Climbing Nevado Mateo (5,150m)

Up at 2.55am this morning to climb my first 5,000m peak - Nevado Mateo. Helen sat this one out.

It was quite a drive to the start and we were stopped by the police on the way with our driver being in trouble for not having the right licence to carry tourists.

We started the climb at 6.15am just as the sun was rising. I was delighted the mountains were mostly clear of cloud allowing great views of many 6000m peaks including Peru’s highest. There were six clients climbing in two groups plus 2 Peruvian guides. Myself, a Dutch lady and 4 Israeli young men all on leave from military service.

After we climbed the rock slope we met the glacier and switched to boots and crampons. The ascent to the summit was similar to many Scottish Munros in winter except the ice was more grippier, we had to cross one crevasse and the air was so thin breathing was hard. A slow plod won the day.

Great views and emotions from the summit. Very happy to have climbed this high and enjoyed the experience. The pictures speak for themselves but a rewarding challenge and adventure within this big trip of ours.Read more