Cotopaxi Adventure 2025

Pincha aquí para la versión en castellano

We reached a new summit, and with this one, we closed a challenge that had been pending for several years, if not for the whole group, at least for me. Climbing Cotopaxi is (or was) a tough challenge, and the fact that the four of us achieved the summit demonstrates something: either we were well prepared and trained, or we have unbreakable determination, or we had good judgment in choosing our support team, or we are extremely lucky… or perhaps a little bit of all of the above combined and blended.

The truth is that the conditions were right, and we reached the summit. What follows in these writings is the celebration of our success, the summary of those final moments, and the photos that capture the sweetness of the achievement, but that say little about the effort, the planning, and the training that enable us to reach it. If you wish to know more of those kinds of details, I will gladly answer any questions you may post in the comments or send to my email inbox.

Before jumping to summarize our journey to the top of Cotopaxi, we want to take the opportunity to comment on a key initial milestone in the preparation: the selection of Andeanface as our climbing partner and logistic planner. It was a process that included emailing several providers with questions, reviewing their websites, following them for some years, reviewing comments, and discarding other options available on the internet, based on the answers received, intuition, and the empathy generated in this process.

Our sincere gratitude to the team of Andeanface for converting these vacations into unforgettable moments filled with joy and fulfillment. To Javier for preparing the entire acclimatization plan and coordinating the logistics, to Pablo, Romel, Ciro, and Mauricio for accompanying us, guiding us, preparing our meals, encouraging us, sharing their life stories, etc. They demonstrated a tremendous capacity for understanding, adaptation to our needs, and professionalism.

If I must describe the Andeanface team to others, I would say that it is a group of friends who know each other well and work happily at what they do, in perfect harmony and sync. All the details were covered to our complete satisfaction, and they made us feel that we were part of that gang of buddies pursuing a common goal for pleasure, for fun, out of love for the mountains. We felt comfortable among them and developed bonds of camaraderie and friendship that are priceless.

Regarding this trip to Ecuador, it has two stages: the acclimatization stage, which began on the same day we arrived in Quito, and lasted 7 days until we ascended to the Cotopaxi’s refuge on Friday, May 2^nd; and the summit attack, which lasted about 18 hours. The following posts summarize our adventure in the Ecuadorian Andes:

Acclimatization	1. Quito and Tumbaco (English version coming) 2. Condor Machay Ecological Reserve – Santa Rita 3. Climbing Pasochoa Volcano (13,822 ft)  4. From Santa Rita to Los Mortiños: A Trek Between Haciendas 5. Climbing Rumiñahui Central (15,240 ft)  6. Snow Line (English version coming)
Summit	7. Ascent to Cotopaxi (English version coming)

I can't close this post without saying that I want to go back to Ecuador, but probably to do a less demanding hiking like Hacienda to Hacienda expedition that Andeanface has on their site, but who knows if I end up doing the Chimborazo next time. I will keep the option open.