Mount Aconcagua

2 January 2019

Mount Aconcagua, in extreme Southwest Argentina, is the highest peak in both the Southern and Western Hemispheres. The summit reaches 6,960.8 m (22,837 ft), and is no place for the unprepared ... even those well-prepared can get into trouble!!

WeatherWool Advisor Don Nguyen was one of three guides that led six clients on an ascent in December of 2018. Three of the clients needed to be rescued by helicopter prior to the summit because of pulmonary edema. Once they descended to lower altitude and more air, they were OK. One client, a highly-trained law enforcement officer, suffered dangerous hallucinations due to lack of oxygen, but he was able to control them -- just barely -- until, after summiting, he got back to richer air.

Don is interested in working with us to design garments -- he suggests a Super-Anorak -- specifically for this type of extreme environment. The Mountaineering Community has relied almost completely on synthetics for a long time, but Merino Base Layers are gaining their respect, and Don says WeatherWool is proving itself worthy. 

Don wore a ShirtJac in MidWeight Fabric, Lynx Pattern, over some Merino base layers for a good part of his outing, including the summit.