Expedition to Mount Aconcagua, 6962 m

At first, I had a good impression of Gaston, until the day we were supposed to ascend the summit. He left us alone at 6000m, claiming he’d had stomach problems for several days and that the climb was easy, so we could manage on our own. Let me point out that we started the summit attempt from 5500m, not like everyone else from 6000, and each time he said it would take 11 hours, and we’d reach the top without any issues. Eleven hours after starting, we reached 6700m, breaking a snow-covered trail along the way, which is supposed to be the guide’s job. Heavy snow was falling, and park rangers patrolling the area stopped us, saying we couldn’t continue higher without a guide in such weather and that it was already too late to comeback to 5500m—we had to turn back (groups that started from 6000 they continued to summit after we back). Our long negotiations failed, and we were forced to descend. When we got back to 5500m, Gaston told us we had to descend further to the 4300m base camp because there was no enough food or other supplies left at the higher camp. That was the 10th day of the expedition (its was 12 day's Expedition). The next day, we descended to 4300m, where Gaston left us. Meanwhile, the three of us climbed back the following day with a different guide, reaching the summit from 6000m without any issues. Finally, I’d like to add that Gaston, knowing he wouldn’t be accompanying us to the summit, neither had arranged for another guide to take over, nor had he paid for mules to transport our equipmant, nor for the Mendoza transfer. Furthermore, he hadn’t left at the office our personal items that we left in his car before start. We tried calling him many times, but to this day, there’s been no response to our calls or messages. For the second summit attempt, we each had to pay an additional $1600 fee due to Gaston’s failure to fulfill his responsibilities.

Very disappointing experience with guide Gaston Oyarzun. Although he is an experienced guide, Gaston, who is 78 years old, is not very organized, and it is difficult to interact with him or obtain information remotely without the help of Explore Share. I booked an ascent of Aconcagua for January 2025 and met Gaston during the meeting at the Nutibara Hotel in Mendoza. He was accompanied by Nicole, one of his students, who was discovering Aconcagua for the first time. Two other clients were also present, both with solid high-altitude experience, which is significant. Unfortunately, no equipment check was conducted by Gaston. Thanks to my experience, I was able to identify the missing equipment and rent it in time, but you shouldn’t rely on him for that. If you are a beginner, I would advise against using his services. The acclimatization phase was very well managed by Gaston. He is a pleasant person who knows the mountain extremely well, but his seriousness leaves something to be desired. On summit day, at 6,100 meters, he stopped abruptly, citing abdominal pain for the past two days. He decided to turn back, leaving us behind. We continued with the other two clients and Nicole. At 6,700 meters, we were forced to turn back due to Nicole's panic at the onset of snow. She asked the rangers to help us descend, and we returned to 4,300 meters, where Gaston left the group with Nicole. Although our trip was scheduled for 14 days, he only stayed with us for 10 days. The cost of our stay included the transfer from Aconcagua to Mendoza, which Gaston did not pay. Additionally, he kept personal belongings of ours in his vehicle, which he has never returned. Since then, there has been no communication from him, and he no longer responds to our calls or messages, leading us to believe we have been scammed. His poor management during the summit forced us to hire another guide to complete the ascent, resulting in additional expenses. In summary, while Gaston is a friendly and competent person in his profession, he is not trustworthy. I do not recommend him.

The trip to Aconcagua with Gastón was really nice. Gaston was a great guide and we all learned a lot from him. In addition to his mountaineering skills he is an excellent story teller and we enjoyed his company a lot. It was unfortunate that we were not able to summit, but I was expecting that may be the case with weather so I was not disappointed. All in all, I was really pleased of the service, food, wine, company, mountain. I can not think of anything bad to say.

Gaston is the most experienced guide and trustworthy person that I've ever met in my life. We summited Aconcagua in 9 days and it was the best adventure in my life. Definitely recommend!