Climb Cotopaxi Volcano Summit
per person
Climb Cotopaxi Volcano Summit, one of the most famous mountains on the entire planet and Ecuador, its ascent and semi-perfect cone make it a mountain that all climbers with or without experience need. Our Cotopaxi Volcano trip is not difficult, but it does require an adequate acclimatization process.
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Day 1: Machachi 3,000 masl - José Rivas Refuge 4.800 masl
The Climb Cotopaxi Volcano Summit adventure starts at the Casa del Montañero hostel in Machachi at 09:00am. On arrival, we try on the necessary climbing equipment and then head to a local restaurant for lunch. After lunch, we travel an hour in our private transport to Cotopaxi National Park. Once in the car park, we take our packs and walk for an hour to the José Rivas Refuge, located at 4,800 masl. Here we enjoy some hot drinks and have a talk about the handling of mountain equipment, the route to the summit, and the necessary details of the climb. Dinner is served before 18:00pm, we then rest until midnight.
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Day 2: José Rivas Refuge 4,800 masl – Cotopaxi summit 5,897 masl – return to Machachi
The departure time depends on the conditions of the climbers. Breakfast is served, we then pack up and with all of our climbing equipment ready the ascent starts at midnight. We walk for approximately an hour and a half to the glacier at 5,200 masl, where we use crampons, ice axes and ropes. We continue for around 5 more hours to reach the summit with the first rays of the sun. Once at the top of the second highest mountain in Ecuador, we enjoy the spectacular view, take some photographs of the crater and the surrounding mountains, and then begin our descent. We return by the same route, which takes around 3 hours. Once at the refuge we have the rest of our breakfast before packing and returning to Machachi.