Ecuador Adventure – Climb Cotopaxi
Cotopaxi shot from Tambopaxi, Cotopaxi park
Overview
Cotopaxi is a 5897 meter volcano located south of Quito, in Ecuador. As with many volcanoes in Ecuador, Cotopaxi can be climbed based out of a base camp that is a hut, which means very fast ascents are possible. BUT, unless you’re acclimatised just wandering up will probably end up resulting in altitude sickness and so our strong advice is to do some acclimatisation hikes first. Plenty of options exist and you can combine accilmatisation with sight seeing with acommodation tailored to budget from luxurious haciendas to more budget orientated lodges. A great combination would be Pasochoa, Cayembe and then finale with Cotopaxi.
Who is a Cotopaxi climb for?
Well, if you’ve done a peak such as Point Lenana on Mt Kenya or Uhuru Peak on Kilimanjaro then Cotopaxi is a logical progression in terms of skill sets. If you’re purely looking for a gain in altitude then perhaps consider Aconcagua in Argentina. Its a really stunning volcano and so not surprisingly it attracts true mountaineers and aspiring mountaineers alike!
What training is required?
If you have done a similar altitude before (again it’s easy to reference Kilimanjaro here at 5895m) then be warned: this is a step up in terms of technical ability and as you are walking through snow and on glaciers it really is different. Come unprepared and you’re likely to end up back in the hut a long way from the summit! So, get fit. Those that have already hiked with us on Kilimanjaro will know our training programs and so follow them and really work on the legs – the walk is a stiff one! If you want specific advice around your life style then feel free to give me an email.
The good news is that you DON’T need special skills. You can easily combine a glacier training session and on our programs we love to head to Cayambe for at least 1 (preferably 2 days) for both acclimatisation and to learn how to use crampons, hike roped up and learn about glacier rescue. It’s a great fun addition – skills that can be used elsewhere (like Aconcagua or on the plethora of other mountains in the Andes).
Cotopaxi – slideshow including Pichincha, Pasochoa, Cayambe and Cotopaxi
