Early in this Patagonia season, experienced alpine climbers Tyler Karow and Colin Haley attempted to climb El Corazón on Fitz Roy, but were turned around by loose rock. It was their second attempt, having climbed 90 per cent of the route two years prior.
About their recent climb, Karow said, “After eight pitches I was near certain we would make it to the top in quick time before it got dark. We arrived at the base of a soaking wet pitch of aid climbing called the Aquarian roof and as Colin prepared to climb it, we realized that the rock at the start had shifted since our last visit. A 10 meter tall, 20 cm thick flake had detached from the wall and perched above it was a second human sized flake. If we were to continue up, both would have to be climbed which made the decision to go down quite easy. We reviewed photos taken from two years prior and confirmed our observations before unfortunately having to rappel down a separate line from our previous bail.”
The rock in Patagonia is granite, and while much of it is rather solid, several mountains have had significant rockfall over the past decade. Just last week there was a rescue after a climber was hit in the head by falling rock – read about it here.
“Good weather is precious in Patagonia and there is certainly a part of me that feels bummed that our attempt was thwarted by a factor out of our control,” said Karow. “However, this was a good reminder that the mountains contain unknowns and there is no such thing as a wasted weather window. Uncertainty is part of the appeal of alpine climbing and each bail, regardless of size, is a learning opportunity.”
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tyler Karow (@tylerkarow)
El Corazón Attempt
The post Attempt at Famous Patagonia Route Thwarted by Huge Flake appeared first on Gripped Magazine.
Source: View source
