Become a digitalPLUS subscriber. $12 for 12 weeks.  Highest peak
in the Americas beckons  Aconcagua is a very big mountain, and
the dream of reaching the tophas to match its size. Standing
22,835 feet tall, Aconcagua - inwestern Argentina, 75 miles
northeast of Santiago, Chile - is thehighest mountain in the
Americas and the highest mountain outsideof the Himalayas. Every
year almost 4,000 people, most of them fromthe United States,
attempt to put their feet on the top. LastJanuary, during the
Southern Hemisphere summer, I was one ofthem.  For many, it's a
"because it's there" challenge, but for others,climbing the
mountain is a way to prove or celebrate something.  I went to
mark my 50th birthday - and to find solace on thismassive peak
known in the local Indians' language as "The StoneSentinel."
Scaling the slopes of Aconcagua via the normal route is
relativelyeasy; advanced mountaineering skills like using ropes
or iceclimbing are optional. But still this is serious
adventure,requiring rigorous physical t