'Llamada del Cóndor' on Cerro Colorado in Patagonia by Marc Bordas-Garcia, Robert Jasper

In late January, Robert Jasper from Germany  set off with Marc Bordas-Garcia from Spain an expedition to Northern Patagonia. Starting towards the end of the austral summer, the pair hoped for stable weather. They were warmly welcomed in the small mountain village of Cerro Villa Castillo by local guide friends, who warned of a poor summer season and persistently bad forecasts. Undeterred, the pair headed to Cerro Colorado, a peak on the edge of the Pampa, adjacent to the Hielo Continental, where conditions are often slightly better. With help from local gaucho Alfredo Donoso and his horses, gear was transported to basecamp. The following two weeks brought storms, snowfall, and torrential rain, punctuated by brief weather windows that allowed for some climbing.

At “La Proa” (the prow) of Cerro Colorado—a 200-meter vertical wall of futuristic basalt columns—Jasper and Bordas-Garcia established “Llamada del Cóndor” (The Condor’s Call), graded 7b+. They redpointed the pitches in trad style, placing no bolts except at belays for safer rappelling. Cerro Colorado’s rock quality varies due to exposure to wind and weather. Summiting offers unparalleled views but demands caution due to dangerously loose blocks. “Climbing these fantastical basalt columns, often circled by condors with 3-meter wingspans, was unforgettable,” Jasper remarked. “We joked they were waiting for us to fall and become their next meal!”

After their Cerro Colorado success, Jasper, Bordas-Garcia, and Chilean guide Raimundo de Andraca (fresh off passing his international guiding exam) ventured into the remote Avellano region. A 30-kilometer trek through wild valleys and icy rivers followed. Gaucho Nelson Troncoso and his horses carried gear for the first two days; the rest was hauled over a rugged pass into the breathtaking Avellano Valley, where jagged granite spires tower above green forests and turquoise lagoons. “A place of surreal beauty,” Jasper noted, “but Patagonian weather grants only a handful of climbing days each month.” Their forecasted four-day weather window shrank rapidly. With storms closing in, they managed only the southwest pillar of Cerro Quadrato—not a first ascent, but a thrilling climb nonetheless.