Nevado Sajama

Nevado Sajama
Elevation	6,542 m (21,463 ft)
Prominence	2,428 m (7,966 ft)
Listing	Country high point Ultra
Location
Nevado Sajama  Bolivia, Oruro Department
Range	Cordillera Occidental
Coordinates	18°06′18″S 68°52′46″W / 18.105°S 68.87944°W / -18.105; -68.87944Coordinates: 18°06′18″S 68°52′46″W / 18.105°S 68.87944°W / -18.105; -68.87944
Geology
Type	Stratovolcano
Climbing
First ascent	August, 1939 Joseph Prem Wilfrid Kuehm
Easiest route	direct ascent from villages of Tameripi, Sajama, or Lagunas

Nevado Sajama is an extinct stratovolcano and the highest peak in Bolivia. The mountain is located in the Oruro Department, Sajama Province, Curahuara de Carangas Municipality, Sajama Canton. ^[1] It is situated in the Sajama National Park in the southwest area of the country some 16–24 km (10-15 mi) from the border with Chile. The peak is an isolated cone, but is geologically complex, with lava domes of andesitic and rhyodactic composition overlain by an andesitic stratovolcano. The date of the most recent eruption is uncertain, although Holocene activity is assigned to the volcano by many. The treeline of Polylepis tarapacana on the volcano is as high as 5200m above sea level, one of the highest altitudes trees can be found growing anywhere in the world.

Joseph Prem made the first attempt to climb the mountain in 1927 by the northwest ridge but was stopped short at 6,200 m. After several more attempts, Prem along with Wilfrid Kuehm reached the top in August 1939 by a more difficult southeast ridge.

In August 2001, two teams of Sajama villagers and Bolivian mountain guides played a soccer match on top of Mount Sajama in an effort to show that altitude itself is not a limitation to physical strain : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/1476866.stm http://zubietas.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html (bottom)

See also

• List of volcanoes in Bolivia
• Sajama Lines
• Pomerape

References

1. ^ Map of Curahuara de Carangas Municipality and population data

• González-Ferrán, Oscar (1995). Volcanes de Chile. Santiago, Chile: Instituto Geográfico Militar. p. 640 pp. ISBN 956-202-054-1.  (in Spanish; also includes volcanoes of Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru)
• Biggar, John (2005). The Andes: A Guide for Climbers (3rd ed.). Andes Publishing (Scotland). p. 304 pp. ISBN 0-9536087-2-7. http://www.andes.org.uk/. 
• Brain, Yossi (1999). Bolivia: A Climbing Guide. Mountaineers Books. p. 224 pp. ISBN 0-89886-495-X. 
• Climbing Sajama and Illimani
• Sajama on Peakware