Seba Pelletti & Hernan Rodriguez add 'Norteado' to Cuerno Norte in Torres del Paine (Patagonia)

A few months after establishing Kundalini (700m, 7a) with Nicolas Navarrete on the East Face of Cuerno Norte, Sebastian Pelletti and Hernan Rodriguez have now returned to the emblematic peak in the Torres del Paine massif to establish Norteado.

The pair had spotted the line on the mountain's West Face and, making the most of time off after guiding, they headed up into the French valley "all out disaster style", to see if they could forge the line "before the weather window collapsed."

Pelletti explained "After barely making the last boat across the lake, we approached into the night, catching a few z’s amongst the forest before continuing the approach at sunrise. The climbing immediately made up for the lack of sleep, immaculate techy low angle pitches ramped up into laser fingers and a sustained wide crack stem corner, all going free at 5.11+." The pair tagged the summit in high winds on the 10th of November and made if down safely despite getting lost during the descent, after abseiling down Nacimientos on the north ridge.

Norteado tackles a completely independent line and as per usual was climbed without bolts, and with no gear left in-situ. Pelletti concluded "Paine seems to continue providing endless opportunity for creativity, and I’m super lucky to have awesome partners to get out there with and enjoy the whole experience..."

Pelletti works as a mountain guide in the park and over the years has been amassing prime lines in the massif. In December 2024 he and Rodriguez made the first ascents of Alborada (5.11+, 600m) on the west face of Cerro Mascara and Ultima Ronda (AI3 M4, 700m) on the previously unclimbed south face of Cerro Trono Blanco, while in February 2024 the pair established Arma de doble filo (5.11+, A1, 800m) on the East Face of La Espada. Earlier, in 2022, Pelletti and other climbing partners established Cuarzo Menguante on the East Face of La Hoja and achieved the coveted first ascent of Cuerno Este.

Info: www.painemountainguides.com