Illimani, West Ridge, Illampu, Northwest Face, Huayna Potosí, West Face. Janez Zupanz and I spent two months in the Cordillera Real. After acclimatizing by climbing Condoriri and Alpamayo Chico, we climbed the west ridge of Illimani Norte (6402 meters, 21,004 feet). It took three days, May 25 to 27, to climb the 6000-foot-high route under unfavorable conditions. Some pitches were of 65°. On June 6, after severe approach problems, we made what local information claims is a new route on Illampu. From a bivouac at 17,400 feet we climbed the northwest face on its right side to join the southwest ridge at 18,975 feet. The first pitch was 75° and the rest 50° to 60°. We followed the southwest ridge to the summit (6367 meters, 20,890 feet), which we reached after six hours of climbing. We descended the southwest ridge that same day. [This route is far to the right of the Yugoslavian route reported in A.A.J., 1984, pages 210-1. The previous route was on the left side of the face and emerged on the ridge to the left of the summit as viewed from below.—Editor.] On June 15 we climbed the west face of Huayna Potosí on its right side in ten hours.

Aleš Rotar, Planinska Zveza Slovenije, Yugoslavia