Fire and Ice: Sajama to Acotango

Your backpack will never weigh more than 15-18 kg. The most weight you will carry will be at Sajama and it won’t exceed 18 kilos.

Bolivia requires visa on arrival to americans, south africans and some european countries. There are restrictions to Chinese citizens and to some african countries. Please read this article for more information:
 

Of course! Even better! We have a blog that is updated every day! We normally post messages or photos about the expedition progress.

Yes, a porter can take at least 20kg but you have to tell us in advance. They charge around U$50 to U$70 for a 20kg load depending on which mountain. They charge the same for the descent.

All group equipment is purchased, carried, cleaned and assembled by our guides and porters, you don’t have to worry about it.

We’ll stay in a 3 star hotel named Hotel Sajama. It is located at the heart of the old centre of La Paz at the busy Illampu street. The area is well known by tourists and has many equipment shops, restaurants and travel agencies. The hotel has free WiFi and hot shower. They serve a very nice breakfast and the hotel has a large conference room which we’ll use for the theoretical classes. The rooms are double, triple or quadruple.

We take a satellite phone and SPOT devices to update our Blog and Facebook daily. At high camp there might be cell phone coverage that works under roaming for most worldwide networks. Other than that we have VHF radios and we can communicate with our base at any time of the day. We have satellite phone for emergencies.

Yes. All the rooms in the huts are shared between up to 4 people. It is a mountain hut, not very luxurious but quite comfortable. Sharing rooms with someone creates an essential partnership to survive and succeed in these hostile environments that are the mountains.

There are no charging facilities on the mountains so you have to take extra batteries.

If you quit the expedition 1 week before departure, it is possible to recover part of your investment. Contact us and find out more.

If you quit the expedition in La Paz, you can continue enjoying the services we provide you such as transportation and hotel. However we can not pay back the money you invested because logistics will already be hired.

If you quit the expedition after we left La Paz, you will have to cover individual transportation and accommodation costs. Everyone who leaves the expedition for personal or health reasons, should pay these costs.

If you give up during the summit attempt, you will never have to go down alone. Usually we coordinate your descent with more expedition members or also with guides from other known expeditions. One of the guides will always be with you.

We accept women and men of any age, experience or ambition. We ask our members to be patient, respect the leader’s decisions and never go up or down alone.

Remember that you don’t pay us to take you to the summit, you pay mountaineering professionals with several years experience to help you up and down a steep mountain in the safest possible way.

Our itinerary may seem slower than other companies, this is due to a longer acclimatisation plan based on safety. More days will actually improve the chance of reaching the summit!

We recommend you to take about U$700 to cover all your expenses. You will spend money on dinners and lunches in La Paz and Villa Sajama, equipment rentals, telephone bills, porters, tips, etc. You might also have extra expenses in case you decide to abandon the mountain. You might need to rent a down sleeping bag which costs U$20 for the whole trip and a down jacket which costs U$15.

We do not recommend you to take debit/credit cards to Bolivia as banks can be unreliable. If you had no option but taking a debit/credit card, please know American Express cards do not work in Bolivia.

The best way is to take US dollars, Euro or Sterling pounds. These can be easily exchanged into local currency as there are several exchange offices in La Paz. Some cards are accepted in large stores. However do not forget to tell your bank that you will be traveling to another country so your card is not blocked. Prepaid cards might work in some ATMs in La Paz.

Although we don’t require experience on high altitude mountains, it would be ideal you have previous experiences on high altitude peaks. To climb Sajama we recommend you to have at least, experience on multi-day treks so you’re already familiar with camping techniques and the use of hiking backpacks, etc.

To mountains over 6000m, we recommend you start training at least 3 months before departure. Of course this depends upon your physical condition. Aerobic exercises like running and cycling are great. Ideally ask a professional to recommend you a good aerobic training program. Mountain hiking with a backpack is also a very efficient exercise.

Theoretically yes, but in the last four years the authorities did not ask our students for proof of vaccination. Bolivia is one of the countries that require yellow fever vaccine to travelers transiting Chaco Boreal, so if you come by land, you will need one. Check your vaccination card if you have already taken the vaccine in the past. It is valid for 10 years. You will need an international vaccination card. If you do actually take the vaccine, we recommend you take it at least 1 week before the trip as your body might react to it.

Expect dry cold days and freezing nights. Also, west wind usually starts just before noon and goes on for the whole afternoon. If there are storms, they usually come in the afternoon, after 1 or 2 pm.

Apart from a few exceptions, there are 2 water streams at Sajama. We have to take most of the water with us. There is no water at high camp unless is very warm.

Tips are voluntary and very welcome. They are not mandatory. However if you tip someone, that means you are very pleased with their job. If everyone agrees, what we usually do after the expedition is to have a ‘pool’ with everyone’s contributions. We then share it equally among local staff.

Our leader and guides have extensive experience in mountain medicine and will solve most of the health problems you might have. We have an massive medical kit and can handle most of gastrointestinal disorders, altitude diseases, allergies and traumas.

Moreover, even the local Bolivian guides are very well trained in this type of problems. In Bolivia there is a certification called UIAGM and almost all guides already have it or are on the way to have one. UIAGM guides are normally trained on WFR protocol.

We recommend you to bring good down sleeping bags with comfort temperature of -15ºC. Please note there are 2 types of temperatures shown in most of sleeping bags. We’re focusing on the “comfort temperature”. You can rent a sleeping bag for U$20 in La Paz.

All guides in Bolivia are trained in rescues and first aid in remote areas. Our guides are required to have a valid WFR certification.

NOT for the Andes. In extreme altitudes like the Himalayas or Karakorum we do recommend using Acetilzolamide or Diamox. This drug seems to actually work during the acclimatisation period by increasing the breathing rate at night (reduces CO2 levels), and also is a diuretic which eliminates sodium out of your system. In the Andes mountains however, mountains are too dry and taking diuretics such as Diamox actually decrease your acclimatisation capacity.

Yes, our leaders speak fluent english. Please check our team’s information and find out about our guides’ communication skills.