Introduction

The San Francisco is a great choice for a weekend ascent, being one of the most easily reached "four thousands" of the Cajón del Maipo, in a privileged environment between the the Morado and Yeso valleys. Its impressive South Face surprises, high above, the mountaineers who attempt the peak by its normal route and who must overcome in the last meters the ridge that crowns it.

The fist ascent of the Cerro San Francisco was done in 1931 by Albrecth Maass, from the German Andean Club (DAV) from Santiago. The chosen route was the today called normal route, which approaches the mountain from the Yeso Valley and then by the South side of the Cortaderas Creek. However, the technical and dangerous South Face of this mountain wasn´t climbed until December 9, 1945, by one of the most outstanding teams of the time: Eberhard Meier and Luis Krahl (DAV).

The Krahl-Meier route is a landmark in the development of mountaineering in Chile. On December 9 of 1945, these bold climbers opened this route up the San Francisco Glacier´s seracs. In alpine style and with only one bivouac, with more heart and commitment than technical gear, perhaps more interested in the adventure itself than in grades, numbers and other elements that pollute climbing today. It might be said that it was the first real technical climb done in Chile by Chileans. That year the achivement received the "Best Ascent" Price, from the Asociación Santiago de Ski y Andinismo.