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Ecuador Volcanoes: Beren & Team’s Decision on Cotopaxi

Posted by: Jake Beren, Ben Liken | February 18, 2013
Categories: *Expedition Dispatches *Ecuador
Elevation: 18,400'

Greetings from Quito! 

Early this morning (or rather late last night), our team set off to try to climb Cotopaxi. When we woke there was a little precip, but we knew we could handle it and continued with our preparations to go see what we could do. Breaking trail through the new snow for hours this morning did little to slow down this team and we found ourselves high on the mountain before the sun had risen. At around 18,400 feet above the sea, crossing a reactive windslab above a gaping crevasse stopped us in our tracks, too risky to chance a crossing and our high point today. The team impressed me with their dedication to safety and a good time in the mountains over standing on a summit and Cotopaxi rewarded our judgment with a break in the storm to take in the sights of this beautiful mountain.  Crossing crevasses, down climbing ice steps and navigating seracs in the early morning light was a real treat and we appreciated these features of the route even more as the weather rolled in for our last few moments before returning to the hut. A short nap and then down to the bus in the snow, so much for life in the tropics. It has been a real treat to share these climbs with such a good team, thanks everybody.

RMI Guide Jake Beren

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