Aconcagua, Attempt by Blind Climber. In December, Erik ...

Aconcagua, Attempt by Blind Climber. In December, Erik Weihenmayer, a blind climber, made an attempt of Aconcagua by the normal route, reaching 1,500 feet shy of the summit with guides and a film crew. We went for the summit on our 17th day on the mountain, reach­ ing Independencia at 21,000 feet. We went down from there due to high winds. The mountain is a slag heap. It’s strictly a roll of the die as to whether the weather lets you summit or not. H a n s F l o r i n e , unaffiliated