Day 5 began with a steep climb up the infamous Barranco Wall, a vertical rocky slope with narrow ledges. Views looking back over the valley were impressive, but even more impressive was watching the porters ascending like mountain goats while carrying heavy loads on their backs and heads. Once we reached the top, we were literally standing above the clouds. The trail continued through the Alpine desert along the Southern Circuit to Karanga camp. While some members of our group are dealing with various ams (altitude mountain sickness) symptoms, so far I’ve been fortunate only fighting off an occasional headache. Our guides monitor everyone closely and have been extremely attentive and supportive.
The next morning we were greeted with a beautiful golden sunrise, clear skies and an amazing view the summit. Our ascent on Day 6 continued up the rocky slopes leaving the clouds in the valleys below us until reaching our base camp at 16,000ft. Enjoyed views of the Southern Icefields along the way. We spent the afternoon resting and preparing for our final summit attempt..
