2018 Ecuador Cotopaxi Skills Expedition (Jan. 19 - 28, 2018 ) Dispatch 1

Guide: Fredy Tipan

Climbers: Sharlin G., Terry B., James H., Christine K., Aaron T., Marwan A.

Dispatch from Days 1-3 of the Ecuador Volcanoes Expedition

Fredy called today with an update on the climbing program in Ecuador. Phone reception was poor, so we didn’t get into a lot of detail:

“Hello from Ecuador! This is Fredy calling to let you know that we have made a great beginning to our program here.

We began our acclimatization upon arrival, of course, since Quito is at 9350 feet (2850 meters). We had a nice dinner together the first night, and on the first full day we did a more detailed orientation on the trip, checked gear and clothing for the mountains, and then did a walking tour of Quito.

It was a nice day to explore Quito, and everyone enjoyed a little easy exercise as their bodies began adjusting to the altitude. It is important not to do strenuous activity when you are just beginning to acclimatize so that walking tour is perfect.

Today we enjoyed a wonderful climb to the summit of Rucu Pichincha (15,413 f / 4697 m). The weather is quite good. We had a few clouds but mostly blue skies and a lot of sun. We had great views, and the team enjoyed seeing some of the other big summits of Ecuador.

People are in good shape, and they had a lot of fun on the climb. The acclimatization is progressing very successfully.

Now I will let you talk to Terry so you can hear some of his thoughts.

“Hello – This is Terri. We’re having a really good time down here. It's a great group, and everyone is enjoying each other very much. And Fredy has been awesome to hike and climb with.

This country is so beautiful. I wasn't sure exactly what to expect, but I have to say the trip is going better than I expected in terms of the altitude. It’s been really fun climbing together. I had a great time today – the views were tremendous. And now we are going to head north to a hacienda somewhere below our first big climb, Cayambe. So we’re looking forward to the hacienda and a good dinner there. Should be good! Here’s Fredy.”

“Hello again. Yes, we will now be heading to beautiful Hacienda Guachala. And after a nice breakfast there tomorrow morning, we will drive up to the hut on Cayambe. We’ll have an easy day and hike a little way up the mountain to the glacier for views and for acclimatization. Then Wednesday we will have a day for reviewing or learning climbing skills before making our preparations for the climb. We will call again tomorrow or the next day to give you the latest news. Bye for now.”