About Grajales Expeditions
Efficient, personalized service for mountain climbers from all over the world
After 30 years in business we are proud to be the first company providing services in mount Aconcagua, supplying fine assistance for demanding climbers and some the most prestigious guiding companies from all over the world.
Fernando Grajales (1924 - 2004) grew up looking at the mountains, and at age 13 he would climb the foot hills of Mendoza every weekend. According to him, this is the real school for climbers.
In addition to his varied activities -he was a farmer as well as an executive for different companies-, he held climbing both as his favorite sport and living philosophy. In 1976, he combined his work experience and his passion and started his own business.
Fernando Grajales Expeditions was the first company to transport climbers´ equipments up to the different base camps of Aconcagua. His unique capacity for the activity has earned Fernando a reputation worldwide. His willingness to help thousands of climbers, giving them advice on safety, acclimatization and about dangers in the area (so different from mountains in other places of the world), has made Fernando a first-rate service provider. He has also been characterized for his humane generosity, a trait typically present in someone who has an extensive experience in climbing.
Grajales went on a solo climb of Aconcagua in 1952, and in 1953, himself, Paco Ibáñez and the Swiss couple Marmillod, climbed the western face, thus opening a third trail to the summit. In 1954 he was part of the first Argentine expedition to the Himalayas, to Mt. Dhaulagiri, and led the expedition to the virgin southern topside of the Yerupaja, among other achievements.
His love for the mountain, among with the business he started long ago, was inherited by his son, Fernando Jr, (1979), who first climbed Aconcagua at the of age 16, and has now a vast experience in the field. This young man's passion has taken him to mountains in Bolivia, Peru, Argentina, Yosemite, Nepal and Pakistan.