Bestard shoes for hiking on the Sierra Negra volcano 4580m (Mexico)

My experience at the Sierra Negra Volcano

By Pascual Fuster

INTRODUCTION

On this occasion, I had set myself the goal of climbing the highest mountain in Mexico, which is also the highest volcano in North America: Orizaba, or Citlaltépetl as it is known by the local people, at 5.636 m. It had a dual appeal. On the one hand, achieving the challenge of climbing a beautiful mountain, and on the other, getting to know a fascinating country that I had long wanted to visit.

Experience had taught me that ascending a mountain like Orizaba required good, progressive acclimatisation to altitude, and I imagined that for the approach walk and the ascent of a nearby mountain I would need lightweight shoes that would allow me to walk comfortably over varied terrain and that would not add unnecessary bulk or weight to my luggage.

For a long time, I had remained loyal to the Bestard brand. With their boots, I have climbed mountains all over the world.

Last year I climbed Volcán Tunupa (5.432 m), the small Alpamayo (5.430 m) in the Condoriri massif of the Cordillera Real, and Huayna Potosí (6.090 m) in Bolivia wearing Advance K Pro boots.
I climbed the Matterhorn in Trek Alpine FF boots. I have chosen Alpine Lite K boots for colder mountains. With them I have climbed Sajama (6.542 m) in Bolivia, Lenin Peak (7.134 m) in Kyrgyzstan, and finally my most recent experience, Orizaba (5.640 m).

So I looked through Bestard’s range of shoes for a pair that met the characteristics I needed for the acclimatisation phase before the ascent of Orizaba volcano. They needed to have a Vibram sole to give me good grip and also be waterproof. Among them all, I chose Bestard Ruta shoes, which are durable, comfortable and robust at the same time.

The gradual approach walk I had imagined turned out to be very different. The mountain guides we had hired had a surprise in store for us. As soon as we arrived at the lodge located in the village of San Miguel de Zoapan, they took us to the Sierra Negra volcano at 4.580 m, situated next to its bigger brother, Orizaba. Acclimatisation to altitude had to be quick. The climbing season for Orizaba was coming to an end and storms and snowfall would soon arrive. The guides and agencies had already taken down High Camp on Orizaba and would soon dismantle Base Camp as well.

An even greater surprise was the fact that the day dawned with unusual snowfall at fairly low altitude. Even the guides themselves were surprised that the snow season had arrived so early in the year. As I was only carrying the Ruta shoes, I decided to supplement them with gaiters and head up Sierra Negra as far as I could.

I must say that at no point did I feel cold in my feet, despite the depth of snow and the unpleasant weather, with strong gusts of wind and continuous fog. The ascent went smoothly and calmly. At all times I kept my feet dry thanks to the Gore-Tex and the water-repellent suede leather and Cordura, until reaching the summit.

The experience proved very useful. With that climb I achieved a fairly good and rapid acclimatisation to altitude, although I did have to take an aspirin for the headache I tend to get when acclimatisation is too quick. I can say that this simple remedy is very useful, as long as altitude sickness does not present itself in a more severe form, since the active ingredient in aspirin helps to thin the blood and alleviates the symptoms of altitude sickness. If we add proper and abundant hydration, we are well on the way to success.

The following morning we were already at Orizaba Base Camp, where we slept in tents at 4.200 m. The usual acclimatisation walks up to the Piedra Grande refuge were also done in the Ruta shoes. There was no point in putting on heavy boots even though the surroundings still had a certain amount of snow.

Orizaba, imposing and proud, loaded with snow as rarely seen, was waiting for us. Knowing that you only have one chance puts you on alert, creating nerves that spur you on from within, nerves that you must control and use to your advantage.

The beautiful ascent, the wonderful sunrise over the summit glacier, glimpsing the cone-shaped shadow over the surrounding plateau, reaching the edge of the crater and the emotion of standing on its summit will remain in my memory forever. These experiences and sensations continue to drive me, at 66 years of age, to keep wanting to climb mountains.