Highest mountain in South America

What to remember

At 6,961 m, or 22,838 ft, Aconcagua is the roof of South America. This Argentine peak appears in both versions of the Seven Summits, the challenge of the highest mountains on each continent.

The challenge grew out of an idea by the American Richard Bass. His selection brought together Everest, Aconcagua, Mount McKinley, Kilimanjaro, Elbrus, the Vinson Massif and Mount Kosciuszko, and Bass completed it on 30 April 1985 on Everest. Reinhold Messner's version only changes the Australia entry and leaves Aconcagua where it is.

In January 2023, Climbing magazine called the Seven Summits a relatively common, almost cliché tour of each continent's highest peak, while the challenge was described as popular with adventure mountaineers.