the adventures of grey cat: Cotopaxi

Hiking Cotopaxi: coolest thing I've done here yet.

We drove two hours out of Quito to reach the Parque Nacional Cotopaxi. The park is absolutely huge and beautiful, with several mountains and beautiful views. The tour bus took us up to the "parking lot" on Cotopaxi, which is about 4200 meters (almost 14,000 feet) above sea level, and from there we began the hike. The hike itself was not difficult, but the altitude made it far more strenous. At that far above sea level, the air is so thin that any physical activity is difficult--we were hiking at an extremely slow pace, but we were all huffing and puffing, and I was experiencing headaches and earaches due to the lack of oxygen and change in pressure. We hiked up to the refuge, rested for a while, and then continued on up to the snow patch. At this point, I understood how easy it is for climbers to become disoriented on mountains, as the clouds were rolling in so quickly that visibility was deteriorating, and I could hardly see much ahead or above us. We hiked through the snow, which was very slippery, up to the glacier level and stopped at 5000 meters (just over 16,000 feet.) To continue on from this point we would have needed special gear, but we did get up close and personal with some of the glaciers. I've heard that glaciers seem to glow, and it really is true--the one I saw seemed to emit a blue-green light. Finally, after many many photos, we began the descent to the refuge (which was markedly easier) and stopped for lunch of chicken soup and sandwiches inside. I was seriously so hungry that I abadoned my manners and was dropping food on my lap constantly. After lunch, we continued down to the parking lot, at which point they unloaded the bikes for the ride down the volcano. This was the part about which I was the least excited, and after testing my bike out and finding the brakes less than satisfactory, I opted to ride down in the bus instead. I enjoyed the views much better that way. In all, it was a wonderful, exciting adventure, and I can't wait to go back next year and conquer the summit!