Everest, Kangshung Face, Second Ascent of Neverest Buttress. On May 15, three members of our Chilean expedition summited on Mount Everest, after completing the second ascent of the east face of Everest directly to the South Col. (See AAJ, 1989, pages 1-16 for first ascent.) We were the first Chileans and the first South Americans to reach the top. After a nine-day march from Kharta with 84 porters, rather than yaks, hired after unjustifiable excuses from the Chinese authorities, we established Base Camp at 5400 meters on the Kang- shung Glacier on April 7. Following the 1988 route, we placed Camp I at 6400 meters on April 20. This was above the Cauliflower Ridge, where we encountered UIAA V+ difficulties on rock with verglas and overhanging ice, all threatened by avalanches. On May 6, we established Camp II at 7400 meters. Packing loads in waist-deep snow over a badly crevassed glacier was difficult. After a rest at Base Camp, the entire team climbed to the South Col, starting on May 10 and getting there four days later. We rested one day because of high winds. On May 15, Cristián García-Huidobro, Juan Sebastián Montes and I reached the summit at 10:25 A.M. There we met 14 climbers who had ascended the normal route from Nepal. Even more shocking was the contrast of styles, seeing how the Sherpas had broken trail for their clients and carried their rucksacks, spare oxygen bottles and thermos bottles with hot tea. Has the adventure of climbing Everest been lost? Our expedition recovered almost all of the 2000 meters of fixed rope, all hardware, tents and empty oxygen bottles. Other members of our expedition were Dr. Alfonso Diaz, Christian Buracchio, Claudio Lucero, Dagoberto Delgado and Sherpas Chuldim Dorje, Nima and Karma Lama.

Rodrigo JordÁn, Club Deportivo Universidad Católica, Chile