Trip Reports

Ecuador Volcanoes - 18 Jan to 4 Feb '12

Written by Leader, February 2012

This was of the the most successful ever expeditions that Jagged Globe has organised in Ecuador, with all members reaching all of the summits, including one member who did the Antisana extension. OK weather (sometimes a bit cloudy!), a strong team of climbers and good guides all contributed to the high success rate.

The expedition started in Quito, which is located at 2,900m. A beautiful city full of colonial churches and museums. During the fist two days we enjoyed exploring Quito's old town and churches by foot. It was great for the team to have an introductory slide show given by Javier, where the team members could familiarise themselves with the program and ask questions.

Acclimatisation hikes on Pasochoa (4,200m) on the 20th, Guagua Pichincha( 4,800m) on the 21th, Corazon (4,800m) on the 22th and Iliniza (5,125m) on the 24th of January 2012 were completed by all members of the expedition. After that, in spite of the clouds, all main summits were reached!

First we had a two-day glacier school at Cayambe, where we trained some basic techniques and did some ice climbing. After the second night at the refuge we set off at midnight to climb to Cayambe’s summit. In very cloudy and windy conditions, with difficult route-finding, all members finally reached the 5,790m high summit!

After a rest day in an old farm house next to Cotopaxi National Park, we hiked up to Cotopaxi’s refuge at 4,800m. We had a very nice and sunny afternoon at the refuge and could see the summit. But the weather changed again during the night and finally we reached the top again in the clouds and a lot of wind. The group felt very strong and acclimatised. We were the last team leaving the refuge and the first up on the summit!

For the last summit we had to work quite hard. The 5,760m high Antisana was not easy. Route finding in the dark and foggy night on a heavily-crevassed glacier was a challenge and the snow was very soft to begin with. But after 8.5 hours we reached the summit plateau of this nice volcanoe. After the climb we spent another night at the nice campsite at 4,500m.

Everyone agreed that it was a very enjoyable expedition combining high quality climbing with a chance to see some of the many faces of Ecuador, the smallest of the Andean countries. All clients expressed their thanks to the leader and to Freddy Tipan the second guide for providing an excellent service.

One of the highlights of this trip in Ecuador was staying at some haciendas in between hikes or climbs. The so-called haciendas were large Spanish farmhouses that have been converted into climbers’ lodges. Jagged Globe uses some of these places in the itinerary which gives the team a great feeling of the rural life in the country and at the same time, a good rest whilst experiencing Ecuadorian hospitality!

"If you do not like clouds never go go to Ecuador"
Travels among the great Andes of Ecuador by Edwrd Whymper(1892)

Benno Schlauri
Expedition Leader « Previous report | Next report »

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