Nevado Shicra Shicra, and Other Peaks, Cordillera Huallanca. Steve Moore, Dave McClung, Rob Wilson and I hitched a ride on a mining truck to the village of Pachapaqui on the west slope of the Huallanca range. A reconnaissance turned up some interesting peaks in the central part to the south of Nevado Huallanca, the highest in the range. They appeared to be accessible from the west up the Quebrada Gara above Pachapaqui. With donkeys from near the head of the Quebrada Gara, we started up the grassy valley of Matipaccana. On the slopes above us were scattered groves of Puya Raimondi. In the afternoon we made camp by a waterfall at the upper limit of a lovely hanging valley called Shicra Shicra. In good weather on July 3 we worked over scree slopes and finally got to a snow ridge where we had a perfect view of the Shicra Shicra group, a fine main peak with three satellites. An interesting mixed route led up the north ridge of Shicra Shicra. In trying to get to the base of the ridge, we found ourselves forced onto the west ridge of Shicra Shicra Norte (17,000 + feet), which took us up onto its west face below a 20-foot bulging cornice. Traversing to a weak spot in the cornice, Rob cut through and brought us up to the summit. A different approach to Nevado Shicra Shicra brought us onto the western glacier. Wilson, McClung and Moore went for the west face. The pickets and belay plates were put to good use on the left side of the face and onto the north ridge, which they climbed a few hundred feet to the summit (17,333 feet). After a rest day three of us moved over onto the west glacier of Raju Sultaraj. The weather turned bad as we reached the col between the twin summits and we turned back after a couple of pitches up the south ridge of the main north summit. Plates and 3-foot belay pickets were useless in this corniced nightmare. From Shicra Shicra, on July 8, Moore, McClung and I looked for a route on Shicrakunti, the west peak. Disillusioned by ridges, we decided on the northwest face. The 1¾-inch-diameter pickets provided ideal protection on the last few pitches leading directly to the summit (17,200+feet). From Pachapaqui we took a truck up to Punta Yanashallash, the pass on the continental divide at the northern end of the cordillera; we camped an hour east of the pass. Nevado Tancan (16,972 feet; also called Chuspi) is the northernmost ice peak of the range. On July 11 we got onto its northwest ridge from the east. Occasional pitches were protected and belayed with pickets and rock pins. We belayed one at a time onto the bulging corniced summit. Night caught us descending the ridge and we used headlamps to avoid a bivouac. Back to the pass and another mining truck down to the lake west of Jipisucu, the peak south of Nevado Tancan. On July 14 from the north col we worked along the east flank of the north ridge on what turned out to be increasingly rotten limestone. The unavoidable and continuous rockfall generated by the peak and by Wilson and me forced the other two to forego the summit (16,700 feet).

HUGH R. CLARK, Club Andinista Cordillera Blanca