Solo Climbing Aconcagua: A Practical Guide From My 9-Day Ascent

A solo ascent of Aconcagua (6,962m) is not technical in the traditional mountaineering sense but it is serious, committing, and unforgiving. This guide is based on my solo climb via the Normal Route in December 2022: 9 days up, 2 days down.

I’m not writing this to convince you to go solo. I’m writing it to help you decide if you should, and if you do, how to reduce unnecessary risk.

The Film

I documented the climb in a short film following a 9-day ascent and 2-day descent, climbing solo above base camp with base camp logistical support.

My Aconcagua Itinerary (Solo)

Route: Normal Route Style: Solo above base camp, supported logistics to Plaza de Mulas Summit push: From Camp 2 (Nido de Cóndores)

Day 1: Penitentes → Confluencia

Day 2: Confluencia → Plaza de Mulas (Base Camp)

Day 3: Gear carry and stash to Camp 1 (Canada)

Day 4: Ascend & sleep at Camp 1

Day 5: Camp 1 → Camp 2 (Nido de Cóndores)

Day 6: Rest day at Camp 2

Day 7: Acclimatisation hike to ~6,250m

Day 8: Rest day

Day 9: Summit Day (Camp 2 → Summit → Camp 2)

Day 10: Camp 2 → Base Camp

Day 11: Base Camp → Mendoza

Should You Climb Aconcagua Solo?

The real considerations

Disclaimer: Mountaineering, high-altitude trekking, and solo climbing are inherently dangerous activities that can result in serious injury or death. Weather, altitude illness, objective hazards, and personal decision-making all carry significant risk.

The information shared in this article reflects my personal experience only and should not be taken as professional instruction, medical advice, or a guarantee of safety. Conditions on Aconcagua change rapidly and may differ drastically from season to season, or even day to day.

Before attempting Aconcagua (especially solo) you should:

• Have appropriate high-altitude experience

• Understand how your body responds to altitude and the ability to self-monitor and self-correct

• Carry suitable insurance for evacuation and rescue

• Seek professional advise of any underlining heath conditions

• Tested and reliable gear to withstand exteme conditions

• Be prepared and disciplined to turn around at any point if circumstances are not favourable

Gear Breakdown: Solo Aconcagua (Normal Route)

This is not a packing list for everyone — it’s what I personally carried for a solo ascent above base camp in mid-December conditions. Your gear must match your experience, tolerance to cold, and current mountain conditions.

🧗‍♂️ Climbing & Movement

• Mountaineering boots (double boots above 6,000m – non-negotiable)

• Gaiters

• Trekking poles

• Helmet

• Crampons (not required on my summit day, but conditions can change rapidly)

• Ice axe (left behind due to dry conditions at the time)

  
  

  ⚠️ A heavy snowfall occurred days after my summit where an ice axe and crampons would have been mandatory.

  
  

🎒 Backpack & Carry

• 100L mountaineering pack

• Lightweight summit pack (optional)

• Dry bags / pack liners

• Biohazard Bags for Human Waste / Rubbish (National Park proivdes 1 bag for each)

Backpack weight between Camp 1 and Camp 2 was ~30kg to 35kg, which was the most physically demanding section of the climb.

⛺ Shelter & Sleep

• 4-season mountaineering tent

• Down sleeping bag (rated to at least -20°C comfort)

• Insulated sleeping mat & closed-cell foam backup

Some operators offer tents above base camp at extra cost, but I carried everything myself for independence and flexibility.

🧥 Clothing System (Layering Is Everything)

Base Layers

• Merino thermal tops & bottoms

Mid Layers

• Fleece jacket

• Lightweight insulated jacket

• Softshell Pants

Outer Layers

• Down jacket / Pants (expedition weight)

• Hardshell jacket & pants

• Downsuit (optional - pending weather conditions)

  
  

Extremities

• Expedition mitts + liner gloves

• Spare gloves

• Warm beanie

• Buff / neck gaiter

• Balaclava

• Sunglasses (Category 4)

• Spare Pair of Sunglasses or Ski goggles

  
  

  My summit day wind chill reached -29°C. Hands and feet were the limiting factor. It is known that temperatures can drop to -40°C hence why some expeditions provide downsuits for clients.

🍳 Food & Cooking (Above Base Camp)

• Lightweight stove (cold-reliable)

• Fuel (extra for contingency days - buy in Mendoza)

• Lighter + backup ignition

• Pot + mug

• Freeze-dried meals

• High-calorie snacks (nuts, bars, gels)

• Electrolytes

  
  

Everything above Plaza de Mulas was self-carried and self-cooked.

💧 Water System

• 2–3L carrying capacity

• Insulated bottles

• Water purification tablets / filter (Life straw or Sawyer)

Water sources:

• Camp 1: muddy glacial runoff (require filter)

• Camp 2: glacier pool (Possibility of the glacier melting prior to climbing season - hence boiling snow/ice next option)

• Camp 3: snow melt only

Water availability heavily influenced my decision to summit from Camp 2.

🧭 Navigation & Comms

• Offline maps (Gaia GPS)

• Phone in insulated pouch

• Power bank + Charging cables

• Headlamp + spare batteries

• Two-way radio to base camp (available for hire, ~$15USD/day)

  
  

Optional but recommended:

🩺 Medical & Safety

• Personal first aid kit

• Blister care

• Pain relief

• Altitude medication (only if prescribed and understood)

• Sunscreen (high altitude UV is brutal)

• Lip balm with SPF

  
  

Mandatory medical checks are conducted at Confluencia and Plaza de Mulas as part of the permit and National Park requirement

Food, Water & Camp Logistics

Base Camp (Plaza de Mulas)

I used a base camp support package with a local operator (Andesport).

Cost: ~USD 1,350 (Dec 2022)(Permit not included)

Included:

• Airport transfers

• Mendoza hotels

• Permit assistance

• Transport to/from Penitentes

• Mules for gear (up & down)

• 5 days of food at base camp

• Camp services

You can do it cheaper — but mules are worth it. Carrying everything to base camp is a long, draining approach and steals energy from the real climb.

Above Base Camp

• I carried and cooked everything

• No services

• Full self-sufficiency

  
  

Permits & Medical Checks

• Permits is mandatory

• Includes compulsory medical checks at:

  • Confluencia

  • Plaza de Mulas

• Requires proof of rescue insurance to obtain permit purchase

Cost:

• Late/normal booking (my permit): ~USD 800

• Early season booking: discounts as low as ~USD 400

  Book early if dates and personal schedule allow.

How Long Should You Plan For?

You’ll see itineraries online suggesting 16–21 days.

That’s not wrong — but it assumes:

• No prior acclimatisation

• Conservative pacing

• Group logistics to and from Mendoza

I was semi-acclimatised to ~4,500m before arriving, which allowed me to:

• Shorten rest days

• Move efficiently

• Still keep weather contingency

  
  

The correct duration is personal, not fixed and will largely depend on how your body acclimatises to altitude. I recommend having a flexible departure schedule to wait out any bad weather and bring extra cash to purchase additional services that are excluded within a basecamp support package eg (Porters, extra meals at Base Camp, WIFI, two-way radio etc) if you decide to change your mind.

Why I Summited From Camp 2 (Not Camp 3)

Originally, I planned to sleep at Camp 3.

I changed that plan after:

• Seeing a commercial group struggle badly carrying loads to Camp 3

• Noticing water scarcity at Camp 3 (snow melt only)

• Feeling strong after my acclimatisation hike to 6,200m (above camp 3)

• Wanting to conserve energy as opposed to packing up and hauling my gear to save ~2.5hours of climbing on the summit push (largely based on acclimatisation hike above camp 3)

• Easier to sleep, rest and recover at low altitude

  
  

When to Climb: Timing & Crowds

I climbed in mid-December 2022, basecamp was rleativly quiet and still being established for the peak season. The atmoshere still electric with the FIFA World Cup finals and .

• Quieter than peak season

• Lower camps were calm

• Above base camp felt uncrowded

Route Finding & Navigation

• The Normal Route is well marked to base camp

• Trails are generally obvious in good visibility

• Whiteout conditions change everything

I still:

• Downloaded offline maps (Gaia GPS)

• Carried navigation as standard procedure

Weather Forecasting on the Mountain

Two reliable methods:

• Use base camp Wi-Fi to check Mountain-Forecast.com (ensure subscribed to view extend forecast range) and Screenshot forecasts before heading up

• Check the ranger weather board at base camp. This is updated daily for summit conditions

• Stay in contact with basecamp team via two way radio for updated conditions when above basecamp

  
  

Weather decides everything. Don’t negotiate with it.

Final Advice: How I Actually Got Here

I was a complete beginner not that long ago.

No background in mountaineering. No special genetics. No shortcuts.

What I did have was a long runway of learning, mistakes, and gradually increasing exposure which I believe matters far more than ambition alone.

My Progression (In Order)

I didn’t jump straight to solo objectives. I built toward them.

• Mt Fuji (Overnight): My first real exposure to altitude and my first experience with altitude sickness. I pushed too fast, didn’t understand my body, and paid for it. That lesson alone shaped how I approach every mountain since.

• Kilimanjaro (Guided): My first big mountain done properly. This was where I learned pacing, daily routines, how guides assess clients, and how structured acclimatisation actually works.

• Everest Base Camp & Annapurna Base Camp: Extended time at altitude without technical pressure. These trips taught me how my body adapts over weeks, not days, and how fatigue accumulates even when terrain is “just trekking.”

• Glacier Walks & Climbs Above 6,000m (With Certified Guides): This was where skills started to matter more than fitness: crampon technique, rope travel, decision-making in cold, and learning what real exposure feels like.

  • Pequeño Alpamayo:Often called the perfect first alpine peak — and for good reason. It’s technical enough to demand respect, but forgiving enough to learn in a controlled environment.

  • Huayna Potosí: Bolivia’s most climbed 6,000m peak. A classic testing ground for altitude, cold, and summit-day judgement.

  • Illimani: Bigger, longer, more serious. This was a step-change in commitment and consequence.

  • Tocllaraju, Urus & Ishinca Traverse: Multi-day alpine decision-making. Route-finding, weather judgment, and managing energy over sustained objectives.

• 1-on-1 Lessons With Accredited Guides: This is where progress accelerated. Private instruction removed guesswork and bad habits quickly far faster than group courses alone.

• Guided Technical Expeditions (Khan Tengri): A 7,000m peak where systems, teamwork, and precision matter. This reinforced how thin the margin for error becomes at extreme altitude and the reality of mountaineering when you become over confident.

• Solo High-Altitude Multi-Day Treks (Huayhuash Circuit): Long, remote, self-managed days. These trips taught me logistics, self-reliance, and how small mistakes compound over time.

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Only after all of the above did I begin venturing onto solo mountaineering objectives and even now, I still prefer climbing with experienced mates when possible.

On Guides, Courses, and Cost

I hear it all the time: “Guides are expensive.” “Mountaineering courses cost too much.”

I tend to look at it from a different perspective. How much is your life worth?

If your answer is “a lot”, then investing in:

• Accredited training

• Professional instruction

• Mentorship from experienced climbers

  
  

…should feel cheap by comparison.

Any adventure sport whether that be climbing, diving, aviation, motorsport etc requires starting capital. Mountaineering is no different. My advice is simple: At minimum, invest in a basic mountaineering course before stepping into serious terrain. Not just to tick a box but to build foundations that last.

Gear, Weight, and False Economy

Too often I see people compromise gear based on weight or cost alone.

That’s a mistake.

Good-quality gear:

• Performs better in extreme conditions

• Lasts longer (often cheaper long-term)

• Protects you when things go wrong

No two days in the mountains are ever the same. You must constantly adapt, troubleshoot, and problem-solve and those skills don’t come from reading gear lists.

They come from:

• Repeated exposure

• Understanding how your gear behaves

• Knowing how your body responds to stress, cold, and altitude

That only happens with time spent in environments you are just comfortable enough to learn from and uncomfortable enough to grow.

The Real Skill Most People Skip

Mountaineering isn’t about strength or suffering.

It’s about:

• Recognising when conditions are turning

• Knowing when to slow down

• Having the confidence to turn around

These aren’t instinctive skills. They’re learned slowly, sometimes painfully through experience.

If There’s One Thing to Take Away

1. Build skills before ambition.

2. Invest in knowledge before objectives.

3. Never confuse reaching the summit with success.

4. The summit is optional, coming home is mandatory.