Climbing trip to South Illiniza, Antisana and Chimborazo

Arrival into Quito. Transfer to the Sierra Madre Hotel.

We will depart at 8.30 AM towards the Cerro Pasochoa at 4199 m. It is an ancient and eroded volcano which has been inactive since the last ice age. We will drive until we are at the parking lot, from where we will follow the track along the east side of the mountain. This easy ascent will take us 3-4 hours. Rest for one hour, lunch and return down to the car. In the afternoon we’ll move to the Machachi city. Overnight at Hosteria la Estación (B/BL).

This day we will leave at 9 am from the hotel in direction to Quito through the Llloa village, at 3400 meters high. From here we will start to walk towards the hut over an old path, admiring the Andean native vegetation. The refuge is at 4600 m. So we will gain an altitude of 1200 meters today and the hike will take around 4 hours. Arrival at hut at 4-5 PM, rest, dinner and sleep (B/BL/D).

Breakfast at 7 AM and then, we will move up to the Guagua Pichincha peak (4790 m). The ascent will take 1:30 hour. Then, we will climb its father summit at 4385 m. And finally, we will continue to the summit of Rucu Pichincha at 4696 m. The crossing of this route is very interesting because of its nature and geography with several summits and landscapes. It is a perfect acclimatization process to continue with the plan to climb the Antisana summit. After making the 3 summits we will go directly down to the cable car for 2-3 hours to the base of the mountain where we will take a car to the hotel Sierra Madre (B/BL).

Rest morning and lunch at 12 AM on the Papallacta Resort to be ready to leave at 1 PM. Drive during 3 hours until we reach the parking lot at 3900 m. From here, we will hike up for other 3 hours to the Illiniza Hut. The heavy gear will be carried by the mules so you can hike only with your day backpack (B/BL/D).

We will wake up at 3 AM, have breakfast, check the equipment and leave the hut at 4 AM. So, we will start hiking up on a moderated terrain until we reach a section of rock climbing. After that we have reached the glacier. This section has steep ice/snow technical slopes and some crevasses depending on the snow conditions. We may need to use ice axes, crampons and helmet. The difficulty of this peak can increase or decrease depending on the presence or lack of ice or snow.

Once at the summit we will have a rest, eat and take many pictures. After recovering your energy we will start descending by the same way. The round trip will take 9 hours. Arrival at hut, rest, packing of the gear and moving down to the parking lot. We will then drive to La Ciénega, where we’ll arrive at 4 – 5 PM (B/BL).

And if you have enough energy we can make the Iliniza North summit as well today!!!

We will depart from Quito to travel to our base camp in Antisana at 4700 m. This is a remarkable journey since we will pass by lava flows in the country side. It is also common to see and admire some Andean eagles and condors during this trip. We will set up the base camp in the Antisana base (B/L/D).

Today we will hike to open and recognize the way up for the next morning climb. After noon we will come down to the campsite. We must prepare for a midnight departure to the Antisana summit. Early dinner and rest usually by 6:30 PM (B/BL/D).

We can use this day for relaxing or we can hike a bit around the area to get well acclimatized. Early dinner and rest (B/BL/D).

We will wake up at midnight, have breakfast and check the equipment. That way we will reach the summit by 8 AM. The route is complex but offers spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. The get to the Antisana glacier it will be necessary to apply some snow and ice techniques. After conquering the summit and taking pictures, we will descend to the base camp and then to the Quito Hotel. Full nigh rest in the Papallacta hot spring resort (B/BL).

Enjoy this nice area, relax and recover your energies for Chimborazo (B).

Today we will drive for 5 hours to reach the parking lot and hike to the Whimper hut in 45 minutes. We will arrive at the hut around 3 PM. So, we will prepare the dinner and try to sleep early because we must wake up at midnight for the next day summit attempt (BL/D).

Chimborazo is Ecuador’s highest peak and it is a massive glaciated volcano with five summits. Getting up at midnight for breakfast and equipment check and then leaving the hut at 1 AM. We will move immediately to the huge glacier on Chimborazo’s southwest face where we will first traverse moderately angled ice slopes and climb through a series of icefalls. Our team will rope together in order to cross crevasses and finally reach the summit. This is the highest point of the Andes and from here we will have a magnificent view of the emerging volcanoes that form the eastern and western range. The round trip will take around 8 to 9 hours.

Return to the hut by noon. Short rest, packing the gear and drive back to Quito. We’ll get to the city by around 8 PM. Sierra Madre Hotel (B/BL). If we stay at Chimborazo Hut you will have B/BL/D included.

Extra day in case of bad weather. Depending on it, we will sleep in the hut or in the Sierra Madre Hotel (B/BL).

Transfer to the airport in Quito and end of this amazing program (B).