Hola!
These last few days have been exhausting but rewarding because of our successful attempts of one of the most technical routes in Ecuador (Illiniza Sur) and the highest active volcano in the world (Cotopaxi)
After spending last wednesday resting and eating to gain back all those calories that we had burnt on Cayambe, we took off Thursday morning for our 3rd summit: Illiniza Sur.
I can t remember what I had lifted on wednesday, but I woke up Thursday with one of the worst back aches I had ever had. Because of our tight schedule, we could not delay the departure.
At the brand new Quito bus station, while we were waiting for a ride to Machachi, I was absorbing as many Advils as possible to relieve the pain, as I was still twisting and holding my back.
The ride in an over packed bus did nothing to help. When we arrived at the entrance of the park, I could barely walk straight. It was a great way to start one of the most technical climbs in Ecuador...
We quickly got a lift all the way to the trailhead which allowed us to be there around 11:30.
The weather was heavily overcasted, rainy and did not allow us to see any mountains. It was hard to stay motivated.
After paying the driver $ 10 for our 30 min drive, we headed towards the refugio Nuevo Horizontes located between Illiniza Sur and Illiniza Norte.
The hike was very wet and fairly long. It was an uphill trail through a forest of bushes and small trees, then grasslands and finally a rocky/sandy alpine ridge all the way to the hut.
The pressure of my 15 kg pack somehow massaged my back and allowed me to reach the hut within 3 hours at an altitude of 4700m.
The hut is one of the smallest of Ecuador and does not have the reputation to be the most comfortable, however I loved it.
This small refuge is roughly just one room with a tiny kitchen. The hut keeper constantly boils water that is provided to the climbers. It can roughly fit 20 individuals in this room that is probably less than 400 square feet (triple level bunk beds help a lot).
When we arrived, there were 2 other climbing teams. One American and his Ecuadorian guide who were planning to do Illiniza Sur and the other team for Illiniza Nort composed of one guide and a Scottish, a Colombian and a Canadian.
I was very pleased to see that another team was planning the same route as we were since we could use the local guide's expertise on the mountain conditions. I was indeed concerned because it had heavily snowed all day and a group of Germans that we met had to turn around the day before.
Because of the size of the hut, we quickly started to socialize with every climber. Talking about what we had already climbed and what we were planning to summit, climbing gear, weather and avalanche conditions, it was all about mountaineering, I was in paradise.
Dinner started around 4 and we enjoyed another tasteless bag of dry frozen chicken and rice, it was all about the calories and protein.
After a good talk with the local guide who was planning to go to Illiniza Sur, we agreed to all leave at 3:30 the next morning. He would lead his client first and test avalanche conditions while we follow and enjoy his knowledge of the local mountains. This gave us a good insurance on the climb.
I took a sleeping pill at 18:00 (did not want to experience another sleepless night) and quickly fell asleep at 4700m above the sea level (although the hut keeper was having a great time chatting with his friends).
At 2:30, my alarm rang and I was fully alert for our coming climb. My first task was to go outside to check conditions. They were not great. It was foggy and it seemed it had snowed a bit. However, it was not snowing anymore.
We had an excellent breakfast, quickly geared up and got out into the fog. The guide and his American client had just started the hike, so we quickly caught up to them.
The beginning was a simple hike through the rocky alpine. We then approached the first snowfield. The steepness required us to put our crampons on. Because the path was under a crumbly volcano face, we quickly had to traverse in the dark all the way to our technical gully.
This tricky gully is really the beginning of the climb. Myself and Dean roped up since a fall could be fatal. Because it had snowed a bit during the night, the gully was in very good conditions. The snow was hard enough for our ice axes and crampons. Dean perfectly lead the section and belayed me from the top. The section I had feared the most was already done!
We then traversed another sowfield all the way to the beginning of the face we wanted to ascend.
The guide did a quick avalanche test by drawing a triangle in the snow and jumping on it. The snow pack did not move so he was confident that the conditions were good. I am not sure how reliable that technique is since my Canadian avalanche skills have taught me to do much more sophisticated tests, but he was the local guide and the snow did look indeed very compact and stable. Rules are always different depending on where you are.
At first we took a very steep snow slope (50 degrees). This was the longest slope but was in excellent conditions. In case of a fall, a simple self arrest with an ice axe would stop a climber. Therefore Dean and myself climbed at the same time and did not put any protections (like snow pickets).
We then got to our first ice falls, a beautiful 50m wall of ice at an elevation of more than 5000m. This wall forced us to make a right towards another slope. This one was not as long and not as steep. We then made it to our first snowbridges, crossing deep dark crevasses.
Finally arrived the last ascent to the summit, another steep slope but again the snow conditions were excellent and prevented any dangerous fall.
The weather had cleared up at one point and we could see the stars but it got foggy again and started to lightly snow.
On the last slope we tried to stay as much as possible on the side to avoid any possible avalanches (just in case).
We finally made it to the top ridge leading to the summit. A short walk and we arrived a Cumbre Maxima (Maximum summit) at 5241m. It was just 6:00. Unfortunately it was all fogged up and there were no views. Nonetheless we were still very happy since we had successfully climbed one of the steepest routes Ecuador.
After a few shots and thanking the guide for leading the climb, we quickly went back down to hut. The snow conditions allowed speed in a safe manner. However, my legs suddenly fell through the snow and I was hanging just with two arms. I had just fallen through a hidden snowbridge. I easily managed to get myself out of the crevasse and looked down the deep hole. It was a rather funny feeling...
On our way down we met a group of climbers who had preferred to sleep in town and do the hike and climb in one day. Although it was still very foggy, it was getting hotter increasing the chances of avalanches. I looked at the jackets of the guides and immediately recognized the "Mountain Madness" logos. This company is one of the best guiding companies in the world and gained lots of press after the publishing of "Into Thin Air: The Everest Disaster".
We were fairly proud because they were following our tracks to the summit. We were leading the leaders.
We finally made it back to the hut and truly enjoyed our 3rd success. We had a quick eatery and then headed back down to the parking lot. It was much quicker downhill but we had a fair amount of rain but also intense sunshine... Yes, that is Ecuador.
For an extra 5 dollars, we got a drive directly to our local hotel : La Estacion.
We were greeted by an older lady in an empty hotel. The place would have been extremely charming if we would have been from another era, but for us it looked a bit awkward. Indeed lots of strange decorations. It was a mix of religious artifacts with 1970s items. Our drapes were leopard striped with a huge painting of the virgin Mary above our beds. However this gave us a sense of protection from the higher forces...
But I would still recommend the hotel to climbers since we were served huge portions for dinner and breakfast. Also, the hotel is composed of small cottages with their own wooden stove. This allowed us to dry all our gear, very wet from the previous climb.
These last few days have been exhausting but rewarding because of our successful attempts of one of the most technical routes in Ecuador (Illiniza Sur) and the highest active volcano in the world (Cotopaxi)
After spending last wednesday resting and eating to gain back all those calories that we had burnt on Cayambe, we took off Thursday morning for our 3rd summit: Illiniza Sur.
I can t remember what I had lifted on wednesday, but I woke up Thursday with one of the worst back aches I had ever had. Because of our tight schedule, we could not delay the departure.
At the brand new Quito bus station, while we were waiting for a ride to Machachi, I was absorbing as many Advils as possible to relieve the pain, as I was still twisting and holding my back.
The ride in an over packed bus did nothing to help. When we arrived at the entrance of the park, I could barely walk straight. It was a great way to start one of the most technical climbs in Ecuador...
We quickly got a lift all the way to the trailhead which allowed us to be there around 11:30.
The weather was heavily overcasted, rainy and did not allow us to see any mountains. It was hard to stay motivated.
After paying the driver $ 10 for our 30 min drive, we headed towards the refugio Nuevo Horizontes located between Illiniza Sur and Illiniza Norte.
The hike was very wet and fairly long. It was an uphill trail through a forest of bushes and small trees, then grasslands and finally a rocky/sandy alpine ridge all the way to the hut.
The pressure of my 15 kg pack somehow massaged my back and allowed me to reach the hut within 3 hours at an altitude of 4700m.
The hut is one of the smallest of Ecuador and does not have the reputation to be the most comfortable, however I loved it.
This small refuge is roughly just one room with a tiny kitchen. The hut keeper constantly boils water that is provided to the climbers. It can roughly fit 20 individuals in this room that is probably less than 400 square feet (triple level bunk beds help a lot).
When we arrived, there were 2 other climbing teams. One American and his Ecuadorian guide who were planning to do Illiniza Sur and the other team for Illiniza Nort composed of one guide and a Scottish, a Colombian and a Canadian.
I was very pleased to see that another team was planning the same route as we were since we could use the local guide's expertise on the mountain conditions. I was indeed concerned because it had heavily snowed all day and a group of Germans that we met had to turn around the day before.
Because of the size of the hut, we quickly started to socialize with every climber. Talking about what we had already climbed and what we were planning to summit, climbing gear, weather and avalanche conditions, it was all about mountaineering, I was in paradise.
Dinner started around 4 and we enjoyed another tasteless bag of dry frozen chicken and rice, it was all about the calories and protein.
After a good talk with the local guide who was planning to go to Illiniza Sur, we agreed to all leave at 3:30 the next morning. He would lead his client first and test avalanche conditions while we follow and enjoy his knowledge of the local mountains. This gave us a good insurance on the climb.
I took a sleeping pill at 18:00 (did not want to experience another sleepless night) and quickly fell asleep at 4700m above the sea level (although the hut keeper was having a great time chatting with his friends).
At 2:30, my alarm rang and I was fully alert for our coming climb. My first task was to go outside to check conditions. They were not great. It was foggy and it seemed it had snowed a bit. However, it was not snowing anymore.
We had an excellent breakfast, quickly geared up and got out into the fog. The guide and his American client had just started the hike, so we quickly caught up to them.
The beginning was a simple hike through the rocky alpine. We then approached the first snowfield. The steepness required us to put our crampons on. Because the path was under a crumbly volcano face, we quickly had to traverse in the dark all the way to our technical gully.
This tricky gully is really the beginning of the climb. Myself and Dean roped up since a fall could be fatal. Because it had snowed a bit during the night, the gully was in very good conditions. The snow was hard enough for our ice axes and crampons. Dean perfectly lead the section and belayed me from the top. The section I had feared the most was already done!
We then traversed another sowfield all the way to the beginning of the face we wanted to ascend.
The guide did a quick avalanche test by drawing a triangle in the snow and jumping on it. The snow pack did not move so he was confident that the conditions were good. I am not sure how reliable that technique is since my Canadian avalanche skills have taught me to do much more sophisticated tests, but he was the local guide and the snow did look indeed very compact and stable. Rules are always different depending on where you are.
At first we took a very steep snow slope (50 degrees). This was the longest slope but was in excellent conditions. In case of a fall, a simple self arrest with an ice axe would stop a climber. Therefore Dean and myself climbed at the same time and did not put any protections (like snow pickets).
We then got to our first ice falls, a beautiful 50m wall of ice at an elevation of more than 5000m. This wall forced us to make a right towards another slope. This one was not as long and not as steep. We then made it to our first snowbridges, crossing deep dark crevasses.
Finally arrived the last ascent to the summit, another steep slope but again the snow conditions were excellent and prevented any dangerous fall.
The weather had cleared up at one point and we could see the stars but it got foggy again and started to lightly snow.
On the last slope we tried to stay as much as possible on the side to avoid any possible avalanches (just in case).
We finally made it to the top ridge leading to the summit. A short walk and we arrived a Cumbre Maxima (Maximum summit) at 5241m. It was just 6:00. Unfortunately it was all fogged up and there were no views. Nonetheless we were still very happy since we had successfully climbed one of the steepest routes Ecuador.
After a few shots and thanking the guide for leading the climb, we quickly went back down to hut. The snow conditions allowed speed in a safe manner. However, my legs suddenly fell through the snow and I was hanging just with two arms. I had just fallen through a hidden snowbridge. I easily managed to get myself out of the crevasse and looked down the deep hole. It was a rather funny feeling...
On our way down we met a group of climbers who had preferred to sleep in town and do the hike and climb in one day. Although it was still very foggy, it was getting hotter increasing the chances of avalanches. I looked at the jackets of the guides and immediately recognized the "Mountain Madness" logos. This company is one of the best guiding companies in the world and gained lots of press after the publishing of "Into Thin Air: The Everest Disaster".
We were fairly proud because they were following our tracks to the summit. We were leading the leaders.
We finally made it back to the hut and truly enjoyed our 3rd success. We had a quick eatery and then headed back down to the parking lot. It was much quicker downhill but we had a fair amount of rain but also intense sunshine... Yes, that is Ecuador.
For an extra 5 dollars, we got a drive directly to our local hotel : La Estacion.
We were greeted by an older lady in an empty hotel. The place would have been extremely charming if we would have been from another era, but for us it looked a bit awkward. Indeed lots of strange decorations. It was a mix of religious artifacts with 1970s items. Our drapes were leopard striped with a huge painting of the virgin Mary above our beds. However this gave us a sense of protection from the higher forces...
But I would still recommend the hotel to climbers since we were served huge portions for dinner and breakfast. Also, the hotel is composed of small cottages with their own wooden stove. This allowed us to dry all our gear, very wet from the previous climb.
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