Summit

El Fraile (The Friar) is a neighbour of the Ojos del Salado and one of the inhabitants of the magnificent chain of volcanoes that extends for more than 80 km of the Andes of the Atacama Region. Located immediately to the south-east of El Muerto, this little-known volcano on the border with Argentina does not receive many visitors. This is perhaps due to the fact it is considered by climbers to be too easy. Or perhaps because opinions haven’t reached agreement on whether to consider it “one of the most beautiful mountains in the region” or “the largest pile of sand in the world”.

It belongs to a gigantic eruptive centre and has a large amphitheatre that opens towards the north. This amphitheatre was the consequence of an explosive lateral eruption that threw up a huge flow of lava. This caused the formation of a great lava dome, approximately three kilometres in diameter, which reached about 1.5 km further than the base of the volcanic complex.

The access route is similar to that of the El Ermitaño Volcano and
the other Six Thousand Metre Peaks in the Ojos del Salado area.
Taking the city of Copiapó as a point of departure, head towards
and then take the international road, Ruta 31, that leads to Argentina
via the San Francisco border crossing.

In the area of the Maricunga Salt Lake is the San Francisco border
post where it is necessary to register your expedition.

Continue along Ruta 31 to Laguna Verde (4,342 m) where there is
a police station that is closed during the winter and re-opens at the
beginning of October. Here, the budget company Aventurismo can
supply radios, water, bathrooms and hot springs which makes it a
good place for the process of acclimatisation.

Given that El Fraile is relatively easy, it is not just recommended to
spend some days here for acclimatisation, but also to use it to set
up BC.

The day you decide to climb the mountain should begin very early
as the approach to the base of El Fraile from the BC is long and can
take about four hours.

The approach starts by continuing along the international road
towards the east. Approximately 10 km from Laguna Verde it is
necessary to leave the road (see waypoints) where you can just make
out a track south that leads to the El Fraile Gully. Once in the gully
continue along it through terrain that is reasonably passable until
arriving at a fork between the main bed and a tributary gorge to
the left. Although this tributary gorge has sandy terrain that is
difficult to transit, it is necessary to take it as the principal gorge
leads to an impassable sandy area. To overcome the terrain it is
recommended to use a high-powered 4x4 vehicle with maximum
traction, even using chains if necessary.

At the end of this route you arrive at firmer ground, and again join
the bed of the main gully which opens into the El Fraile Plain. It is
about eight km from this starting point on the plain until the base
of the mountain. It should not present any great difficulties if you
use 4x4 traction.

Except at the beginning, the road to El Fraile is very well-marked.
In old maps there is a route that goes through the gorge until the
Las Losas pass, but to reach the plain on this route would put a lot
of demand on your vehicle.

Once at the base of El Fraile (5,000 m), the ascent begins. Use the
gorge that starts in the eastern scree slope of the mountain (5,400
m) and leads north-east. Follow this until its end and then skirt the
scree slope on its southern edge where it is more stable. This scree
slope leads to the false summit and has a gradient of 40 to 45º,
becoming steeper near its end. It is rocky and quite loose and is
therefore easier to climb when there is a covering of snow.

On arriving at the false summit the slope is quite gentle. After
walking through big rocks for approximately 1.5 km you reach the
summit.

The descent follows the same route as the ascent.

• No special permits* are required to climb El Fraile but you should
inform the police in the San Francisco border post of your expedition,
giving them a letter showing participants, nationalities, passport
or ID numbers, details of activities and specific itineraries, dates,
route and a map of the area. As the mountain is on the border,
foreigners must ask for permission from DIFROL (www.difrol.cl).

• The best transport option is to take a 4x4 vehicle. See appendix
for recommendations. Buy sufficient fuel in Copiapó as there are
no other places to buy it during the rest of the journey.

• If you do not have your own transport it is recommended to send
a letter asking for support to the headquarters of the Army 1st
division in Antofagasta (Av. Ejército 01180, Antofagasta). To be
approved it will be sent to the 23rd Regiment in Copiapó, which
will co-ordinate the support.

• Another option is a transport service from Copiapo. Among the
companies that offer the service are Aventurismo (52-235340 /
mobile: 99694654, who also offer transport from Laguna Verde
to the various mountains), Gran Atacama Tour Operador (52-
219271, www.granatacama.cl) and Atacama Chile Tour Operador
(mobile: 98723652, www.atacamachile.com).

• The east scree slope of the mountain is quite loose, so it is
recommended to avoid climbing it directly. It is preferable to
ascend through the spurs that appear from time to time. You
have to take special care with the loose material, advancing close
together. If there is snow you can use it to ascend more quickly.

• The day of the summit climb it is recommended to leave no later
than 5.00 am.

• The facilities of the company Aventurismo at Laguna Verde can
be used from November 1st to March 31 every year. You can pay
at Laguna Verde.

• It is recommended to take equipment and clothing suitable for
high altitude mountaineering. As part of the equipment it is
recommended to take an ice axe and crampons.

• Take sufficient water for the whole expedition. This can be taken
from Copiapó or Laguna Verde.

• The Puna de Atacama area has high precipitation in winter and
summer, when it is slightly affected by the 'Alti-Planic winter'.
The climatic instability can also be accompanied by strong squalls
and wind-storms. It is therefore strongly recommended to climb
during the months of spring and summer, as the winter presents
very low temperatures and abundant precipitation. It is necessary
to keep up-to-date with the weather forecast.

From December 1st 2004 the company Aventurismo (32-235340) has had
the rights for access to the summit of the Ojos del Salado Volcano and its
neighbouring summits over 6,000 m, also to the Atacama (5,200 m) and
Tejos (5,800 m) refugios and the Laguna Verde thermal springs. The permit
includes a series of services that can only be used if the expeditions are run
between November and the end of March. At the date of publication of this
book, the only permit that requires payment is for the Ojos del Salado, but
eventually the El Fraile Volcano will also require such a permit.