Entries By jason thompson

Hey, this is the Ecuador trip checking in. Today we had a much deserved and much needed rest day here at the Chilcabamba Lodge. We woke up this morning to glorious views of Cotopaxi and a magnificent breakfast. We ate wonderful food and drank lots of coffee. We spent the majority of the day resting, relaxing and drying out and organizing our gear for tomorrow’s departure to Cotopaxi. This afternoon we enjoyed more coffee and continued reviews of Cotopaxi and finished the day off with a wonderful dinner this evening. Everyone is doing well here in Ecuador and we are all looking forward to tomorrow’s adventures. We'll check in later. RMI Guide Jason Thompson

RMI Guides Casey Grom & Jason Thompson checked in this morning with the news that their team reached the summit of Cayambe (18,997') at 7:10 a.m. local time today. The team left the hut on Cayambe (15,330') just after midnight with a low cloud layer above keeping them warm to about 17,000'. The team climbed well with some steep and challenging conditions on the final approach to the summit. They reported mostly cloudy skies and knee to ankle deep snow in places. Unfortunately, the cloud cover obscured their views from the summit but they did take some time to celebrate their accomplishment before starting the descent. Everyone is back to the Cayambe hut. They are planning to pack up, load the vehicles and make their way down the mountain. They will stop for lunch and then continue to Chilcabamba Eco Lodge where they will stay and rest the next two nights. Congratulations to the team!

Today was a great day. We visited the Otavalo market working on our bargaining skills. Then we returned to the San Luis Hacienda for a great lunch this afternoon. After lunch we drove towards the Cayambe hut in a torrential downpour of rain. Fortunately the rain let up and we were able to make our hike up to the hut on Cayambe (15,300'). Everybody did a wonderful job. The group is super strong and things are going really well. It’s been a great group. That is everything here from Ecuador. We will check in with our adventures from tomorrow. Ciao. RMI Guide Jason Thompson