From the end of my week long Living Local Tour (which was complete following breakfast on our last morning in Quito) I had another 12 hours until I had to head to the airport for my trip home, and so of course I booked another day tour. This one I had been looking forward to all week: a hike up to the base camp of Cotopaxi Mountain, which actually happens to be a volcano.

Our group consisted of our guide Geraldo, myself and Jenna (my fellow Albertan from our Amazon tour group)  one man from Italy, one man from France, and then 5 folks from the UK: two young guys in between high school and university on a gap year of travel, and a husband and wife and her cousin just stating their adventures between Ecuador and the Galapagos. 

We left early in the morning with a stop about halfway to Cotopaxi National Park to grab breakfast and some Coca Tea. Coca tea is made from coca leaves and is used by the locals to help with altitude sickness. Since I’d spend the last four days only 400m above seal level and was about to head to about 4800m, I thought it would be a very good idea. 

There were also a couple of cute alpacas munching on the grass outside of the cafe we stopped at.

We drove past pine tree forests that reminded me of home that then opened up into wide expanses of flat fields with wildflowers, low shrub, and a neverending sky full of clouds. Cotopaxi National Park is over 82 000 acres and home to incredible wildlife including deer, foxes, condors, bears, jaguars, and wild horses. The park is known for the beautiful Andes mountain range, and we could see the massive Cotopaxi Volcano off in the distance with swirling clouds dramatically sweeping across to first cover the summit and then reveal it again over and over as we approached. On our way in we drove by deer running through the grasses, saw wild horses grazing in the wildflower fields off of the main road, and caught sight of a beautiful fox (the size of a coyote!) near our starting point of our hike wandering into the mist. 

In October of last year the volcano started spewing ash and sulphuric gas into the atmosphere again, so hikes to the summit at this time are forbidden. Even though it is considered relatively safe to hike to base camp, Cotopaxi is the most active volcano in Ecuador and so there are multiple seismographs and instruments constantly monitoring the activity of the volcano (we were told it is the most monitored volcano on the planet). 

Cotopaxi in the local Quechua language means ‘neck of the moon’, and the terrain going up this mountain is definitely moon-like. The ground is a mix of dirt and sand and shale-like stone, and as we climbed the switchback path, the clumps of little white leafed grasses became fewer and fewer as we rose, until nothing grew, and eventually we even came across some snow. 

The hike to base camp takes only about one hour from the parking lot but with the altitude it’s the amount of oxygen you can access to breathe that is the real challenge. Even beginner hikers can do the hike and you don’t need any fancy gear either- although a good rain jacket/windbreaker jacket is important when the wind picks up! 

We were reminded regularly to stay hydrated (they recommend 2L over the day) and that “slow and steady” is the best pace, especially if you are not acclimatized to the altitude. 

There was a faint smell of sulphur and occasionally you could see small curls of grey smoke winding their way into the white cloud cover above the peak of the mountain. 

Me and our guide Geraldo

One of the Brits in our group got about halfway before needing to head back to the bus with a bad headache that worsened as they climbed higher. Jenna wasn’t feeling well either and at one point had decided to turn around as well, but as our group got nearer the top we looked down to see Jenna slowly making her way up the path with our guide Geraldo as her patient and supportive company until she made it all the way to base camp to join us!

Jose Rivas Refuge is the official name of the Base Camp building is at 4810m above sea level), and a couple of the guys went a little higher to the edge of the glacier to get to the 5000m mark, but were not allowed any further up the volcano than that for safety reasons.

If you wanted to hike to the summit of Cotopaxi (when it’s not actively erupting, of course), it’s not only highly recommended to stay in Quito for several days to acclimatize to the altitude, but you must hire a guide for the hike. You arrive at base camp in the afternoon to rest in the hostel-like accommodations before a late night / early morning (aka 1:00AM) departure for the summit and the strenuous 6-8 hour hike to the summit, followed by a 3-4 hour descent. Gear is often included along with some training (ie. how to wear/use crampons and ice-axe techniques). They say that only 72% of hikers successfully summit Cotopaxi. I’ve also come across the advice from several people that a good training hike is summiting a little mountain you might have heard of: Mt. Kilimanjaro…. !!

Base camp feels like a Scandinavian Lodge made of wood and brick with a beautiful orange roof you can see from quite a distance on a clear day. The ceiling is draped in international flags, and the windows along the back are covered in stickers from around the world. Groups of hikers grab tables and order refreshments, taking selfies and drinking hot chocolate and coca tea.

Here you can buy hot drinks, bottled water, both salty and sweet snacks, and even purchase stickers and badges as souvenirs! They also have an official stamp with the Cotopaxi Mountain icon and altitude that you can stamp in your passport or on a piece of paper as a memento.

We ordered hot chocolate and stamped scrap pieces of paper and our notebooks to document our achievement. 

The hot chocolate was the best I’ve had in a very very long time. Served in a comforting clay mug, it was piping hot, perfectly sweet and lightly spiced with cinnamon and chiles. It felt as celebratory as champagne and we toasted each other, clinking mugs and taking photos. 

I would love to say that the view was amazing but by the time we reached base camp the clouds had moved across again and we could barely see anything.

The descent is a pretty straight line back down, and with more of the soft sandy earth below your feet, I discovered that if I walked down the right side of the trail it was like stepping onto a escalator or elliptical machine with the sand letting me sink with each step- the easiest, most pleasant ‘down’ of a hike I can remember. (And with my whitewater-broken toe, this was a major coup!)

In no time at all we were back at the van, and given the option to mountain bike down the 40-50 minutes to the lake we had passed on the way to the volcano. 

I am definitely not a mountain biker and wasn’t sure if I’d enjoy it, but seeing the majority of the group jump at the chance I figured that I may never have this opportunity again so I strapped on a helmet, hopped on a bike, and started down the VERY bumpy, rocky, and winding road to the lake.

About half of the group were incredibly comfortable on the bikes and flew by me down the hill and out of sight. The other half ended up behind me, going slowly with the van following close behind them. 

Within about ten minutes I was completely on my own and carefully maneuvering over gravel and mud, ruts and turns through these stunning alpine meadows with wildflowers galore, and views of mountains all around.

It was incredibly quiet and truly peaceful. Occasionally I stopped to simply stand in wonder of the landscape around me that was both stunning and somehow familiar, reminding me of the Rocky Mountains back home.

During one of these glorious pauses in my ride, two huge foxes appeared out of the grasses across the road and started wandering in my direction. I switched my camera to video mode and watched as they came closer, with one crossing the road to my side and curiously walking almost right up to me! 

Please excuse the poor quality screenshot of the video here. But know they were majestic.

I felt an indescribable combination of awe and disbelief and delight at coming across them in this wilderness. As the one fox crossed to my side of the road and towards me there was an additional, albeit minor feeling of fear in their casual, confident approach, and at one moment I wondered if there were more on the ledge behind me and I was about to be ambushed from behind (Perhaps I had velociraptors on my mind?). This of course was not the case and as soon as I straightened up and looked behind me the fox quickly crossed back to the other side and up into the wild flowers. 

I will never forget the magic in that moment.

Once the two foxes had fully walked out of sight I continued on the road to meet the first half of my group at the lake, with the last few cyclists and the van arriving about 15 minutes after me. 

We stopped at a beautiful little restaurant outside the park and were served a delicious lunch with soup (of course), chicken, beans, rice, and vegetables.

The yard outside had alpacas, ducks, and dogs, and we were invited to feed strips of carrot to the alpacas. It wasn’t too long before a couple of friendly ducks wandered over and waddled around our ankles, quacking excitedly. Upon receiving carrot pieces themselves, I swear they wiggled their tails like dogs wagging in delight. 

It rained a bit while we were at the restaurant and was a bit misty as we climbed back into the bus for the ride back to Quito. It was a quiet drive with most of us napping against the fogged up windows.

Another unforgettable day in Ecuador and another awesome adventure had.

And just like that, the trip was nearing its end, I had just enough time to enjoy a hot shower at the hotel, repack my bags for the flights home, and an early arrival at the airport to peruse the possible last-minute souvenirs to bring home. 

And this concludes a trip full of adventures that I will never forget.

Adios, Ecuador! Y gracias!