In March 2020, Nicole Siña, Paolo Alarcón, Sergio Aspe, and I, all with the Club Andino Leones de Montaña, made the first ascent of Cerro Mono Negro (4,826m, -32.96514, -70.04194) in Chile’s Parque Andino Juncal, about 35km south of Aconcagua. I had made an unsuccessful attempt in 2018 with Edison Sanhueza and returned two years later, more experienced and motivated.

We approached from the north to the end of the Navarro Valley and bivouacked at 3,700m. The following morning, we gained the saddle east of the peak, then climbed the south ridge to the top. Our route, Glaciar de Roca, involved scrambling plus three pitches of roped climbing. I led all three pitches (5.7, 5.8, 5.6), and my partners followed on a fixed rope. From the summit, we made three rappels and returned to the road by our approach route, reaching the cars in nine hours. 

       —Álvaro Zerené, Chile