On May 30, Slovak climbers Marek Radovský and Juraj Švingál climbed a tower they named Tauar (ca 4,600m, approx. 8°55’52.36”S, 77°33’09.56”W), southeast of Taulliraju. The tower sits above the popular Santa Cruz trek, east of Punta Union.

The pair climbed the west face in nine pitches, calling their route Guardian of Tuctubamba Valley (340m climbing distance, 7a+/5.12a). They drilled ten bolts: seven for belays and three as lead protection. Radovský wrote to the AAJ, “There is a lot of really nice rock in the area to discover. Much of it will be hard to protect, with a lot of grass and mud, but the climbing will be great.” [In 2023, near here, the Slovak pair made the first ascent of The Line Under the Sky (1,100m climbing distance, 6b M6+) on Tuctubamba West (AAJ 2024).]

With less than a week left in their trip, they decided to attempt a new line on the south face of Ocshapalca in the Llaca Valley. On June 9, they climbed a difficult mixed route to reach the ridgeline just west of the western summit of Ocshapalca. The route alternated steep ice with several difficult mixed pitches, “one more beautiful than the other,” according to Radovský. Roughly the top third of their climb overlapped with Cotations (500m, TD+ 80°–90°, Roux-Sicart-Vigne, 1995), which started up a gully farther left on the face.

Radovský and Švingál reached the ridgeline in darkness and whiteout, at approximately 5,650m, at the same point as Cotations. As with the 1995 team, they did not traverse to the western summit (ca 5,750m, possibly still unclimbed). The main summit (5,888m) is over 500m to the east. The Slovaks rappelled back to the start of the route and returned to their tent 16 hours after leaving. They named their line Orgasmo Multiple (500m, WI5 M7 90°). 

       —Pete Takeda, AAJ, with information from Marek Radovský, Slovakia