Elevation Gain: 217m
Distance: 10.53km
Total Time: 1 hour 21 minutes
Date: January 1st, 2022
I arrived in Mendoza, Argentina on the New Years Eve and had a few days to spend before the start of my Aconcagua trip. Not wanting to miss an opportunity to check out the city, I had a look around on the map and found there’s a nearby peak from my hotel. It was a rather small peak called Cerro de La Gloria and it boasted no more than 20m of prominence. From my hotel it was only 10km round trip, so I figured I’d just run it for some exercise.
The route followed along a major road and into a park, so I didn’t bother doing much more research and started my run from the hotel. I ran for a km or so through some shaded neighborhoods before eventually reaching the park entrance. The park had an excellent dirt path to ran along, but the shade all but disappeared. It was sweltering that day, so I had to slow my pace to avoid over heating.
After a long straightaway, I reached a roundabout and then the trail head appeared shortly after. The path up was paved and made for an as easy ascent. No more than 10-15 minutes later and I had reached the top where a large monument marked the summit.
I took a brief rest then started my run back, pausing a few times to take some photos of the surrounding range. I also stopped at the base to grab water from a street vendor.
Then it was an easy run back to the hotel to complete my first peak of 2022 and Argentina. While nothing spectacular, it was great for some exercise and to get views of the city. Definitely recommend if you have a few hours to spare.