• Best expedition at a great value: CTSS believes in providing our clients with the highest quality service in the industry at a great value. Climbing and trekking are our passion, and our goal is to share these unique places and experiences with you. We want you to feel good about your experience because we believe word-of-mouth is the best advertising, and that begins with satisfied customers. There is a difference between our expeditions and those of our competitors, especially local cut-rate options. In choosing us, you are hiring the finest guides and logistical support in the industry. Benefiting from well over 100 high-altitude expeditions and drawing on decades of first-hand guiding experience, we have worked hard to refine our logistics in order to offer you the highest chance of success at an exceptional value.

• We are a modestly sized guide service with highly personalized service: We maintain a moderate size so that we can tailor our Carstensz Pyramid experience to you. Not all climbers are the same, which is why Mike Hamill will work with you directly to make sure you choose only the programs that are right for you.

• The best route: CTSS climbs Carstensz by the beautiful normal route. By using this route, we provide you with the highest chance of success and give you the best climbing experience available on the mountain. We also provide you with more than ample time to acclimatize to the altitude so you feel good on summit day. Many climbing companies, especially local ones, race you up and down the mountain not allowing time to get used to the rarefied air. This is not only not advantageous to you but it is dangerous. We also fly you both in and out of the mountain in a helicopter. It is dangerous and incredibly time-consuming to take the trekking approach, and it takes the focus off the climbing route and summit. Using the helicopter is a huge advantage that improves safety and success, and these are our three main objectives. You will see when you’re on the mountain that there’s no better way to climb the peak than the way we have organized it.

• Leadership: As the expedition organizer, Mike’s almost unparalleled experience based on high altitude can make the difference between success and failure. From start to finish, he will work with you to make sure you’re as prepared as possible to reach your goal of standing on top of Oceania. Often, being able to troubleshoot problems before they occur can make all the difference, and this is where Mike’s vast experience becomes crucial. Please visit our Success Rates page for more information.

• The Seven Summits specialist! Climbing the Seven Summits is THE Seven Summits specialist. We focus primarily on the mountains of the Seven Summits, and Carstensz is one of our signature climbs. With hundreds of high-altitude expeditions under our belts, we are well-prepared to create the perfect climbing experience for you. We love the diversity of the “Seven Summits” and the challenge of climbing them all, which is why we focus on these climbs in particular.

• Best guides: The quality of an expedition is, in large part, dictated by the individual guide(s) leading the trip. CTSS hires only the finest guides operating at the highest standards for client care who are highly trained, well respected in the industry, and close friends that we trust. They have excellent personalities and are some of the most experienced professionals in the world. Mike and the rest of our guides are strong leaders who maintain high standards. Our guides make our company what it is and have extensive resumes of personal climbs, high altitude guiding, and certifications. All our lead guides maintain at least a Wilderness First Responder medical standard or equivalent. Our local guides around the world are the best in the industry and do an amazing job helping you attain your goals and navigating local obstacles.

• Safety: Our primary goal at CTSS is safety. We have an unparalleled safety record, and our clientele’s well-being factors into every decision we make while on expeditions. Although we like to stand on the top of mountains more than anyone, we believe that climbing is a round-trip endeavor, and getting you back to your loved ones safely is paramount. We take many safety precautions, including bringing multiple communication devices, high-altitude safety equipment, medical kits, and the highest-quality gear to ensure a safe environment in which to climb.

• Success: Success rates on expeditions under Mike’s leadership are among the best in the business. This is a testament to our quality of service and attention to detail. Mike and our team of guides are incredibly proud of their summit success and work hard to get their clients to the top. As Mike says, “You can’t buy a summit, but you can buy better odds.” With our expertise, experience, and infrastructure, you can stack those odds in your favor. We offer a longer acclimatization progression for proper acclimatization to mitigate the risks of altitude sickness. Many guide services race their clients up the mountain, especially local companies, to cut corners on costs. We are highly invested in our reputation for safety and success and are always striving to improve our programs to maintain our hard-earned status. Decision-making in the mountains is supremely important, and our guides are the best in the business, have a hunger to summit whenever it’s safe to do so, and have a proven track record. All of our programs acclimatize conservatively to mitigate the risk of having altitude issues and to give them the highest chance of success.

• You!: Why choose us? Because of you! We consistently attract the best clients and believe this is because we offer the highest quality expedition at a great value. Our clientele takes the time to educate themselves about their options and choose us because of this. We feel that surrounding yourself with the right people will make you successful, and that goes for guide service owners, guides, and even those with whom you climb. Having a team with the right attitude and camaraderie is a key factor in making you successful.

• Logistics: We have led countless high-altitude expeditions and have perfected the logistics, allowing you to focus on climbing, safety, and success. We eat well and live well on expedition. We want you to feel as comfortable as possible while on your climb or safari to not be distracted from the task at hand. We feel that these creature comforts go a long way to making your time in the backcountry enjoyable. We strive to work with the best local outfitters and provide the best local logistics, hands down.

• Updates: In today’s connected world, people want to know how things are going on the expedition. CTSS maintains regular updates on our blog to keep friends and families informed. This can relieve a lot of the stress loved ones have when you’re away climbing. We want to make the climb stress-free for both the climber and the folks back home.

• Professional Business Practices: Running a professional guide service that you feel comfortable putting your trust in is important to us. We comply with all local, state, federal, and international laws. We hope that this makes you feel more confident about choosing us and our programs.

• Enjoyment: This is your vacation, and you’re here to have a good time. Our goal is to give you the experience of a lifetime, inspire you in the mountains, and have a great time doing it. This, again, comes back to our guides; they all have great personalities, and their love for the mountain is contagious.

• Low client-to-guide ratio: We operate all of our trips at a low client-to-guide ratio, which offers you a better, safer, and more personalized experience.

“Great leaders like Mike inspire and lead people to take on challenges and achieve great things.” – Tim Igo

The climbing on Carstensz consists mainly of steep rock climbing. From base camp the route winds its way up a series of gulleys following fixed lines to the top of a ridge. The climbing is fun and positive with great friction even when it’s raining, albeit somewhat steep and exposed in sections. The steepest steps consist of moderate 5^th class climbing on fixed lines. Leather gloves are highly recommended due to the extremely rough texture of the rock.

Once on the ridge the route traverses the ridge and undulates up and down following the path of least resistance. After crossing the famous cable bridge it’s a short scramble to the summit. The descent consists mainly of rappelling on steep fixed lines reversing course from the ascent.

 Climbing Carstensz requires serious fitness, an ability to perform well at altitude, the mindset to be away from home for several weeks, and a desire for rugged adventure travel. The Sudirman Range is still a very remote and rugged place with few of the amenities we have come to expect. We try to give our climbers all of the creature comforts that we can but at the end of the day this is true adventure travel!

Climbers need to have experience rock climbing and using fixedlines and ascenders. Also, cramponing skill, knowledge of self-arrest technique and ice axe use are valuable but not a pre-requisite. If you want to join this expedition but don’t have these skills we can work with you to get you up to speed prior to the climb. Please let us know how we can help!

It’s important to set clear expectations around flexibility and timing on Carstensz Pyramid. Due to the nature of helicopter access and limited landing windows, climbers should expect a degree of fluidity in the schedule and book flexible airfares. Delays can occur both before the expedition—as the mountain must first be cleared of previous teams before the next group can fly in—and after the climb, depending on weather and air logistics. Most climbers choose to schedule their international flights about a week after the planned expedition end date, which provides ample buffer for any delays. Once they summit and exit the mountain as planned, they can simply move their flights forward.

Day 1: Meet in Timika, Indonesia: Our team will meet you at the airport and transfer you to our hotel. This is a pure arrival day. You may arrive at any time and shake off the jetlag.

Day 2: Gear checks and team meeting: We will meet at breakfast and set a plan for the day. We will organize a team meeting that will get everyone up to speed on the details of the trip before diving into gear checks. Once gear checks are complete we will check in with the immigration office in Timika and pick up any last-minute supplies. We will have a team dinner before heading to bed early.

Day 3: We rise early and have a 5am breakfast before transferring to the airport and checking in with the local helicopter service. We will then take our morning flight (approx 40mins) to Yellow Valley Basecamp (4,250m) At Base Camp we will acclimatize. Sleep, read, relax, take a light walk around Base Camp. Whatever you do – stay hydrated!

Day 4: Acclimatization day: We spend today getting used to the altitude and continuing our acclimatization. Today we will do some rope training ahead of a summit plan briefing and an early dinner.

Day 5: Summit Days. We wake up at 1am and prepare for our summit. We will have a very light meal and a hot drink to kick start our bodies before we start trekking at 2am. Our route follows the ridge crest with grand exposure along the way. We pass four small notches as we rappel and use ascenders to negotiate trickier rock climbing sections. Our descent entails multiple rappels and scrambles. The rock is clean and provides excellent friction even when wet. You can expect a summit day of 10-12 hours round trip.

Day 6: We rise early to pack our equipment. Our helicopters could arrive as early as 6Am. We are picked up from Yellow Valley Basecamp and returned to Timika where we are met at the airport and transferred to our hotel.

Day 7: Fly Home. Check out of our hotel and transfer back to the hotel for our onward flights, either to Bali or Jakarta.

Day 8– 14: Contingency days: Since the weather is such a huge factor in most Carstensz climbs. We advise booking your flexible return airfare a week beyond your expected departure day and moving it forward if your expedition goes to schedule.

Note: Weather is a huge factor in this expedition! Teams have waited for weeks to get in and out of base camp and some teams haven’t even made it in. This is a real possibility. EXPECT weather delays. This is true adventure travel so you need to relax, roll with the punches, bring a good book and music, and book flexible return airfares.

What’s included/not included in your Carstensz Pyramid Team Guided Climb