1935 Franz Josef Weiss and Domingo Peña Pico Bolívar Historic First Ascent Expedition

Venezuela🏔️ 1 Peak

Domingo Peña

Born in 1886 in the remote mountain hamlet of Los Nevados, high in the Venezuelan Andes, Domingo Peña spent his entire life in the shadow of the great glaciated horns of Mérida. Possessing extraordinary physical stamina, complete immunity to altitude sickness, and intimate knowledge of treacherous paramo weather, Peña became the supreme *baquiano* (master trail-finder) of the Sierra Nevada. When Austrian mountaineer Franz Josef Weiss arrived in Mérida in 1934 seeking a route up the unclimbed summit pyramid of Pico Bolívar, he immediately hired Domingo Peña. On January 5, 1935, Peña guided Weiss and companion Herlindo Molina through the labyrinthine moraines below Pico Espejo to the base of the Timoncito couloir. Demonstrating agility on loose rock and icy ledges, Peña ascended La Garganta and stepped onto the 4,978-metre summit, sharing the historic first ascent. Following the 1935 conquest, Peña became the premier alpine guide of Venezuela, leading scientists, topographers, and excursionists onto Pico Bolívar more than fifty times over the next four decades. In 1951, he assisted in transporting the famous bronze bust of Simón Bolívar up the mountain on muleback and by foot to be permanently anchored on the summit. Revered as an Andean national hero, Domingo Peña lived in Mérida until his passing in 1970 at the age of 84.

Austria🏔️ 1 Peak

Franz Josef Weiss

Born in Austria, Franz Josef Weiss grew up climbing in the limestone crags and glaciated cirques of the Eastern Alps. Emigrating to Venezuela in the 1920s as an engineer, Weiss was immediately captivated by the towering snow peaks of the Sierra Nevada de Mérida rising above the Andean city of Mérida. At the time, the supreme summit of Venezuela—Pico Bolívar (4,978 m), then often called La Columna—remained unclimbed despite multiple attempts by local and foreign parties. Recognizing that tackling the vertical metamorphic walls of Bolívar demanded both European technical rockcraft and local terrain mastery, Weiss partnered with Domingo Peña, the renowned indigenous Andean guide from the village of Los Nevados, and companion Herlindo Molina. In early January 1935, the trio embarked on an ambitious summit push from the high paramos. On January 5, 1935, Weiss led the rope team through the steep, narrow couloir of La Garganta ('The Throat'). Overcoming loose rock slabs, 45-degree frozen couloirs, and exposed class 4 rock chimneys, Weiss, Peña, and Molina reached the summit of Pico Bolívar at 4,978 metres. Weiss built a summit cairn and deposited the first summit registry in a tin canister, completing one of South America's most celebrated national first ascents. Weiss continued to climb in Mérida for years, helping train young Venezuelan mountaineers and fostering the country's earliest climbing clubs.