GDR-Andes-Tierra del Fuego expedition

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The GDR-Andes-Tierra del Fuego expedition ( DAFEX ) took place in 1962 at the invitation of the Chilean Mountaineering Association.

In the course of the expedition there were first ascents of mountain peaks up to over 5000 m. The expedition member Fritz Rudolph published an expedition report under the title "Cacti - Indios - Andengipfel", which is written in the socialist zeitgeist.

Members of the expedition

All expedition members were high mountain climbers with experience from the Alps , the High Tatras and the Caucasus . There were:

  • Klaus Nickel, 25 years old, master mechanic
  • Fritz Rudolph, 48 years old, cameraman, writer
  • Percy Stulz, 33 years old, historian at Humboldt University
  • Fritz Uhlig, 32 years old, qualified sports teacher
  • Manfred Zielinski, 27 years old, (position as pioneer leader) driver, cameraman

Planned itinerary

The expedition group was invited by the Chilean Mountaineering Association to climb Aconcagua together with crews from other countries. The crew from the GDR planned and organized the ship trip to Buenos Aires , the onward journey with the expedition truck, an S 4000.1 with a flatbed structure and tarpaulin, by road through Argentina to Santiago de Chile and the return journey by ship through the Panama Canal . All the necessary documents for this were obtained, but were not always sufficient later. The Chilean Mountaineering Association invited the crew not only to climb Aconcagua, but also to a six-month expedition through the whole of Chile.

Equipment and zeitgeist

All equipment was produced in the GDR, which is often referred to in the travel report. The expedition was planned before the wall was built and financed by the five participants without much government support, even if it was under the patronage of the state cultural association. Most of the equipment was made available to the participants by the GDR companies free of charge, with the stipulation that they were tested under the extreme conditions of the tropics and the Andes and that they were always clearly visible in pictures or with advertising photos against exotic or extreme backgrounds close. This leads to the frequent mention of these products in the book and, like so many other things in this report, is due to the socialist zeitgeist. In the report, the great example of Cuba is mentioned again and again, and the bad capitalist conditions in Chile are mentioned again and again, but also the growing revolutionary movement based on the example of Cuba. The travelogue is clearly propaganda. The slide lectures about the GDR presented by the crew members everywhere are welcomed by the Chileans, but are not misused for pure propaganda events due to the crew members' lack of knowledge of Spanish. Rather, the Chileans see a report on distant land. Everywhere the expedition members distribute records with classical German music and picture books about the GDR.

Expedition course

The expedition began on November 11, 1961 with the embarkation on the Polish cargo ship "Hugo Kollataj" in Gdynia, which was three weeks late . The port of Buenos Aires was reached on December 3rd, but the expedition was refused entry into Argentine soil at the instigation of the ambassador of the FRG Werner Junker . Negotiations that lasted for five weeks ensued, with the expedition crew receiving a lot of backing, particularly from the Argentine Mountaineering Association, but also from West German journalists, although they were always monitored by the secret service. The harassment became so rampant that the West German journalists published vigorous protests and supported the crew. The expedition was on the verge of failure and the members considered selling the equipment, especially the truck. Ultimately, Argentina refused to continue overland, contrary to the original promises, and only allowed one flight to Chile. The equipment had to be shipped around Cape Horn on a Chilean ship at high freight prices . However, the costs were covered by the Chilean Mountaineering Association. It is thanks to West German journalists that the truck was not searched (and actually looted under various pretexts) by the Argentine secret service while it was being loaded onto the Chilean ship. They drove on the truck and threatened the police, who, contrary to the agreements and international law, did not take the truck to the Chilean ship, but to a police station, to document every further action with photos and to testify as witnesses. The Argentine police gave up. West German journalists also got the plane tickets.

In Chile, the crew was treated courteously and got to know important, mostly, but not only, left-wing politicians, including Salvador Allende and other high-ranking members of the National Congress . Nobel laureate Pablo Neruda was one of her sponsors . Ultimately, the truck with 4 tons of equipment and relief supplies for earthquake-damaged people (there was a severe earthquake in Chile shortly before) arrived at the port and after three more weeks it was able to be picked up with the most important expedition goods (some of them were confiscated by customs at random). At the instigation of the West German Ambassador Dr. Visas, which were shortened to 15 days, were extended to an initial 3 months by Chilean sponsors from politics and business. Another extension took place later in order to be able to carry out the planned trip almost completely. The Chilean Mountaineering Association assumed all costs for the unplanned ship transport of the equipment and all hotel bills. However, this all resulted in a further 6 weeks of delay.

This was followed for six months by a total of more than 3000 km of journeys through central Chile to the southernmost provinces on Tierra del Fuego as well as into the mountains of the High Cordillera and summit ascents, including first ascents, such as the last then unconquered 5000er in the Andes, the 5,035 m high Punta Hoff on February 23 and 27 by two groups of the expedition, which two Chileans had also joined. On February 27, the 5,200 m high Cerro Bello will be climbed by the Chilean Rubén Lamilla and Fritz Uhlig over the previously unconquered southeast flank. This was the third ascent of this mountain.

Against the resistance of the Chilean experts, the Germans did without carrying animals and helpers. They carried their equipment up the mountain to the camps and had to climb it several times. They used these efforts as altitude training, which worked out well. This tactic improved acclimatization and made it possible for the crew to be more successful than previous expeditions with their mules, which were previously common in the Andes. The crew members trained the multiple walks from the base camp at 2850 m to camp I at 3900 m and from there to camp II at 4350 m for the storm to the summit. The camps were a day's march apart.

Next, the 6100 m high Marmolejo was tackled via the north-west face , which had never been climbed before. At an altitude of around 5000 m, the onset of snow prevented climbing a 500 m long ice wall and the crew had to turn back. The ascent of Aparejo also had to be canceled due to changing weather. Autumn began in Chile. Now the five weeks delay due to the unplanned stay in Buenos Aires and the forced inaction until the arrival of the expedition equipment took its toll. In addition, the visas expired again, and the expedition had to abandon all other summit dreams for the time being. In general, however, the expedition was a great success up until then and, last but not least, also an advertisement for the GDR, because the crew did not fail to carry out propaganda in this regard in Chile.

The West German Ambassador Dr. Strack repeatedly and had hate reports printed in the press about his message, which warned of the “communist agents”. The rector of the University of Chile, who, along with many others, helped support the expedition, was canceled a lecture tour through the Federal Republic of Germany that had been planned at the invitation of West German professors. Firmly committed donations e.g. B. for the university clinic have been "temporarily deferred." Even loans that have already been approved for Chile should now be checked again. Such power games were covered in great detail in the Chilean press and achieved the opposite. The Andinist achievements of the expedition had already been highly praised in the press and the participation of Chilean mountaineers as guests in all expeditions was highlighted as proof of friendship. The democratic Chile, which felt itself free, forbade any outside interference and the opinion in the country was clear in favor of the continuation of the expedition. The President Jorge Alessandri personally extended the visa and the expedition to the south could take place.

On the journey south, the crew was repeatedly invited by state and private institutions. In general, the great hospitality of the Chileans is very often emphasized and praised in the travel report. The author of the travelogue did not fail to mention that this also remained the case across class boundaries. Visits were made to large wineries, sugar factories and the Araukans , the indigenous people of southern Chile. While the expedition crew in Santiago was still subject to military espionage by the West German embassy in order to prevent the expedition, the crew sometimes stayed overnight in a military barracks at the invitation of a commander, far from politics in the capital. At the beginning of April, the 2840 m high active volcano Villarrica was climbed in the south of Chile . This is completely covered with snow. The ascent was carried out by two groups in two stages over snow fields and through ice walls. With visibility of over 200 km, the Pacific is clearly visible from there. The descent was through deep, fresh snow on skis.

The journey took the expedition to the end of the Panamericana in Chile near Puerto Montt , 1100 km south of Santiago. Due to previous experience with the Argentinian authorities, no attempt was made to continue on roads in Argentina, which are also calculated as part of the Panamericana. A land connection through the adjoining island groups of Chile to the south does not exist on Chilean soil. The onward journey of all five crew members by ship from Puerto Montt to Tierra del Fuego was organized by a Chilean, whom they had been announced by telegram from Santiago. The five expedition members, who are now financially rather poor, had to pay for a crossing in third class, but the shipping company allegedly arranged the crossing in first class. Once again the great hospitality of the Chileans was proven, because it was the host, unknown to them before their arrival, who secretly paid the difference. Schools were visited on invitation until departure. Since the visit of the expedition once again caused large reports in the newspaper, further invitations were made from private persons from different backgrounds, slide shows and radio appearances. The expedition again gave away records with classical music and illustrated books.

Immediately before the ship left, the five members of the expedition were arrested by the state police in plain clothes. Your luggage should be searched on the instructions of the local governor, who was of German origin and who was not friendly to the expedition. The police seemed visibly embarrassed, as they had so far had no reason to intervene, they also welcomed the change on site and had certainly registered the friendly relations between the Germans and Chileans. A call from the expedition crew in Santiago to their sponsors ensured their immediate release and pennants were even exchanged with the visibly relieved police.

After six days of voyage on an old overloaded ship, the expedition through the Strait of Magellan reached the southernmost point of the South American mainland, Punta Arenas . However, as the ship repeatedly docked in different ports depending on the volume of freight and passengers, short expeditions were undertaken there. At the islands of Tierra del Fuego there were also encounters with Alacaluf Indians , the few indigenous people of Tierra del Fuego still living at the time. In Punta Arenas, the expedition was invited by the mayor of the southernmost city in the world and the provincial governor. A slide show took place in the town hall's ballroom. Since the expedition crew had to leave their truck behind in Puerto Montt, they hoped for outside help on site. They were not disappointed, on the contrary, the help exceeded all expectations. Vehicles were provided free of charge by local business people and the crew used them to explore the southern tip of the American continent. The provincial governor even provided the crew with a plane with which they flew to the southern oil fields, which are located on the islands of Tierra del Fuego. There they were guests of the oil company for two days. Since the visas now finally expired, the expedition had to return by ship to Puerto Mont after three days and drove back to Santiago in five days.

The expedition was unable to accept an invitation from the Bolivian Mountaineering Association that had meanwhile been issued, as border disputes with Chile suddenly broke out. The borders were closed and the crew hoped for a follow-up expedition, but it never came about.

The return journey with a Chilean ship, which again suited the expedition very well in terms of freight and passage price, took place through the Panama Canal with a stopover in Cuba , which issued visas without any problems. For the first time there were no controls for GDR citizens in Cuba. In the six weeks that followed, the expedition traveled a total of 7500 km through the country in the S 4000, visited various sights and held lectures on the GDR. The highest mountain in Cuba, the 1,974 m high Pico Turquino , was climbed on the trip. The journey home from Cuba took place on the symbolic ship of the German shipping company of the GDR, " Peace ". After 300 days, the expedition set foot on German soil again in Rostock . The expedition participants hoped that they would be able to catch up on the goals that were not reached in another expedition to Chile and now also to Bolivia. The next trip was planned by them, but the worsening cold war and the political events in Chile and the world prevented further trips to this region. Fritz Rudolph, Klaus Nickel and Percy Stulz then carried out their next expedition to Tanzania in 1968 as a GDR-Africa expedition in Robur . None of them have ever set foot in South America again.

literature

  • Fritz Rudolph: Cacti - Indians - Andean peaks . VEB Brockhaus Verlag, Leipzig 1963, DNB 454219598 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Google Book Search
  2. ↑ perrosalpinos.cl ( Memento from January 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ rgs.org