In late March 2023, Lisandro Arelovich, Federico Barberis, and Glauco Muratti (all from Argentina) climbed Cerro Santa Clara (ca 5,400m, 33°10’21”S, 69°41’35”W) via its northwest slopes. The mountain is approximately eight kilometers west-southwest of Cerro del Salto (ca 5,350m), which Muratti climbed in 2021 (AAJ 2022), and 30km south of the town of Punta de Vacas. Even though the mountain has appeared on maps for some time, the approach is long and difficult, and the peak was unlikely to have been climbed before.

Their approach from Punta de Vacas took four days and included crossings of the Río Tupungato (plus a 100m rock traverse above the river at UIAA IV+), Río Taguas, and Arroyo Chorrillo. The climbers made a high camp at 4,600m. From there, on March 31, they climbed a rocky couloir on the northwest side of the mountain, with 35°–40° scree and some easy but exposed rock steps. This led to a 5,300m plateau where they traversed across hard snow patches toward the summit. The summit comprised an exposed and rotten perch that admitted only one person at a time. They had a three-day journey back to Punta de Vacas, reaching it on April 3.

—Marcelo Scanu, Argentina