Cotopaxi

I may have returned exhausted from the Amazon last night but that didn't stop me from waking up at 5am this morning to head to Cotopaxi. Cotopaxi is the second largest volcano in Ecuador and it is still currently active.

I met up with Olivia and our friend Anna around 6am at USFQ and we ubered to a meeting spot where a tour bus picked us up and a variety of other people from all different countries. There were a few from Ecuador, Venezuela, Russia, the U.K., and Paris. There were four girls on the trip that were here volunteering. Rosa is from the U.K., Clem is from Paris, and Olivia and Erin are from the states. Anna, Olivia, and I grew close with them on this trip, so they're all in a pic with us below.

For $56 this tour included pick up from Quito, breakfast, lunch, guided hike up Cotopaxi, mountain biking down from the base of Cotopaxi, a stop at a lagoon within Cotopaxi National Park, and a return trip to Quito. About an hour into driving and 15 minutes away from the breakfast spot we were going to, the bus broke down. We were transferred to another bus that brought us to breakfast, and then another tour bus came to pick us up from breakfast with all the bikes loaded on top. Breakfast was magnificent we got a pancake with some fruits, bread, and an egg with tomatoes. Of course juice was included and I think it was cantaloupe juice. The restaurant was on the side of a family's house and they had a very pregnant German Shepherd. She was adorable and super friendly. It made me miss my man Fritz a bit.

After breakfast, we were headed for Cotopaxi National Park and we stopped at a little convenience store to load up on sugar. I have medication with me for altitude sickness however, Ecuadorians are not fans of meds. Our guide just suggested chocolate to help with altitude sickness. I got a Snickers bar, some Oreos, and coca candies for the whole trip. I swear this was the reason why I didn't get a headache or any other symptoms of altitude sickness. While I was hiking we stopped frequently to catch our breaths, but that is only natural as we were at an elevation of almost 16,800 feet. We started hiking from about 15,000 feet and then about halfway we got to the refuge. The refuge is where people who are summiting Cotopaxi stay for the night. If you're summiting I guess you leave around midnight to avoid the risk of avalanches. After taking a short break at the refuge we climbed the rest of the way to 16,800 feet. This brought us to the beginning of the glacier that extends all the way to the summit of Cotopaxi. The summit is about 19,300 feet making Cotopaxi the second highest summit in Ecuador, Chimborazo being the first at 20,500 feet.

On the way up to the refuge it was definitely a struggle and had most of us questioning whether or not we'd be able to make it to the glacier. I was determined to, I didn't care how many breaks I had to take. I did it, I ended up making it to the glacier and the views were incredible. You could clearly see the snowcapped summit and it was just incredible. This was by far the hardest hike I have done and not just because of the altitude. For each step we took we probably lost 2-3 inches because it was very sandy.

A couple steps into my descent, I fell flat on my butt. I just brushed it off, but man I was curious to see how the rest of this descent would go. A guy nearby pointed out there was ice where I was, but all I could see was sand so I don't know what he was talking about. Our guide showed me a side step I could use to go down the mountain, and it definitely saved me from a few more falls. Once we reached the refuge again we all got hot coco. The coco was literally the best coco I've ever had, and I want to know what they use to make it because it was unreal. After sipping down the coco we were on our way again. We reached the parking area with no problems...and no more falls!

The next leg of the tour was biking down from the parking area of Cotopaxi to a lagoon. They said that they wouldn't recommend doing this if you had no experience. They also said that regular street biking doesn't count for experience. I wanted to try it out anyways...there were a few others in the group that had no experience so I went ahead and tried it. They gave us helmets and bikes. Our guide explained that we want the seat low so we can get our feet on the ground for balance. However, my seat was so low putting my feet on the pedals was extremely uncomfortable. He wouldn't let me raise the seat because I think he thought my feet would no longer touch the ground. So off I went on this bike down the hill and my feet were sliding on the ground the whole time. This lasted about 10 minutes and then I hit a bunch of bumps and my butt started to hurt so I gave up. The bus was following behind all of us so they were able to pick me up and I rode the bus the rest of the way down to the lagoon. A girl that was a couple yards ahead of me also quit at the same time because she couldn't reach the brakes well since her hands were so small. Not being able to ride down the whole way stunk, but I was happy I tried it. Maybe if I had a bike seat that was a bit higher it would have been a bit more manageable. I wasn't going to let that get me down though. Instead of hitting a bunch of bumps and fearing a fall, I sat in the comfy seats of the bus with about 8 other people in the tour group. I was able to take pictures of the views on the way instead of looking down at rocks watching out for ones that may make me go over the handlebars lol.

When we got to the lagoon we all took pictures and there was a stunning view of Cotopaxi. The entire mountain was viewable from base to summit, and there was hardly any cloud cover which is pretty rare especially for the afternoon. After the bikes were packed up we piled into the bus and headed to a late lunch. The lunch was at the same breakfast spot so I got to see the german shepherd again. When we first pulled up there was a stray across the street that looked like a German shepherd mixed with a corgi.

While at lunch, a guy on the tour sat with me, another guy, and 3 of the girls volunteering. I forget his name but he was from Siberia, Russia. He was explaining that Russia has really long holidays so he is able to travel a ton. He's been to 60 countries and he's seen all of South America except for Paraguay. I believe he did all of South America in one trip. He's been traveling for about a month as I remember so it would be feasible. This is just a little example of the cool people you meet while traveling. I would love to say I've visited 60 countries one day! While we were eating breakfast, I noticed the

Russian guy as well as the other guy I was sitting with at lunch staring at me while I was talking. They asked me where I was from and when I said Massachusetts the Russian was like "I was right!!!" I'm assuming they were trying to guess where I was from? They complimented my perfect English which I thought was pretty funny considering we were with other Americans.

After lunch we got on the bus back to Quito and a busy, adventure filled day came to a close. Cotopaxi was absolutely stunning and I'm glad I got the opportunity to hike part of it.