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Whilst in my first week at spanish school I was talking to a Norwegian guy about what he did on his weekend. "I climbed a volcano with my friend who is a guide," he was telling me whilst we had a cup of tea and munched down the free bread that they provided for us at morning tea. "It was horrible weather, very tough and not much of a view at the top because of the weather. But I would do it again." This guy was crazy...he would do it again?? "I will check it out," I told him in a blase kind of way. I had just arrived in Quito the previous week and was still adjusting to the 2850m altitude, so climbing a 5897m volcano seemed quite out of my reach at that stage. I was keen to do some hiking around the Ecuadorian Andes, as were Ryan, Mattias and Davide who were also at the school. So over the next month we made the goal of climbing Cotopaxi more and more achievable as the weeks went by.
After adjusting to the altitude in Quito, over the next few weeks we experienced higher altitudes by hiking some of
the mountains in and around Quito. We hiked up Mt Fuya Fuya on Laguna Mojanda which was around 4300m and followed this up the next weekend by climbing Volcan Pichincha which was around 4800m. That was a real struggle for Davide and myself. Mattias was waiting for us at the top and I can vividly remember Davide and I trying to get a grip and breath in the last 100m of loose scree up the back of the mountain. We were stopping every 10 steps trying to catch our breath and were really struggling. That's when we decided if we didn't make it to the top then and there we would not even attempt to climb Cotopaxi. Somehow we both managed to join Mattias on the top and from then on we had our eyes fixed on the volcano outside of Latacunga.
Whist Mattias, Davide and myself meandered around the Quilitoa loop for a couple of days prior to climbing Cotopaxi, Ryan had been volunteering in the cloud forest in Mindo for the last 2 weeks which was around 1400m altitude. He met us at the Papagayo hostel the day before the climb and we all started thinking about
our preparation and if we would be able to make it to the top. A few attempts at contingency plans were tossed around whilst we played cuarenta (Ecuadorian card game that we all became addicted to) but basically we were just going to give it our best shot and see what happened on the day. We all went to bed slightly nervous trying not to think about the next day but our saggy beds guaranteed a few of us a minimum amount of sleep.
The morning was spent making sure all our gear was ready and at about 11am we were ready to move. We met Sergio who seemed pretty crazy but it wasn't until we picked up Fernando that we realised these two guides were going to perfect for us four. Sergio was driving and opening a can of beer out the window at the same time whilst Javier took over the wheel. Shotgunning beers at 11am in the morning on the drive to our volcano climb...these guys must be good!! We reached the carpark under the mountain and had to hike a couple of hundred metres up to the climbers refuge. It was abuzz with around 30
other people also attempting the climb tonight. I was getting a bit nervous so we continued playing cards and eating as much pasta as we could to prepare.
The afternoon dragged on and we attempted to catch some sleep around 7pm as the climb was scheduled to begin around 12:30am. I think I managed maybe 1 hours sleep as my nerves were starting to play on me. I kept asking myself the same questions: Am I going to be OK at this altitude? Is the weather going to ruin our effort? What if I slip and roll down the hill? However after kitting up and having a quick bite to eat I was as prepared as I could possibly be. Here we go....
Right from the outset we were setting a cracking pace. We were one of the last groups to leave the refuge however we had overtaken everyone in the space of 10 minutes. Davide and I were roped up with Fernando whilst Ryan and Mattias were with Sergio. We were all comfortable on these arrangements and we just tried to keep up with the pace that they were setting. There was alot of fresh snow on
the ground and it continued to snow as we made our way up the volcano. It was very deep in some places but luckily I was at the back of the line so I could grab a footing in the fresh footprints. Ryan's group were flying up the mountain and for a few moments I thought they would push on ahead from us. But they were waiting everytime we had a break to catch our breath. We were all struggling for air and these breaks were well deserved. It was at this stage that Sergio and Fernando commented that if it didn't stop snowing in the next 5 or 10 minutes we would have to turn back. The snow was getting heavier and it was even harder to push up the hill. But to our luck it stopped in around 5 minutes and we pushed on.
Previously we noticed we could see the lights of other people further down the mountain but at this stage all we could see was pitch black. We would later learn that many of the groups turned back because of the bad weather. So one step at a time was the adage that willed
us up the mountain. At the point I felt I couldn't go anymore we would take a timely break and rejuvenate the energy supplies. I don't know how many of those Ecuadorian energy/chocolate bars I ate but I was getting sick of the taste pretty quickly. There were a few tricky bits where we had to traverse across some narrow pathways but otherwise it was more effort than skill. At around 5am we sat down for a break and the guides informed us we only had 10 more minutes to get to the top. However the sun wasn't due to rise for another 30 minutes so we bunkered down in the snow trying to keep out of the elements before we made our final push. The final 200m of the climb was extremely steep but we all managed to make it to the top.
To be honest it wasn't the view I was hoping to see. There were alot of clouds about and even though we could still see miles into the distance a clear day would have brought up magnificent views of Quito and the nearby mountains. The volcano crator here is around 200m wide and 60m deep
and there are still vapours swirling around inside. It is the highest active volcano in the world (5897m which is 2m higher than Kilamanjaro) and we were lucky for a few seconds to get a glimpse inside the crator once the cloud cleared. Still it was a massive achievement to have made it so we all happily posed for a group photo that will certainly go in the pool room. (For a good look at the crater check out Tim Crokers photo below
Ryan's group were somehow intent on setting the world record for the fastest decent and they pushed on down the mountain at a record speed. Apparently Sergio's 'fastest downhill ascent from the volcano was 1 hour with a French girl and he was keen to beat it with the boys but I think they came up
a bit short. Davide and I took it easy on the way down as tiredness was starting to set in. I didn't get altitude sickness or anything however I was absolutely exhausted and I lost my footing and fell numerous times on the way down. We passed a number of people who were still on the way up...I can't tell you how happy I was that I was going down with the accomplishment behind me. The view started to improve also and the fresh snow at the base of the volcano made for some wonderful patterns in the landscape below.
The rest of the day was mixed with tiredness and smiles. We were all relieved that we made it and were all looking forward to heading east into the amazon where hammocks and beautiful rivers awaited our arrival. "It was tough, step by step uphill in the pitch black....but I would do it again."
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Mattias Wieland
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Sergio and Fernando
Our guide was Sergio, and he was the world record downhill achiever, telling us he made it in one hour with a girl... the other one, your guide, was Fernando. Really good writing, I can see how much a struggle it must have been for you, aye. How would you rate it, looking back, compared to the marathon?