Comments on: Climbing Cotopaxi: 8 Important Facts You Should Know About the Mountain Refuge

By: liz

liz — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:46:25 +0000

thank you so much! And yes, i meant Pasochoa — :+)

Your comments were very helpful and very reassuring!
As to the weather: I had planned on a polartec base layer, midweight polartec powerstretch mid-layer, and a goretex performance shell, and carrying an extra midweight fleece if needed. Do you think that's adequate or do i really need to also take a down jacket?

By: carolina

carolina — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:46:05 +0000

Hi,
I am supposed that you will acclimatize either in the Ruco Pichincha (4700 m), very close to Quito, or in Pasochoa (4200 m) which is a little further from Quito (i am pretty sure there is not such Pinchachoa). If you can climb both, wonderful. Illiniza norte is a great mountain to acclimatize. I think that with your level of physical activity and those acclimatization climbs you may be ready for Cotopaxi.
Cotopaxi is not a technical mountain, it is very touristic, and therefore, the route is obvious, and very walked. That is why you were asked not to worry about the use of the gear, the most you should learn would be to get used walk wearing those rigid plastic boots and crampons.
The company you chose “Compañía de guías de montaña”is a really good one, it is specialized in climbing tours, and has a solid background. Furthermore, one of the founders is one of the seven persons on earth that climbed the 14 highest mountains of the world without supplemental oxygen.
I hope this information was helpful and I hope you reach the summit of Cotopaxi!

By: carolina

carolina — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:45:30 +0000

I forgot one more thing..
Temperature is not as cold as you were told, maybe it was a misanderstood between farenheit and celious. The coldest it woud get in a very windy night would be -15 celciouls (something around5 farenheit).

By: Carolina

Carolina — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:37:22 +0000

By: liz

liz — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 09:28:04 +0000

My friend and I will be doing our first climbing expedition on Cotopaxi in August. We are both avid backpackers, cyclists and runners but have never climbed. We're spending 10 days prior at a research project in the Santa Lucia Cloud Forest Reserve, and will do acclimatizing climbs on Pinchachoa and Illinza Norte. Will that be a safe enough acclimatization process?

We chose a guide on the internet, Compania de Guias de Montana. Does anyone have recommendations, references about them they could share? Also, we're a little concerned about gear– he tells us it will be 10-20 degrees below zero, farenheit. Is that accurate??
He's also told us not to be concerned that we have no experience with technical equipment — crampons, harnesses, ropes, ice axes– that we can learn all we need to know in the afternoon before the climb.
We don't want to be stupid tourists and do something foolish. Any insights would be helpful. We've read everything here but would love some feedback from some experienced climbers. thanks!