Kick, kick, swing, swing, breathe. Kick, kick, swing, swing, breathe. The rhythm has been uninterrupted for hours now. Everything else has dropped away. Now there is only snow, a light wind, and my body... repeating. Can it really go on? Does it ever have to end? As light dawns, soft with oranges and pinks filtered through the clouds, I see the wall below me. Over one thousand meters of perfect neve, at the angle climbers (and some skiers) only dream of elsewhere in the World. Far away, the wall finally jumps over the bergschrund [a mountain cleft], and then flattens into the glacial basin where my loan tent sits. Preparations, hot chocolate, and my sick partner seem of a different lifetime as I swing my way alone up Artesonraju's South-East Face. A final steep headwall through questionable snow brings me back to the task at hand. As I control my breathing and my fear, every moment clarifies, every move is perfect. Arteson chooses to allow me to stand on her peak today and I do so with pride and gratitude. As the clouds swirl around me, I thank her and ask for the same kindness on my way down. We play and climb these heights only with their blessing. Enjoy, and share it.

Adrian Ballinger
Director of Mountaineering
Earth Treks, Inc.

Photo by: Beto Santillan