Misti 3.19

Misti, also known as Putina or Guagua Putina is a stratovolcano of andesite, dacite and rhyolite located in southern Peru near the city of Arequipa. With its seasonally snow-capped, symmetrical cone, Misti stands at 5822m above sea level and lies between mount Chachani (6075m) and Pichu Pichu volcano (5669m). Its last eruption was in 1985, 198 years after its previous documented eruption.DescriptionMisti has three concentric craters. Active fumaroles, or volcanic gas vents, can be seen in the inner crater. Near the inner crater, six Inca mummies and rare Inca artifacts were found in 1998 during a month-long excavation directed by archaeologists Johan Reinhard and Jose Antonio Chavez. These findings are currently stored at the Museo de Santuarios Andinos in Arequipa.There are two main climbing routes on the volcano. The Pastores route starts at 3300m. Usually a camp is made at 4500m at Nido de Aguilas. The Aguada Blanca route starts at 4000m near the Aguada Blanca reservoir, and a camp is made at 4800m at Monte Blanco (the camp is named after Mont Blanc, the summit of which is approximately the same elevation as the camp). Neither climbing routes presents technical difficulties, but both are considered strenuous because of the steep loose sand slopes.