Tasartico ridge

The day was young when I returned to the car after the morning outing, so I decided to try to get up Hogarzales, an impressive wedge-shaped peak, if I could find a way up from the Tasartico col. To my surprise, after a bit of searching I did find a path, which led up another dry stream bed to gain another pronounced high col. Onward views were superb, although it was immediately obvious that the route was complex and far more involved than I had anticipated. A pinnacled ridge formed the skyline, and the tenuous path weaved through endemic vegetation and eventually weaved up to the ridge itself. It was all quite time-consuming (and I had left without water, expecting a quick peak bag), with tricky route-finding until I finally gained the ridge. This was really good, with some great scrambling in a superb position. A few distinct rises and a pioneering feel until an easing led towards a large square subpeak. Tricky slabs led east of this to a broad col. This marked the end of the 'pinnacle ridge' but the route to the peak remained rather involved and complex, weaving round an exposed ledge system to the final slopes. I decided to call it a day, tired and dehydrated, and settled for just the ridge. The route remained hard to follow even in descent, and I initially went too high on the grey slabs that I had just ascended a few minutes before!