Exciting news from the Madison MountaineeringAconcagua expedition team: the team topped out at the highest point in all the Americas yesterday! Waking up for their alpine start, the team emerged from their tents, scarfed down some food, shouldered their packs and set off for the summit. Step by step up the route, the team pushed on moving strongly and swiftly with the top coming more and more into sight with every step. Upon reaching the top at around 2pm local time, the team slapped high-fives, snapped some photographs, and took in their incredible achievement. Now on their way back to base camp, the team looks forward to continuing the celebration in Mendoza and then on to their home countries. Strong work and a huge congratulations goes out to the team! Expedition leader, Cacho Beiza checked in with this brief update from Aconcagua:
We summit (6961m/22,837ft) yesterday around 2:00pm, sleep again in Camp 3 (5989m/19,650ft). All the team is in good condition!
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The Madison MountaineeringAconcagua expedition team reached Camp 2 (Nido de Cóndores) after a strong and steady climb up the Normal Route. Despite some challenging weather and a blanket of snow on the mountain, the team moved strongly above base camp and looks forward to moving up to Camp 3 soon!
After departing Plaza de Mulas, the route climbs gradually but relentlessly, with expansive views of the Andes opening up behind us. The team maintained a smooth pace, managing the increasing altitude well as we ascended to roughly 18,000 feet / 5,500 meters. Spirits are high, and everyone is feeling strong and well-acclimatized as we continue to move up the mountain.
We’ll continue to monitor conditions closely and move thoughtfully as we work higher on the mountain. The team plans to move to Camp 3 tomorrow and eyes a potential summit date of December 18. Expedition leader, Cacho Beiza checked in with this message from Camp 2:
The team reached Camp 2 (5522m/18,117ft) today. Team feels good!
Great views of the Andes as we climb higher up the mountain!
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/PHOTO-2025-12-15-13-02-14-2.jpg12001600Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-12-15 21:02:022025-12-16 19:59:09Aconcagua team to Camp 2
After several days trekking up the Horcones Valley, the Madison Mountaineering expedition team has reached their base camp at the foot of Aconcagua. The team worked on building acclimatization along the way, and are psyched to begin moving up the mountain! With carries up the mountain set to start soon, we’re in good spirits and feeling prepared for what’s to come. Expedition leader, Cacho Beiza checked in with this brief dispatch from Plaza de Mulas Base Camp:
We arrived today at Plaza de Mulas Base Camp (4367m/14,327ft) with all the team. Now resting after dinner. All the members in a good mood and condition!
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/PHOTO-2025-12-10-16-57-50.jpg1280960Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-12-10 12:57:362025-12-11 17:44:49Aconcagua team reaches Plaza de Mulas Base Camp
The first of the Madison MountaineeringAconcagua (6961m/22,837ft) expeditions is underway for the 2025 / 2026 season and boy, is it good to be back on the highest peak outside of Asia! The team came together in the beautiful city of Mendoza (746m/2,449ft), enjoyed a welcome dinner together, and conducted a quick gear check before making their final preparations to begin the trek towards Plaza de Mulas Base Camp (4367m/14,327ft).
The team hit the trail yesterday and arrived in Confluencia Camp (3436m/11,273ft). After settling in, we enjoyed a nice barbecue for dinner and crawled into tents for a good nights sleep. Today, the team plans to work on their acclimatization by climbing to Plaza Francia (4228m/13,871ft), and then they’ll return back to Confluencia Camp once again for one more night before continuing onto base camp.
The weather has been excellent so far and everyone on the team is doing great. Check in soon!
The team under blue skies and with Aconcagua towering high above.
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/PHOTO-2025-12-09-08-55-26-1.jpg1280720Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-12-09 17:10:442025-12-09 17:10:44Aconcagua season is underway!
Our Carstensz Pyramid expedition has come to a close! That marks the second successful climb in 2025, with two more climbs scheduled later this year. Today, the team flew back to Bali where they’ll spend one last night before saying their goodbye’s and heading back home, with good memories from their time on the highest peak in Oceania. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this closing dispatch for this Carstensz climb:
Yesterday morning we woke up to starry skies a little bit before dawn in Yellow Valley Base Camp (4285m/14,050ft) up at Carstensz Pyramid. By a little after 6:00 helicopters were landing in base camp, so we caught a really scenic flight over the mine and down across the forests of West Papua and back to Timika (31m/103ft)! When we arrived here, it was a bit too late for flights back to Bali (4m/13ft), so we spent one last night in our really pleasant hotel here in Timika and this morning we’re getting ready to catch out flight back to Denpasar and the beaches of Bali.
So, all in all it’s been a really great trip and successful summit. I’m looking forward to coming back again! So, this will be the last dispatch of this trip.
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpg00Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-03-11 22:15:192025-03-12 15:47:19Carstensz climb comes to a close!
The Madison MountaineeringCarstensz Pyramid expedition team spent the day relaxing in base camp and recounting good memories from the day prior up on the mountain. While the team hoped that they’d be able to fly back to Timika today, some clouds prevented helicopters from flying. But, that didn’t stop them from soaking in the sunshine and making the most of their time as the expedition nears its end. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Carstensz Pyramid:
Today we hoped to fly by helicopter back to Timika (31m/103ft). But, although the morning was sunny, a few clouds lower in the valley prevented helicopters from getting through. So instead, we spent a peaceful day here in base camp (4285m/14,050ft) and we will try again tomorrow.
So all is well and we’ll be in touch!
Flying to base camp (photo by Terray Sylvester)
Our climber, Scott, climbing the systems of ledges that leads to Carstensz’ summit ridge (photo by Terray Sylvester)
Gaining the summit ridge at about 15,500’ (photo by Terray Sylvester)
The famous cable crossing (photo by Terray Sylvester)
Negotiating the ridge (photo by Terray Sylvester)
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/PHOTO-2025-03-10-04-09-14.jpg13642048Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-03-10 11:04:452025-03-10 15:29:24Waiting out the weather
It comes with great excitement to share that another Madison Mountaineering team has successfully reached the summit of Carstensz Pyramid! This marks the last of the ‘seven summits‘ for our climber, Scott, and the last of our climbs on the highest peak in Oceania for the current season. A huge congratulations goes out to our team who enjoyed excellent weather for the their time on the mountain, making great time up the route as they navigated engaging terrain on their way to the summit. Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this celebratory dispatch following their summit on Carstensz Pyramid:
Today we summited Carstensz Pyramid, the highest point in Oceania and one of the ‘seven summits‘, depending on how you count. It was a fantastic climb! We left camp a little after 3:30 and stood on the summit around 7:00. It was a quick climb and excellent conditions! There was a high overcast which kept things cool as we came down, but the rock was dry and the route was in great shape. It was really spectacular moving up the fun and varied terrain that takes you up the series of ledges and steep sections up to the summit ridge, and then across the famous cable crossing, and then along the ridge winding around towers with a few crack step overs, and onto the summit!
We dropped back down in time for lunch and just had a nice meal of potato-beef soup, fresh greens, curried chicken, and rice! So, now we’re heading to bed and we’re looking forward to hopefully, hopefully flying out tomorrow depending on the weather.
Okay, yeah! Great news and the last element of this is that this was the final one of the ‘seven summits‘ for our guest, Scott! So, it was great to be able to join him for that milestone.
All is well here in West Papua and we’ll be in touch!
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The second of the Madison MountaineeringCarstensz Pyramid expedition teams arrived in their base camp, filled with energy and excitement after a short delay in Timika while awaiting their flight to the mountain. Once settled into their tents, the team laced up their shoes and took to the route, making a trip up the lower section of the mountain which they plan to repeat again in the near future, only this time on the way to the summit. The weather for our arrival on the mountain was magnificent, offering unobstructed views from the air and once we touched down on the helipad in our temporary home. With more good weather in the forecast, the team looks forward to making their summit push! Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Carstensz Pyramid:
This morning we woke up at 4:45, caught a ride from our hotel in Timika (31m/103ft) at 5:30, and a couple hours later we were on a helicopter en route to Carstensz Pyramid Base Camp (4285m/14,050ft)! It was a beautiful day for the flight, clear skies as we flew with excellent views of the rainforest and the canyons, the spectacular canyons beneath Carstensz Pyramid with towering waterfalls and amazing cliffs. Anyway, we came in over the mine and then landed here at base camp in the Yellow Valley.
We got settled into our tents and then we went for a foray up the beginning of the climbing route. We went as high as the second terrace. The route follows a system of ledges up to the summit ridge, and we went up to the second one of those ledges. It was really fun climbing, very textured limestone, lots of handholds and footholds. Since the weather has stayed good, we had great views of the surrounding ridge lines and peaks.
So now we’ve had lunch! It was really nice – some sautéed vegetables, rice, and prawns. And, we’re relaxing until this evening! We are trying to decide weather or not we will go for the summit this evening. But, so far all is well. We’re both feeling great! So most likely, we will make our summit attempt tomorrow morning. So, we will be in touch tomorrow and all is well here in West Papua in Indonesia!
Our climber, Scott, in the air over the rainforest.
Follow the Oromana River toward the highest peak in Oceania.
Our climber, Scott, getting a taste of the limestone climbing on Carstensz Pyramid.
Our climber, Scott, soaking up some Papuan sunshine and good vibes with guide Terray Sylvester.
In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:
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https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/PHOTO-2025-03-07-22-17-45.jpg11792048Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-03-08 05:16:402025-03-10 14:05:06From the Yellow Valley Base Camp on Carstensz Pyramid!
The Madison MountaineeringCarstensz Pyramid expedition team has arrived in Timika and is awaiting their flight to the mountain! There, they’ll settle into the Yellow Valley Base Camp, do some acclimatization, and technical skills review before making their summit push. In the meantime, the team is enjoying lots of oxygen down low, and the luxuries of what feels more like a vacation than a mountaineering expedition at our hotel! Expedition leader, Terray Sylvester checks in with this dispatch from Timika:
Last night we headed to the airport in Bali and this morning, we arrived in West Papua! Our flights were uneventful, smooth all the way around. We just got settled in at the Ossa de Villa Hotel which is very pleasant here in downtown Timika (31m/103ft). We’re surrounded by tropical plants and the sound of birdsong. So, we’ll get sorted out here and be prepared to fly to the mountain as soon as possible!
All is well here in Indonesia and we’ll be in touch!
In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:
Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“
https://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/PHOTO-2025-03-02-15-45-49.jpg12001600Garretthttps://madisonmountaineering.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/logomm-300x138.jpgGarrett2025-03-02 23:47:182025-03-03 15:52:06Standing by in Timika
The first of our Carstensz Pyramid expeditions in 2025 has come to a close. Despite a delay getting to the mountain, our team remained patient and were treated with a glorious summit day climbing through the night and emerging above the clouds as they topped out on the highest peak in Oceania! The team is now making their way back to Bali and then onto their homes, with good memories and new friends from the expedition. Congratulations to everyone on the team, and a special shoutout goes out to our climbers, Jeff and Bjarni who successfully completed their ‘seven summits‘ journey! Expedition leader, Garrett Madison checks in with this celebratory dispatch from Carstensz Pyramid:
We had a great climb of Carstensz Pyramid! Everybody who stuck with the expedition and made it up to base camp made it to the summit! Congratulations to our team, Robin and Lauren, Daniel, Bjarni and Jeff. Awesome climb, very winter-like conditions up there, and was the last of the ‘seven summits‘ for Bjarni and Robin. Big congrats finishing the ‘seven summits!’
We’ve been delayed a little bit on the flight out of here due to weather and some situation on the mountain. But fortunately, three of our team got off a few days ago and myself, Jeff, and Bjarni are waiting to fly out, hopefully tomorrow. Fingers crossed, hopefully good weather in the forecast!
We’re looking forward to our next Carstensz Pyramid team with Terray starting up here shortly!
The team en route to the summit!
Crossing an airy traverse on the way to the summit.
All smiles amongst the clouds!
Above the clouds and clear visibility of the route to the summit.
Another airy traverse that must be crossed to get to the summit.
Climbers nearing the top!
Climbers, Lauren and Robin celebrating the completion of Robin’s ‘seven summits’ journey on top of Carstensz Pyramid! Nice job, Robin.
Summit!
More summit photos.
A climber crossing one of the traverses en route to the summit.
In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:
Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“
