'Alborada' established on La Mascara (Torres del Paine, Patagonia) by Sebastian Pelletti, Hernan Rodriguez

A fortnight after their first ascent of Ultima Ronda on Cerro Trono Blanco in the Torres del Paine massif in Patagonia, Australia's Sebastian Pelletti and Chile's Hernan Rodriguez have struck again, this time on nearby La Mascara.

Climbing in a smooth 48-hour push from car to car, the pair established a significant new route on the formidable southwest face of the mountain. After having bivied near the base of the route in the French valley on the 28th, the pair made swift progress on the 29th; they shared the first pitch of the South African route, ie the first route up the mountain opened in 1976 by David Cheesmond and Phillip Dawson, before "continuing left up a series of amazing steep corners littered with golden wind blasted face holds.."

They climbed 600m of immaculate granite all free at 5.11+ and summited at around 2 pm. They abseiled down the South African route and on seeing the line close-up, commented "respect to Dave Cheesemond and Phil Dawson for climbing their mega line in ‘76!"

The new route has been called Alborada or ‘light at the break of dawn’, as it was only while approaching the route at sunrise that they were able to fully envisage the line and commit to it. As per usual, no bolts or pegs were placed during the ascent, meaning that they left no gear in-situ.

It is worth noting that this was the first time on La Mascara for both climbers. Their efficient, alpine style ascent of the mountain via a beautiful new route, all free and completely clean, is commendable.

Info: www.pataclimb.com, www.painemountainguides.com

 

 

 

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