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Update: last updated on 08/02/2018.

Aguja Guillaumet, Aguja Mermoz, Aguja Val Biois and Cerro Fitz Roy


Travesía Care Bear

1950m 60˚ 6c

Dana Drummond and Freddie Wilkinson (USA) in 2008.

Description. Climb Guillaumet via the Brenner-Moschioni route (350m 6b), continue along the south ridge (see Guillaumet’s Cresta Sur) to below the South summit (100m 4+) and descend to the ruta Argentina on Mermoz along which you continue to the summit (300m 6a). To this point it is called the Motocross Traverse and was first climbed by Slovenes Klemen Mali and Rok Sisernik in 2006 in 11.5 hours. From here continue along the ridge climbing a number of small towers –many rappels and much alpine trickery- to reach Aguja Val Biois which is passed on the west side without tagging the summit (300m aprox, 6a). From the Bloque Empotrado col the first ascentionists climbed the Casarotto/Kearney-Knight/Casarotto combo to the summit of Fitz Roy (900m 6c). This has to be the longest and funnest rock route anywhere south of the Equator! It has it all, great views, great rock, a lot of fun climbing and a lot of trickery. It does not get any better.

History. The first ascent was completed in three days with one bivy on the top of Mermoz and a second bivy on the south ridge of Val Biois, right above the Bloque Empotrado col, followed by a night descent from the summit of Fitz back down the Goretta pillar to recover a gear stash at the col.

The name refers to the "Care Bears", a child's cartoon TV show, popular in the US around the late 1980s. The "Care Bears" lived up in the clouds...

Drummond and Wilkinson were bivied on the summit of Mermoz (in a Firstlight tent), and the weather really wasn't very good, they were basically inside a cloud. They joked to each other, "I bet those the other climbers are thinking, 'these stupid americans are up in the clouds!' ". They decided that since they were up in the clouds, they were like the Care Bears... Before going to climb it be sure to watch a youtube clip of theCare Bears. It is a pre-requisite.

This traverse has been repeated many times since then, with the repeats taking roughly the same amount of time to complete. One repeat included a first bivy on top of Guillaumet, a second bivy in the Bloque Empotrado col and a third on top of the Goretta pillar; another one was done with a first bivy in the Bloque Empotrado col and a second on top of the Goretta pillar; and another involved a bivy on top of Mermoz and a second ¾ of the way up the Goretta pillar. Most repeats climbed the Goretta pillar via the Casarotto/Kearney-Knight/Lindblade-Whimp/Mate-Porro/Casarotto combo, which might or might not be faster than the Casarotto or the Casarotto/Kearney-Knight/Casarotto combo.

Approach. Same as for Brenner-Moschioni.

Gear. A lot –like 20 meters- of rap cord.

Descent. The first ascentionists descended back down the Goretta pillar to recover a gear drop at the col, but the Francesa is preferable.


Photos (click to enlarge)

Care Bear Traverse

Guillaumet east face

Guillaumet, Brenner-Moschioni

Guillaumet east face

Guillaumet, south ridge

Aguja Mermoz, Argentine Route and

Val Biois

Guillaumet east face

Guillaumet, south ridge

North Pillar

Fitz Roy, Casarotto/Kearney-Knight/

Young Jerkers/Mate-Porro/Casarotto

combo

South face

Fitz Roy, Franco-Argentine descent



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Cerro Fitz RoySoutheast face1. Francesa 1.1 Franco-Argentina link-up 2. Línea Hermanos Gallego 3. Nott-Reichert attempt28. Un Mar de Sueños East face 4. Pilar Este 5. Royal Flush 6. El Corazón 7. Línea de Eleganza 8. Hudičeva Zajeda - Diedro del Diablo Goretta (north) pillar 30. The Real Kekec9. Casarotto 9.1 Diedro Directo 9.2 Kearney-Knight 9.3 Chimichurri y Tortas Fritas9.4 Lindblade-Whimp 9.5 Gringos Perdidos9.6 Acceso Oeste9.7 Crux del Sur9.8 Amaro Vecchia Romana10. Mate, Porro y Todo lo Demás10.1 Guasos on the Rock27. Al Abordaje! North face 11. Polaca 12. Francesa Cara Norte 13. Clínica de Aventura29. Samba do Leao14. Tehuelche 14.1 The Hoser Chimney 15. El Flaco con Domingo 31. Persiguiendo el Avión16. Pretty Bird West face 17. Filo Noroeste, Afanassieff 17.1 Los Últimos Días del Paraíso17.2 Le Chercheur d'Absolu 17.3 Attempt 17.4 Rocamora-Tarditti 17.5 Tango Libre 18. Supercanaleta 18.2 No Brain, No Pain 19. Ensueño20. Historia sin Fin Southwest face 21. Eslovaca 22. Tonta SuerteSouth face 23. Californiana23.2 Variante Suiza23.3 Variante Chilota32. The Washington Route 33. The Colorado Route 34. Asado 24. The Canadian Route 25. Boris Simoncic 26. Anglo-AmericanaTraversesTravesía del Fitz Travesía Care Bear The Wave Effect link-upNorth Pillar Sit Start link-up

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