Polish Climbs in the Cordillera Blanca, 1973. A party of the Polish Mountaineering Club was led by Ryszard Szafirski, accompanied by his wife Aleksandra, Walenty Fiut, Piotr Malinowski, Waclaw Otreba, Marian Pawlak, Krzysztof Szafranski and Bogdan Urganowicz. They were later joined by Richard Guzzy of Chicago, an American climber of Polish descent. They were four-and-a-half months in Peru. After caving activities, the first mountains they climbed in were the Cordillera Blanca. They later went to the Vilcabamba and Huaytapallana. (See below.) Base Camp was at 13,300 feet in the Llanganuco. On May 23 Fiut, Malinowski, Otreba, Mrs. Szafirska and Szafirski reached the summit of Huandoy Norte (20,980 feet) via the plateau. On May 26 Piut, Malinowski and Szafranski climbed Pisco. On the 28th Fiut and Otreba attempted the first ascent of the east ridge of Huandoy Sur but after three days had to retreat due to risky snow conditions. Also on May 28 Malinowski and Guzzy climbed the northwest ridge of Chopicalqui (20,998 feet) while Szafranski soloed the west ridge of Yanapaccha Sur (16,733 feet). On the 30th Szafirski soloed the west face of Yanapaccha Norte (17,651 feet). Using the Garganta route on June 9 Guzzy, Malinowski, Mrs. Szafirska and Szafirski climbed Huascarán Sur while Fiut, Otreba and Szafranski ascended Huascarán Norte. A new Base Camp was placed in the Quebrada Tayapampa. On June 16 they put up a high camp on the plateau at 17,400 feet, below Jancarurish. On June 17 Malinowski and Szafranski climbed the north ridge of Alpamayo and Otreba, Pawlak and Mrs. Szafirska reached the summit of Tayapampa (18,618 feet) by its southeast ridge. The following day Fiut and Malinowski ascended the southeast face of Jancarurish (18,377 feet).

Marek Brniak, Klub Wysokogórski, Poland