Climbing Aconcagua
Spent the last couple weeks on the mountain Aconcagua in South America. It was the second of the Seven Summits for me and third for the team of climbers (MTJM) climbing to raise a million dollars to help find a cure for Cystic Fibrosis. I arrived with a pretty basic kit of a couple cameras, video and still. I also had a minor audio kit. At the base of the mountain in Mendoza I cut my kit down even further leaving behind my lav mics, receivers, transmitters, one of my video cameras and several lenses. This was a good decision as we had mules up to about 15k but after that it would be our own backs to carry the load up to the summit of 22,841 or at least the last camp which in our case was around 20k. I decided to roll with my trusty 5d Mark iii, GoPro, bag of various batteries, chargers, and a shotgun mic. Hindsight I probably would have cut the mic and half the batteries to save weight. I don't like not having backups, but camera gear quickly weighs in. The climb to the summit was a success but I did end up getting HACE on the way down. I was confused, disoriented, and off balance trying to make my way back to camp. Lucky one of the team noticed and helped me with the slow walk back to camp. The following day we made our day down to Base Camp and again proved to be a difficult day due to severe dehydration from not being able to take care of myself the day before. Other than that it was a great climb, even clipped in a few shots on this video from my iPhone which really doesn't look to bad! All and all it was a great climb and even though I got sick it still doesn't sway my decision to climb. I have no death wish, love my family and life. Part of what makes me love my life is the fact that I get the opportunity to go and step foot in these wonderful places all around the world. I would rather live with some risk in my life than than under the illusion of security and safety. There is no lock on tomorrow for any of us. My biggest fear is if someday I make it to be an old man, and I am laying on my death bed. I don't want to have wished I had gone and seen a few more places, or let what others think I should do sway what I do with my life. I want my life to be high quality, full of positive and supportive friends and family. I want to live without fears and hinderances. The single most overwhelming feeling throughout the whole climb in honestly "the pain of it" was a sense of gratitude. One of the best feelings, the feeling of being full.
















