El Plomo
Chile · Americas
About
Cerro El Plomo is a mountain in the Andes near Santiago, Chile. With an elevation of 5,444 metres (17,861 ft), it is the highest peak visible from Santiago on clear days. Climbing the mountain is popular during the local summer, between November and March. In spring (September to November), soil conditions have abundant snow on the approach. The most favorable season for climbing is typically from January to March, when the approach is largely snow-free and the climate is more stable. The Incas are known to have climbed to its summit periodically in the 15th century. The first European ascent of the mountain was by Gustav Brandt and Rudolph Lucke in 1896.
During a flight from Santiago, Chile, to Mendoza, Argentina, on 16 July 1932, the Pan American-Grace Airways (Panagra) Ford Trimotor San José crashed on Cerro El Plomo during a severe snowstorm, killing all nine people on board. Buried in ice and snow, its wreckage remained undiscovered until March 1934.
Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.