Mountaineering and Winter Trips

Mountaineering and Winter Trips - El Pico de Orizaba - Itinerary

  • About the Trip: International climbing & travel, culture , and a climb up the 3rd highest mountain in N. America, El Pico de Orizaba.
  • Group Size: 4-10 climbers with 1-2 guides
  • Grade: Strenuous hiking on scree, snow, and ice. Extreme altitude.
  • Meals: Meals on the mountain are included in the trip cost. When we eat at restaurants in the city, meals are paid for by each person on the trip (the guide pays for him/herself also). Wonderful local cuisine is very inexpensive.
  • Equipment: All group climbing equipment is furnished by the guides: ropes, protection, and hardware. You are responsible for the items on the gear list which can be printed off our web page. This includes harness with locking carabiner, climbing boots, crampons that have been pre-fitted to your boots, ice-ax, and helmet.
  • Cost of the Trip: $1995.00 per person on group size of 6-10 people $2395.00 per person on group size of 3-5 people (Small group surcharge of $500 per person on group size of 2 people in addition to smallest tier).
  • Your Cost Includes: All accommodations (hotels, hostels, huts), group climbing equipment, meals on the mountain , transportation and transfers once in Mexico, guides.
  • Not Included: Meals in the cities, personal gear, alcoholic beverages, tips for guides( 10-20% of trip fee), airline tickets, airport taxes. Optional trip cancellation insurance.
  • Preparation:This trip requires participants to be in excellent physical condition. Participants need to be familiar with roped travel, ice-ax self arrest, as well as hiking in crampons. We recommend a vigorous training program prior to the trip, focusing on aerobic activity. It is extremely important that you work on your use of the ice ax, and practice walking "off trail" both up and down steep rocky slopes and snow/ice. The following trips with SYMG will greatly help your conditioning: Mtn Skills trip, Mt. Whitney 10-day, or a Basic orizaba Seminar. Although the itinerary is designed with acclimatization, safety, and convenient travel in mind, remember that what you do prior to the trip will have the greatest effect upon what level of success you attain.
  • Day 1: Arrive in Mexico City. There is a shuttle bus that will take you from the airport to the hotel (AEROPUERTO PLAZA) where we will spend the night. Shuttle buses are located outside the terminal at the curb. Get on, tell them you're a guest. Check in under So. Yosemite Mountain Guides and your name when you arrive at the hotel. After dinner at the hotel, we will meet and discuss the trip itinerary.
  • Day 2: Take the Aeropuerto Plaza shuttle to the bus station. From here we will take a two hour ride on a first class bus to Puebla, where we will switch to a secondary bus. This will take us to Senor Reyes Climbing Hostel in Tlachichuca where we will hike, have dinner and spend the night.
  • Day 3: Two hours on Senor Reyes scenic four-wheel drive route leaves us at the Piedre Grande Hut (14,000 ft.). We will stay in the hut on the mountain, which has year-round water, for the next three nights.
  • Day 4-5: Spend the days in and around the hut with an acclimatization hike. Guides will teach the technical aspects of the climbing you will be using the next day.
  • Day 6: With a pre-dawn start (i.e.. 1am), we will make an attempt at the summit. The climb is 4,800 vertical feet and should take most of the day. Upon returning to the hut by around 3pm, we will meet the four wheel drive from Senor Reyes who will take us back to the climbing hostel where we will spend the night.
  • Day 7: Return to Mexico City, via secondary bus, then a first-class bus to Mexico City, and to the Aeropuerto Plaza Hotel. Here we will enjoy a big Mexican dinner at one of the many fine restaurants in Mexico City.
  • Day 8: The shuttle from the Aeropuerto Plaza Hotel takes us to the airport and to our flights home.

Please note that this itinerary is merely a guideline and that conditions etc may affect the final destinations.

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