Entries from Ecuador
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
We're back from Cotopaxi now, relaxing and enjoying warm showers, delicious food, and soft beds at the Hacienda La Cienega. We attempted to summit Cotopaxi this morning, but did not reach the summit due to a ferocious storm that blew in. We woke around midnight to a beautiful starry night. After breakfast and hot drinks, we set out on our climb around 1:00 am. A couple of clouds had started to form by then, but we still enjoyed nice weather for the start of our climb. Ascending the slopes above the climbing hut, everyone was doing well, and it sure seemed as if we had a great day for climbing.
By the time we got to around 17,000', the weather changed dramatically; the cloudy sky above soon turned into a cloud that engulfed us. Winds were blowing in the 30-40 mph range, and we were coated in rime ice as we ascended. We reached an elevation of ~17,800' where we were able to take shelter in a natural ice cave formed by a crevasse. The team was climbing strong, given the challenging conditions-the wind made it challenging to keep our balance as we ascended. Even though the team was climbing well, I made the decision to turn around because of safety concerns; steep, icy slopes at these altitudes are no place for a mistake. The summit of Cotopaxi will always be here for us to attempt again, but you don't get a second chance with safety.
We all descended safely to the climbing hut where we arrived covered in ice. After a couple hours of warming up and rehydrating, we descended to meet our vehicles and headed for a hot shower! We climbed roughly half way to the summit of Cotopaxi before the weather turned us around. We are all happy and rested now down at the lower altitude of our hacienda (still 10,000'!). Tomorrow we will drive north and head to the Hacienda Guachala. Everyone is healthy and happy, and did well fighting through the challenging weather.
We spent last night here at 16,000', and today we are resting and getting used to the rare air up here. We will head out to the glacier soon for a little training-review of cramponing, ice axe arrest, and other climbing techniques. We will get and alpine start and head out for the summit some time around 1:00 am tomorrow morning. I will be in touch when we return!
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
This morning we packed up our gear and left Quito, heading south along the "Avenue of the Volcanoes". After driving through the small pueblo of Chaupi, we followed a dirt road that took us towards the goal of our second acclimatization hike: the climbing hut (refugio) on the mountains known as the Ilinizas. The hike was very enjoyable, and the weather was comfortable for hiking. Clouds and some wind came in up towards the top of our hike, accompanied by some frozen precipitation, which made the hut a welcome sight. We rested in the hut for about 45 minutes, enjoying hot tea, before heading back to the trailhead.
We are spending the night at the relaxing hacienda Chilcabamba, on the flanks on Cotopaxi. Tomorrow we will head up to the climbing hut on Cotopaxi, and prepare for the climb.
Today we went for our first acclimatization hike to Rucu Pichincha, one of the volcanoes that frame in Quito. We took a Gondola from 10,000' to 13,000', and then hiked to around 15,200'. The weather was very nice for hiking: a bit breezy and cloudy in the morning, and then sunny and warm in the afternoon. We had views of the impressive glaciated volcanoes Cotopaxi, Cayambe, and Antisana on our descent. Everyone did very well with our first venture up into that type of altitude - and it was an altitude record for many on the trip- hopefully there will be a lot more of those to come!
Last night we dined at a very nice restaurant that served typical Ecuadorian cuisine. Everyone sampled different local dishes, including cuy (guinea pig)- an Ecuadorian delicacy.
Tomorrow we are off for another acclimatization hike to the climbing hut on the Ilinizas, and we'll spend the night at a hacienda before heading on towards Cotopaxi.
I will check in tomorrow.
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Our team has all safely arrived in Quito (the capital city), and is presently getting accustomed to the new environment and the high altitude here. Today we went on a city tour of the historical parts of Old Town Quito, where we saw much of the colonial center of town. We learned a good bit of interesting Ecuadorian history from our very knowledgeable and enthusiastic local guide, Jorge. After various stops at historic points of interest we traveled to the hill in the south of Quito known as El Panecillo, where beautiful weather afforded us expansive views down on the city of Quito, as well as views of the mountains we will attempt to climb: Cotopaxi to the south and Cayambe to the north. Next we headed south to the equator, where we were able to stand with one foot in the northern hemisphere and one in the southern hemisphere! We also visited a very interesting ethnographic museum at this site and we learned about the very diverse cultures of Ecuador. The day ended with a delicious dinner in the relaxing atmosphere of the popular Magic Bean restaurant.
Tomorrow we will take our first of two acclimatization hikes. We will take a gondola ride from Quito to 13,500' and begin a hike up the Volcano Rucu Pichincha. The hike will take us up over 15,000' and (weather permitting) will allow for views of the Avenue of Volcanoes. Everyone is doing well here in country, and we're looking forward to getting some exercise on our hike tomorrow. I will check in tomorrow to update you with the events of the day.
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Today the remaining climbers successfully reached the summit of Cayambe. It was a cold, tough, and windy day. To add to that, the glaciers here in Ecuador have receded a significant amount the last few years. Because of this, the route that we climbed today felt like we were attempting a "Triple Lindy" see here. Despite the conditions that we had the team did great and persevered.
Everyone has safely returned to Quito and are getting ready for one last dinner and our long flights home.
Thanks for following.
Hey, hey, hey RMI. This is Casey and crew on the summit of Cayambe!
Great day yesterday. Everyone slept well last night and we got up about midnight again. Took us about 6 1/2 hours to summit. Clear, windy and cold today. Both trips have been real tough. These guys are real troopers and did a great job. We'll check in again when we get back to Quito.
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
After our climb on Cotopaxi we descended down into the comforts of hot showers, soft beds and thick air. Our refuge for the night was the beautiful Hosteria La Cienega. We had a nice dinner and then it was off to bed after such a long day.
Today most of the team headed back to Quito for their long flights home, while a few of us continued north with hopes of climbing one more mountain. Several hours of driving delivered us to yet another beautiful plantation called Hacienda Guachala. Guachala lies just below our next climbing objective, Cayambe. Cayambe is the third highest mountain in Ecuador and rises to 18,993'.
One more night of rest and we will head to back into the mountains.
Hello, this is Casey Grom calling from the summit of Cotopaxi!
We are just now standing on top in perfect weather with no wind. It has been a great day but a pretty tough day with deep snow and steep ice climbing to get us to the top. Our summit attempt took almost 7 1/2 hours and we have five out of nine climbers standing on the summit with Billy and me. We will be heading down soon and will check in later today from our next hacienda.
Posted by:
Categories: Expedition Dispatches Ecuador
Hola from Ecuador,
All is well as we prepare for our summit attempt.
We spent the first half of the day reviewing some basic climbing techniques on the glacier. Then the team had a quick lunch and a siesta to make up for some of the sleep we didn't get last night. Apparently a few of the team members forgot to mention they snore.
We had a nice dinner and then finished packing up the last bit of gear needed for our climb. Everyone is feeling good and excited for tonight's climb. The weather has been good thus far, clear in the mornings and cloudy in the afternoons. Hopefully it will be the same for us tomorrow.
Wish us luck!
Previous Page
Next Page
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
