Skip to content
From December to early January, expedition filmmakers Santiago Cifuentes, Ethan Glanger, and Ronnie Forslund set out to Chile to summit the southernmost 6,000m peak in the world: Cerro Marmolejo (6108m). With autonomous acclimatization on Cerro El Plomo (5,424m) and guide support from James Baragwanath and Francisco Galilea, the experience created a deep bond within the group and a once-in-a-lifetime shared opportunity to see the Central Andes in all of its remote beauty.
The team looked to Paka before departure. Knowing Paka’s brand identity in supporting locals and their lightweight, packable, and insulated Alpaca materials, we knew we were in good hands.
Cerro el Plomo
(Ronnie) After arriving in Chile, Ethan and I met up with Santiago to gather equipment before heading to Cerro El Plomo. At 5,424m (17,800ft), El Plomo is the most iconic mountain visible from the city of Santiago, Chile. Its sheer size and prominence make it the front cover of countless pieces of art and photographs. Santiago has summited Plomo on multiple occasions, so the team would only need basecamp support. Other than that, we were alone on summit day.
(Ethan) The trek to base camp took 9 hours. The trail that once lined up with hikers was now desolate except for us three. Plomo loomed over the trail fading in and out of view as the high-altitude clouds swiftly swept by. We arrived at the virtually empty base camp, and after a few hours I began to come down with what ended up being the most brutal altitude sickness I’ve experienced along with an excruciating sunburn on my neck. With some meds and lots of water later, I went to bed in hopes of getting a wink of sleep through the nausea, pounding headache and sun blisters. I guess this was the mountain's way of saying hello.
(Santiago) Waking up to a beautiful day, Ethan and the rest of the team responded well to the rapid altitude jump so we decided to head up to the glacier lake “La Olla” for a little acclimatization day. The sound and sights of ice and rock fall occur every couple of seconds which was daunting to hear, especially considering our route for summit day was on the right shoulder of the moraine.
(Ronnie) Summit day began at 3:30am on New Year’s Eve. With only the light from the vibrant stars and our headlamps, the team ascended up the steep and exposed loose scree. We hit a couple of ‘no fall zones' which was a quick wake up call to the crew that each step needed to be perfectly calculated with no error. Santiago was our guide for the time being and played an important role with perfect execution. Trusting in each other became a recurring theme on this entire expedition. Higher up the route, we crested the ridge which gave us an unforgettable sight the South-Eastern Andes range right as the sun rose.
(Ethan) At this point, we are higher than I have ever been by a large margin, making each of my steps a new personal record. Not having experienced altitude like this prior and with the rapid acclimatization, the pace slowed but we pushed on as a headache began to form yet again. Staying together, the long ridge traverse made the hours go by until we made it to the summit plateau. Once we reached the summit, a 360º panorama of the Andes opened up with a beautiful blue sky along with the occasional wispy clouds. The group couldn’t stop expressing how this was the best summit view any of us had ever seen. We stayed up there for about an hour celebrating, capturing, and just basking in the moment.
(Ronnie) The descent was swift with the loose scree allowing us to practically “ski” some parts with our boots. After some naps at base camp, Ethan, Santiago, and I met in Capital Travel’s dome tent with the guides and waited and waited until the clock struck midnight. We regarded this moment as one of the most special. Who else gets to summit a massive mountain in Chile on New Year’s Eve and then welcome 2025 all on the same day? Let’s just say we were grateful.
Cerro Marmolejo
(Ronnie) Marmolejo is very remote to say the least. With only mule support to base camp, we had nothing but the packs on our backs past that. Having Paka’s lightweight and insulating materials made packing easy and convenient for us three, especially considering we each were lugging along heavy camera equipment. Additionally, Marmolejo is much colder and poses significantly more dangers apart from the sheer high altitude of a 20,100ft summit. We needed gear we could trust.
(Ronnie) The day began with meeting our guides James and Cisco. Both legendary mountain men. With accents on countless 6,000m peaks, and big walls like El Cap, Fitz Roy, etc we were in strong hands.
(Santiago) Once all of the gear was packed, we drove to Valle De Engorda through the Cajon Del Maipo. We gathered together to assemble the equipment at a farmhouse. It was refreshing knowing we had mule support to base camp to carry our heavy packs. But even with the support, the team knew the day ahead would be tough.
(Ethan) The trek started at 7,500ft and went up to 11,000ft for about 13 miles. As we went up, the green disappeared and the world transformed. This already felt far more remote than Plomo. Freezing cold river crossings became a common theme for this first day. Arriving at base camp which was reasonably named “Baghdad” due to the consistent rockfall from Marmolejos collapsing Wester Shoulder, we quickly set up the tents and watched the sunset explode with colors. Hearing the gully’s crumble on themselves in the distance, the eruption of rocks smashing into one another definitely raised some concern from the group as our campsite was filled with large boulders.
(Ronnie) Waking up the next day, the team knew the road ahead would be difficult, especially glaring up at the route to Camp 1 which we like to call “the death grunt”. Now wearing the heavy packs, which must have been over 50lbs, we were officially beginning the ascent of Marmolejo. We decided to go up a 45 degree snow couloir to the right of the Death Grunt so we could crampon up and avoid the slippery rock. It was long and grueling to say the least, but we finally crested the ridge.
(Ronnie) Right before the top Santiago had a fall as he attempted climbing up a large boulder to crest the crux, leaving a decent gash in his leg. This shook the group, as we had all just scrambled up the exact rock face no more than a few minutes before he did, so seeing it give was definitely a wake up call. At the end of the day, the mountain will do what it wants regardless of who’s climbing. A minor snowstorm struck as we arrived to camp 1 (14,000ft), but nothing accumulated. The clouds dispersed enough for us to get our first view of Marmolejos black pyramid summit and some of the surrounding giants. It was a great reward after a long and tough day.
(Ronnie) Day 3 started slow and peaceful with a bluebird sky which gave us good spirits for the ascent up to camp 2 at 16,000ft. We made it to camp 2 where the summit route up Marmolejo was now visible. For our final push the next morning, we have 2 glaciers to cross with minor technicalities and about 4,000ft to the top.
(Ethan) Summit day began so quiet you could hear a pin drop. We started at 3:00 am and traversed the first glacier in the night. This was my first time ever stepping foot on a glacier, so although it didn’t look too daunting, I still had some nerves building up. Getting to navigate terrain like this especially under the luminous stars was unlike anything I’ve done before, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t pinch myself a few times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. The blue morning started to illuminate the surrounding views and we thought to ourselves “We are a long way from home.”
Now on the steeper second glacier, we trekked for a few more hours over the interstellar like landscape until we arrived at the base of the infamous black pyramid. A 2,000ft endless rocky slog leading to the summit. At this point, we are higher than El Plomo’s summit - yet again setting myself new altitude records with every step.
(Ronnie) Ethan's drive and ability to push through his rising internal pain on this final push highlighted his character. Santiago and I together with James played tandem with Cisco and Ethan as they paced slower. What felt like minutes was hours and vice versa. My thoughts started to slow as my brain emptied itself. I had to manually engage every step as it was easy to just drift away. My heart was pounding like I was sprinting. Through all of this, I remember soaking in all the pain and the beauty and just basking in every moment. The weather held as the team met up together for the final hundred feet.. The team made their way and we each took our turns to walk to the summit. As each of us came in, we were welcomed by the others with high fives and hugs. We reached the summit of the southernmost 20,000ft peak in the world. It was euphoric for us all.
(Ethan) Reaching this summit in particular was unlike anything I’ve ever done. Having only had 5 weeks total to train for this expedition due to the last second nature of this trip, getting to the summit of the main objective, hell even getting to the base of the mountain seemed like a pipe dream. The constant mental battle of subsiding my physical pain to take my next step only got harder with each movement forward, and there were definitely a few moments I thought I’d finally reached my true limit. Once at the top, I took the moment in and allowed myself to come to terms with what just happened. A few tears managed to slip out under my goggles. This was a feeling I would never forget.
(Santiago) After about 20 minutes on the summit we decided to head down. With almost 10 hours to the summit and 4 so far of descending, we were completely exhausted. The lower glacier was sloshy and filled with penitentes that were, although not big, very inconvenient. Our only motivations were a sip of water, a nap, and the incredible views surrounding us. Every once in a while we turned around to look at the summit and said “we stood up there.” Soon enough, we made it back and all of us collapsed before our tents. We laid on the hard rock for who knows how long. It was like all the difficulties and trials of the climb swept away.
(Ronnie) The fifth day began as we packed everything to make our way down to our starting point. In total it was about 9,000ft of elevation descent with almost 15 miles, a big day for our poor knees. Thankfully, the lower we went, the more oxygen there was, so our minds were strong as we passed by camp 1 and skidded down the exposed death grunt. Avoiding the snow couloir, the loose scree allowed us to practically run down without much hassle. Once past the steepest part, we did some boot skiing on the final portion of snow patches. I tried, but skiing is not my forte. Ethan and the others rocked it like it was nothing.
(Ethan) Our last objective was to cross the river that straddles Valle de Engorda. On the initial trek in, the river was already a formidable objective. But now, later in the day, it had significantly grown due to glacier melt the warm day had brought. So, the team decided to form an “eddie line” as per James’ quick thinking. Facing the current lined up like a train, we crab walked in the powerful waist deep water holding each other's backpacks for support. Not only did we have to care about ourselves, but also the priceless camera equipment that was vulnerably sat in our packs. After some trembling moments, we practically jumped the river’s edge on the other side. The excitement was building up as the end approached. All the emotions came rushing in as the farm homestead we began the trek at came into view. We all taped the hood of the car and celebrated. It was a magical moment, possibly more unforgettable than all the others.
(Ronnie) Ethan, Santiago, I have come out of this expedition as brothers with James and Cisco. We got to experience true remoteness with no one but each other. This is the start of a beautiful friendship. Ethan and I now have hearts that appreciate the beauty of Chile and its people in a very deep and impactful sense that will stick with us until our final breaths. Here’s to Chile. And here’s to my brothers Ethan, Santiago, James, and Cisco.
Our Apu Jackets
