OUR ACONCAGUA MOUNTAIN GUIDES

Mountain Guide Juan has spent the last 20 years working as a professional mountain guide. Today, he is one of the most respected guides leading Aconcagua climbs, with more than 40 summits! He is well-known in the local climbing community for his undeniable professional skills and outstanding climbing resume. Additionally, he is a highly regarded teacher (lecturing at the famed Provincial Mountain School) with a unique capacity to pass on his broad knowledge, and has helped develop some of the best guides in Argentina over the last 25 years. Outside his mountain activities, he also works in tourism, organizing outdoor activities all around the province for companies and local leaders. In his limited free time, he is fully dedicated to educating his children in all things mountains and mountaineering.

Mountain Guide Emilia is known among her mountain companions for her determination and will. She has successfully achieved every goal she has set in her life. Her passion has always been sports and outdoors. Before receiving her “guide” title (with the best qualifications and recommendations from the most demanding teachers and professionals) she had already worked as a porter in the mountains of Cordon del Plata, in a job that has always been mostly performed by men. In this very difficult context, she managed to work and climb in the main peaks of Mendoza, enjoying the wonderful Andes mountain range. Her constant passion has led her to be one of our newest and most promising guides on AMG’s staff today. To her love for soccer, tennis, and mountains, lately she has added the practice of Krav Maga. Another reason for her older brothers to respect her a little more.

Mountain Guide Santiago was born in the province of Córdoba, known in Argentina for the excellent level of native climbing. From an early age, he fell in love with the mountains, traveling with his parents all along the Cordoba mountains and other mountains of the country. After an intense amateur sport’s life, he decided to transform his passion into a profession and entered the School for Guides in the Province of Mendoza, birthplace of some of the best high-mountain guides in Argentina. He also worked as a porter, crossing the two sides of the Aconcagua hill carrying his back and strengthening his spirit and his body, and when he received his guiding certificate, he began to work guiding expeditions. With 12 seasons in Aconcagua Park and more than 50 expeditions, he is a veteran in the new generations of local mountaineers, with a privileged mountain resume. In addition to all the above, in his spare time at the Base Camps, he defies anyone who wants to play chess, as he was a national champion in his adolescence.

Mountain Guide Hernan was born in the province of Buenos Aires, and from an early age he began to travel with his parents. In those journeys was born his taste for traveling, exploring and climbing. Not only has he climbed throughout the Argentine Republic while traveling, but that love for wandering in the mountains brought him to Mendoza in 2005, where he began his career as a porter while he was being certified as a mountain guide by the Argentine Association of Mountain Guides, porting and guiding in the Cordon del Plata and Aconcagua Provincial Park. Hernan also works as a ski instructor and climber on ice and rock, and also keeps alive his passion for climbing all year round in Argentina, Chile, Spain, Italy, and France. Among his achievements in the mountains, he made or repeated some of the most difficult routes in the Andes mountain range. Undoubtedly, Hernan is one of the best guides that Mount Aconcagua has today. Not only for his professionalism, but also for his passion to bring the mountain to all those who seek adventure.

Mountain Guide I have worked for more than 10 seasons in Aconcagua, most of them for one of the largest and most important companies in the park. Occupying positions as Chief of Porters; Head of Base Camp, in charge of logistics (Puente de Inca); etc. I am a native of Mendoza, an athlete in all things. In addition to mountaineering, I practice other disciplines off-season, such as: adventure races, marathons, swimming, road cycling, and MTB. Triathlons are also one of the sports that I have had the good fortune to practice. I have completed mountain medicine courses with Dr. Chiocconi, avalanche courses certified by “TIERRA EXPLORA,” first-aid courses. Throughout all this time I was able to conquer 12 summits in Aconcagua, by both streams and different routes with clients, alone, and in a sporting way. I also climbed many of the most important hills of the Cordón del Plata and others. I have very deep-rooted values and principles of the family, with a humble and simple, but persistent personality.

Mountain Guide Jonathan (“Chango” to everyone) started his activity on Aconcagua in the basecamp staff, later becoming a porter. Besides his enormous charisma, he has collected summits and routes of great difficulty all over the Argentinean Andes. He possesses extraordinary physical strength, which quickly made him one of the strongest porters that mount Aconcagua had for several years. When he finished his training as a guide, he began to work assisting and guiding on both routes, adding to his career an extensive and enviable mountain curriculum. In the months in which he is not working in the Aconcagua Park, he works in schools as a physical education teacher, specialized in high resistance training.

Mountain Guide David Crespo began exploring the mountain 12 years ago, in which he dedicated to climb in Arenales and Vallecitos, the most important high mountain school in the province of Mendoza, climbing both rock and ice in routes with peaks over 5,000 meters. In the last 6 years he started working for some of the largest companies on Aconcagua as a porter and and guide. In his free time he is adding flying hours to finish his certification as a glider pilot.

Mountain Guide Gustavo transformed Aconcagua into his second home many years ago with almost ten years of experience in the Park, divided between porting and guiding. As a porter, he was the chief of porters of Plaza Argentina, managing a staff accustomed to climbing the mountain under any circumstance, participating in numerous rescue operations. As a guide, he is always attentive to the client’s needs, with an inexhaustible patience: “Being a guide for me is a dream come true. My job is to be an instrument, so that all of those that I have to guide reach their goals or their dreams. It’s something I do with a lot of joy, because it gives me the opportunity to show incredible places and experiences to my clients.”

Diego Molina was born in the city of Córdoba. In Argentina, the province of Córdoba is known as one of the most important climbing spots in Argentina. That explains his early approach to the rock and his passion to climb the most important walls of South America, with more than 15 years of experience and summits in mythical mountains such as Cerro Torre, Fitz Roy and the main mountains of the Andes in Argentina, Chile, Bolivia and Peru both as a mountain guide and climber.

His genuine interest for seeing his clients realize their goals and his everlasting patience and charisma has made him one the most popular and beloved guides in our staff among colleagues and clients, but also with his students of the Andean Mountaineering Club in his native city, where he works as a climbing instructor.

He is also an Industrial Alpinism technician, and when not guiding in Aconcagua or anywhere else he spends his time with his wonderful family or traveling around the country looking for new climbs.

Sebastián was born in the Valle de Uco, Mendoza, in the heart of the wine region of Mendoza, surrounded by a magnificent landscape of wide fields, vineyards and mountains at the foot of the Andes, which led him to make nature a lifestyle, starting in rock climbing at very early age, in both traditional and sports style.

This passion led him to study to become a physical education teacher and mountain guide later, to then work in Aconcagua and extensively travel Latin America climbing. Today he works as an instructor of climbing at the climbing club in his native San Carlos, where he also guides groups for the institution and teaches mountain and climbing courses.

In addition to teaching physical education, when he is not climbing ice or rock, Sebastian divides his passion between photography and writing.

Julio Mas was born in the province of Mendoza in 1981. He is a Senior Tourism Technician and Mountain Guide. At an early age he began to practice sports such as rowing, participating in several International competitions.

His passion for the mountain began while he was working as a Rafting and Kayak guide, participating in various national rafting competitions as captain of his team. He also worked for three years as a climbing and canopy guide in the province of Cordoba. Upon returning to his home province, he entered the Mountain Guides School to become a mountain guide, climbing all the peaks in the Cordon del Plata range – some in winter – and several more on the many mountain ranges of Mendoza, including Aconcagua. He also made several voyages and adventure competitions in the province of Tierra del Fuego at the very end of the American continent.

He has spent the last years working in both base camps of Aconcagua (Plaza de Mulas and Plaza Argentina), first as a porter and later as guide. Off the Aconcagua climbing season, he continues to explore new mountains, continuously seeking to become a better professional in guiding.

When not working, climbing, rowing or kayaking Julio works as a teacher in Islas Malvinas International School, teaching in the Tourism career.

Facundo is a passionate mountaineer and teacher. With four seasons of experience in Aconcagua, he started as a porter and then grew into Porters’ Manager, becoming a professional guide in the local Mountain School to take that love to the next level. Respected for his many years as a climber, he is always looking after his clients, fellow colleagues and basecamp staff. He also has more than 10 years working in schools, transmitting his passion for the outdoors to young high school students, while traveling all around Mendoza’s mountain range to accomplish an outstanding mountain resume, that includes the biggest mountains in the province – including many summits on Aconcagua – and also some of the highest peaks of Argentina.

“My great passions are music and caring for nature, always promoting a sustainable activity to leave an everlasting legacy for younger generations”. We couldn’t agree more with him.

Ruben has spent the last 25 years working in Aconcagua and other major mountains of Argentina and South America, with 22 summits in Aconcagua, the highest peak of the western hemisphere. Widely known in the local mountain world for his professional guiding skills and charisma, his mountain guide work takes place all year round in other large mountains such as Ojos del Salado (6,893 meters), Pissis (6,793), Incahuasi (6,623 meters), Cerro Tres Cruces (6,743 meters) and the biggest mountains of Mendoza such as Cerro Plata (6,000 meters) and Vallecitos (5,500 meters).

He is also a passionate trekker in every single mountain that he can set his two feet, loving those simple tours with great views that everyone can enjoy.
When not guiding, he is an accomplished outdoor photographer, taking pictures from every place he visits all over Latin America.

Gaston was born in Uco Valley − one of the most important wine regions of Argentina −, in Mendoza, but his second home is the magnificent granite of Arenales, the biggest climbing spot in the province, where he has spent countless hours exploring and climbing those magnificent walls since he was a child.

He started the mountain guide school a decade ago, and has worked in Aconcagua for 11 seasons, the first ones as a porter and the rest as a guide, with more than 25 expeditions of experience as a guide, he has climbed Aconcagua countless times. He is also a certified National Parks Ranger in Argentina, where he has guided trekkings in the glaciers. When not guiding, he works as a rescuer in Rope access works and sky patroller in Patagonia.

Gaston’s amazing climbing resume includes extensive travels and summits throughout Bolivia, Peru, Chile, the Pyrenees in Spain, the Fitz Roy Range in Patagonia and the biggest mountain in his homeland.