Cotopaxi

We´d booked to climb the mountain through Happy GRingo in Quito, who then sub booked us through a small little outfit around the corner called Condor Treck!

They were a decent enough looking outfit and having arrived there two guys who´d just returned from the mountain said it was great and the gear was all good!

This sealed it and so the next day, we´d head off early in the morning (having tested all our gear for the climb in the shop already)

It was a 2 hour drive to Cotopaxi National Park but a pretty one.

We dumped our bags and headed out with provisions for a four hour EASY walk to acclimatise, making climbing cotopaxi easier!!!???

The walk started at a lake and was very gradual towards the summit of Rumiñahui (4712m). It was all going so well, there were no problems with altitude and then suddenly thunder and lightening appeared in the distance. Ok carry on!

Just before reaching the top we had to quickly turn back as the thunder and lightening was much closer.

So we decided to walk down the mountain via a valley........ very sensible to walk high in open spaces during a lightening storm.

I don´t think I have ever walked so fast with my head down and thunder crashing right above!!!!

To put the cherry on the cake it hailed.......... HARD!!!

It took us an hour less than intended to race back down the mountain to the hostal. We arrived soaking wet and were glad of the huge open fire where we all huddled amongst the wet items of clothing draped eveywhere!!

After a very nice meal it was an early night.

The next morning we headed to the refugio at the base of Cotopaxi. It was an hour from the carpark with backpacks but fairly easy. We reached the refugio at 4800m.

After a few hours rest and plenty of coca tea (with no other side affects much to Alans dissapointment!) we hiked to the glacier for a wee practice session complete with crampons and icepicks!

The session went quite well, we felt quite comfortable with the ice and were raring to go!

Back at the refugio, which now had about 7 other climbers and 4 other guides, we had the obligitary spag bol, before TRYING to sleep for a few hours!

I´m not sure whether it was the excitement, apprehension or the altitude that induced insomnia but I hardly slept at all, Alan slept a little!

Cesar, our guide, woke us up at 11pm to get dressed in all the regalia and have some brekkie. Having breakfast at 11pm was weird to say the least but it was important to eat something!

12 midnight we stepped into our harness´ and headed off ............ to climb Cotopaxi!!!!!!

It had snowed heavily during our rest so we started off with a trek through a couple of inches of snow before even getting to the glacier.

Once at the glacier we were attached together with a rope (first Cesar, then me and finally Alan). We slipped the crampons on and stomped along the ice. It was a little tiring but bearable.... so far so good.

As we approached the sand (now snow) I managed to slip down a crevace (later finding out it was tiny BUT in the dark and with my frantic imagination it was a huge never ending drop AND I was going to die!!!!!) I didn´t die and with the help of Alan and Cesar pulling me back with the rope we plodded on.

Plodding was definately the style of choice for us both with the snow being extra soft!

We reached a small glacier as we plodded up the Volcano and it was a tricky maneouvre to get up and around it. This involved using our ice crampons much more than we´d done so before and sticking our toes into the ice to climb vertically up the ice !

This was getting dangerous!!!!!!

I was definately out of my comfort zone and I don´t think Alan was too far behind me.

We successfully negotiated the ice ridge and continued to plod ever upwards through the increasingly slippery and soft snow!

We were really tired (me especially) so Cesar made a tiny ledge to sit on and rest. Plunging the ice picks into the snow and wrapping the ropes tightly around them made it more secure..... kind of !?!

It was a short break and onwards again. Cesar did mention at this point that this kind of snow often caused avalanches..... very reassuring.

One of the guys a little further infront of us came past us as they had decided to turn back, deciding it was too hard.

Hmm ??????????

A little further on I was completely shattered again (Alan not far from it also) and needed another precarious rest on the edge of a volcano.

It was at this point 5400m up that we decided enough was enough and to turn back. I was gutted to say the least (we both were).

Descending the mountain was by no means easy.... harder in some ways.

Alan had the difficult part of leading the way as it was a complete reverse. The snow was just as hard to negotiate on the way down.

It was great fun as we hit the ice patch again, Alan handled it pretty well on 2 feet but I had to resort to all fours......... practically abseiling on the rope. Very attractive!

We made it back to the glacier and over the huge (not) crevace.

We even made it back to the refugio where we unloaded our gear and climbed back into our sleeping bags........ defeated!

In the morning we found that nobody had made it to the summit that night and that only one french guy had made it further than us, having to terminate the climb just 90m from the top due to the dangerous conditions!

After a coca tea we made our descent to the carpark where we were driven back to Quito.

We were completely shattered. I felt a mixture of failure and pride as we had tried so very hard.

Maybe we had bitten off a little more than we could chew this time.

Cotopaxi was yet to be beaten and possibly, for us amateurs anyway, a Volcano too far !!!