First ascents
On January 14, 1897, a Swiss guide named Matthias Zurbriggen passed into immortality, becoming the first person to climb Aconcagua, the expedition was commissioned by Fitz Gerald.
Years later, in 1934, an unprecedented feat for the time was accomplished. The Poles Otrowski, Narkiewicz, Daszinski and Osiecki crowned the glacier located on the southeastern slope, having entered a valley hitherto unexplored, known today as the Polish Glacier. This milestone marks a before and after in the history of modern ascents in Aconcagua.
The same year, 1934, Nicolas Plantamura became the first Argentine to climb Aconcagua.
Provincial Park
It was declared a provincial park in 1983 and has more than 71,000 hectares.
The object of the creation was the environmental protection of its invaluable natural wealth: important glaciers, water basins, fauna, flora and high Andean meadows. This park also has the purpose of preserving the existing archaeological sites and materials there. In addition, it was created to regulate the public use of sports activities such as walks and mountaineering, among others.
The importance of this park lies in the fact that it is located in the imposing setting of the central Andes, housing invaluable heritage wealth inside.
The protected area has one of the most valuable natural resources on the planet: fresh water, which is contained in glaciers and headwaters. Another value of vital importance to animal and plant diversity is The Wetlands, which due to their variety and productivity are one of the fundamental bases for sustaining the high Andean trophic chain. Undoubtedly, the Aconcagua Mount, which gives its name to the reserve, is the main attraction, being the highest mountain in western history.
Other values to preserve
Numerous glaciers and basin headwaters feed springs, streams and rivers, which mean a very high value in water resources. Totaling approximately 32 km² within the area, the most prominent ice giants are the Gûsfeldt snowdrifts, Lower and Upper Horcones, and the Polish glacier.
Anthropology and history
Today the Aconcagua region has been ancestrally transformed by the passage of man, from the original peoples to the Spanish conquest. Then, in the contemporary world with the railway, the trans-Andean route, until the current practice of mountaineering; the natural landscape has been shaped by culture.
In addition, the surroundings of the massif were occupied by different social groups. The armies of the legendary Inca empire from Cuzco invaded the sector of the central mountain range, leaving their mark in the Aconcagua area, with an extensive road network: the Inca road or Qhapac Ñan. This united a great diversity of places and social groups of the current countries of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. In the Aconcagua area, an expeditionary group found on the flank of what is currently called the Aconcagua Pyramid, a funerary bundle of Inca origin. It belonged to a 7-year-old boy who himself had offerings associated with a ritual sacrifice or “Capacocha”, evidencing the passage of this great civilization.