Today we drove to the start of the 3-day trek into Aconcagua base camp. I am pretty low on energy after all of my final exams
, but I think it will be good to get on the mountain and start hiking. We unpacked and repacked our gear and then went on a short hike. We learned that Aconcagua means “stone sentinel”. I am anxious to get going. It seems like it will be extremely hard. The next day we started trekking. It was super hot and dusty. Another guide and I were talking and he said that many people think Aconcagua is harder than Everest. I feel like everyone says that about their own mountain, so we will see. He said he would call me Emmalita for “little Emma”. My feet started hurting by the time we took a break for lunch. I forgot how much I don’t like the heat. By the time we got to camp, I took my boots off and discovered 5 small blisters. I texted my trainer and she had some tips for me to try. We still have 2 more days of trekking before it will get cooler. The next morning, we started back on the trail. The terrain was super rocky, dusty and windy. I switched my socks a few times but nothing really helped. My feet hurt. We got our first view of Aconcagua just before we reached camp. It was really far away, but it is massive! We hiked for 7.5 hours, 19 miles, 3000 feet of elevation gain to 10,600 feet. My blisters had expanded and multiplied, so I soaked my feet in water. I got to take a shower which was nice, and then I set up my tent. My face is really puffy - my guide says that it is because I am drinking so much water. I have to consume 4 liters per day. After dinner, my guide popped all of my blisters with a needle, which was horrible. Tomorrow we will hike to base camp. November 28 we got up early, got ready, packed our bags and headed out. We used some mules to cross a river and then continued up a winding trail through the mountains. It was a lot steeper than the previous days. When we finally arrived at base camp, we were greeted by a bunch of really nice people. They showed us the main dome which was huge and super nice. We also had smaller domes to sleep in, which was a nice break from the tents. We had a rest day on the 29th, and my guide sewed a thread through my blisters to help them drain. It wasn’t painful but it felt really weird.
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