We had to make the decision to walk into Frey, a 3 to 4 hour walk in. It can be done quicker, but its simply unneccessary. The walk in starts flat, and winds its way across a hillside until you reach a valley/gorge. The walk up here is like entering a rain forest, with bamboo growing everywhere. Just as you enter the valley you are given a sneaky glimpse of what awaits you at the top…..Granite Paradise.
Hindsight is a great thing. If or more like when I go there again, yes the climbing is that good. I won’t take any food, or a tent. Instead I will take just a rope, rack and sleeping bag and a fat wad of argentine peso’s. For the refugio is a great hang out and reasonably priced. It also has beer on tap.
My fellow guide Thomas is used to huts from guiding in the alps. I however was, I took his advice, of you arrive, and drink, eat and drink, drink then sleep. In fact the group took to this like a duck to water, and in three days we drank them out of locally brewed stout and ale, on the fourth day we finished all the red wine on the last two days we were sober!
Anyway staying in the hut is great, although camping is free, they are trying to advise climber and trekkers that camping by the lake has lead to its pollution, and is now virtually undrinkable, they do provide free water and toilets for campers, they will also ask you where you are going and what you are doing so they can call out the voluntary rescue team if you fail to return. The team make all british teams look well equipped, and I am certainly planning on trying to raise some money for them. Perhaps with a slide show of my trip, to try and raise enough money to buy them a radio or two, as one of the team had a battered radio with a toy arial gaffa taped to it!!!! So any rescue teams with old radios (most have recently changed to new GPS sets) who can spare or lose a few sets I know of a good home for them, I even have the frequencies of the repeaters they use.
Sorry but this is a bit of a spolier, you’ll have to check in later or get the RSS feed to see the first climbing shots of frey
