stone wall, built to offer protection against the wind. After a bit of manoeuvring and some digging we managed to pitch our tent. We knew from the forecast that the strong winds would stay until around midnight so we decided expand on the stone wall. Hard work but worthwhile.

The alarm went off at 03:45, giving us forty five minutes to get ready for a 04:30 departure. Getting ready means having a quick bite to eat, getting dressed, gearing up and doing a final check to make sure that we have everything we need. With a slight delay, we left camp at 04:45.

The climb can be divided into three sections. First you ascend a gully, then navigate a rock section and finally you traverse the ridge to the summit. At least, that’s the plan.

The way up the gully is a climb through a mix of snow and scree fields. Not technically challenging but physically exhausting. The gully has an ascent of about 600 metres in less than two kilometres, making it a rather steep affair. Our guidebooks described the gully as “much longer than it looks”. Truer words have seldom been spoken…

After about four hours we made it to the top of the gully. Turning right, the second section of the journey begins. This section is referred to as the rock pass. It’s a fifty meter piece of smooth granite. From a climbing technical perspective, it’s pretty straightforward (probably a UIAA grade III). Nothing too challenging and comfortably within the skill set of both Britt and I. The challenging part is keeping your heads cool while climbing. Even though the climbing is not technically challenging, the exposure is next level. To your left is a few hundred meters of nothingness and to your right is the gully which we just came up through. Climbing this section was gently nudging us towards the edges of our comfort zones.

From the top of the rock section, the third and final section of the climb starts. This part traverses the ridge towards the summit. The climb is a mix of scrambling through rock and navigating the occasional snow field. The technical nature and the level of exposure varies greatly on this section of the climb. In some places it’s walking over rocky terrain. In others, it’s crossing steep snow fields while looking straight into the abyss. Talk about pushing the boundaries of the comfort zone.

We progressed well until we reached a particularly exposed section on the ridge. At this point you traverse a snow field off to the side of the ridge. The drop-off is very real. Crossing this section requires excellent conditions. We knew ahead of time that the wind would pick up in the afternoon making crossing this section more challenging. Unfortunately for us the winds came earlier than expected. After evaluating our options and looking at the time, we decided that continuing up would be too risky. Going up is only half the work, getting back down also takes time.

Turning around is never an easy decision. Especially after having put in a lot of time and effort. In that moment you need to check your ego and put your pride aside. Focus solely on what’s in front of you. We climb to have fun, to challenge ourselves and to experience nature in its purest form. For us, safety must be above anything else. If we don’t trust it, we turn around. That’s what we decided to do here.

After enjoying the scenery, we started on our way back to high camp. We descended with our heads held high. It had been a great day at the edge of our comfort zone. We had fun, we challenged ourselves and we got a chance to enjoy some of the most spectacular landscapes and views that Torres del Paine has to offer. A perfect day.

Returning back to the tent 11 hours later then we had started, we had some food and a quick nap before continuing back down to the ranger station for another 2,5 hours where we spent the night before heading out of the park the next morning. Although we didn’t summit El Almirante Nieto, our adventure was a great success. Perhaps we’ll try again someday…