Los Ilinizas

From Los Ilinizas

Los Ilinizas are two separate peaks, formed from a single, now-extinct volcano. Iliniza Sur (5248m, 17,217 feet), the higher of the two, is glaciated whereas Iliniza Norte (5126m, 16,818 feet) is not, and for this reason it became our climbing goal for this weekend.

Author’s note: As the two summits are less than a mile apart and not that different in terms of elevation or prominence, I have trouble understanding why the one is so much snowier than the other. I guess it could be “rain shadowing” but I find this unlikely...

We packed our backpacks Saturday morning and left for the pueblo of El Chaupi, about two hours south of Quito, and the last stop before the Reserva Ecológica Los Ilinizas. We took a cab to the Terminal Terrestre and were dropped of right in front of the bus to Machachi. After buying some Chifles (fried banana chips) from a vendor who had hopped on the bus, we were off. When we arrived in Machachi, we told the bus driver that we wanted to continue to El Chaupi. After all the other passengers had gotten off the bus, the driver took us quickly through the town square, pointing to a bus that was leaving. Honking his horn, he swerved in front of that bus, blocking it in. Thanking him, we hopped off and immediately got on the second bus bound for El Chaupi.

In El Chaupi, we walked to a hostal where we were told we could hire a 4x4 to take us to the trail head. At the hostal, we ate an excellent three course meal while it rained and hailed. Given the wet weather, we decided that it would be better to pay $5 to stay in the refugio instead of tent camping in the rain. After lunch, the weather had calmed, so we loaded out bags into the 4x4 and drove off up the road. After paying the $5 park entry fee and an uneventful ride up a rutted dirt road, we arrived at the trail head, known as La Virgen.

We started up the trail at a little after two in the afternoon. We soon left the subalpine forest to gain the páramo, an apline environment of grass, wildflowers and lowlying scrub. We continued hiking and at 4200m (13,780 feet), like clockwork, Mary began to feel the effects of altitude. As our pace slowed we were soon committed to making the refugio, as we could not make it back to El Chaupi before nightfall. The drizzle had stopped and we continued climbing, taking in occasinoal views of Volcan Cotopaxi through passing windows in the clouds. At 15,000 feet, Mary and I stopped for a celebratory photograph. Though feeling nauseous, Mary was now higher than anyplace in the United States, outside of Alaska.

As night was coming fast and there was a bit of fog, we decided that I should go alone to find the refugio and drop off my bag. This way, we would not risk stumbling around in the dark and I could climb back down to take Mary’s bag. Fortunately, we were not more than ten minutes from the refugio and so I was able to quickly get back to Mary and Eve. I put on Mary’s backpack and, taking her by the hand, led her the rest of the way up the mountain.

We were greeted in the refugio by four Ecuadorian climbers. Mary and Eve, both exausted, climbed into their sleeping bags while I made soup. Eve found that she did not have much appetite at 4765m (15, 633 feet) and so only ate one bowl. Mary, still feeling nauseated, could hardly eat a thing. I finished the soup, did the dishes and then crawled into my own sleeping bag for the night. And the night proved long. No doubt due to the altitdue, sleep prooved illusive. I would doze off, stop breathing enough, and wake up feeling shaky and nauseous with a pounding headache. I would sit up, hyperventilate until my headache started to go away and then drift off to sleep again, only to repeat the process minutes later. This was coupled with being extremely thirsty, so much so that I would wake up needing to drink from my water bottle. Eve kept waking up as well so we could suffer together. At some point, the Ecuadorians awoke to climb Iliniza Sur. Though loud, this event barely registered with me.

Just before sunrise, I got up. I did not feel terribly well, but I was incredibly thirsty and had finished my water in the night. I pulled on my boots, took some Advil, and on shakey legs began to go about the buisness of brewing some tea. I headed outside to collect water and was greated by perfectly blue skies and views of the surrounding volcanos and the lush green valley below. Still feeling ill, but excited by the fantastic scenery, I ran back inside, put the water on to boil and grabbed my camera. I hiked up to the saddle between Iliniza Sur and Norte, snapping a few pictures on the way. Alone on the mountain, high above it all, I enjoyed a beautiful view of the world all to myself. This, I remembered, is why I love to climb.

Back in the refugio I drank a liter of tea and forced myself to eat some granola bars. My favorite flavor was a Kellogs All-Bran bar, as it had nearly no taste at all. I immediately put on more water and brewed up some hot, half-strength Gatorade. I knew I needed to eat and drink, but having no appetite at all, wanted everything I consumed to be a flavorless as possible. Feeling even better, I went back outside to take some more photos.

When I returned, I roused Mary and Eve with hot tea and Gatorade. Mary was feeling much better, but Eve was still feeling sick. Despite this, everyone was in a good mood.

Given the outstanding weather, and feeling better myself, I decided to climb Iliniza Norte solo. Mary hiked with me up to the saddle, while Eve watched from the refugio. I quickly climbed to ridge to the Paso de le Muerte, which despite its name was noting more than a steep traverse on soft snow. I climbed to an altitude of 5082m (16,673 feet), but could not find a route up the summit pyramid. I contunied to search, but it soon got foggy and so I decided that I should head back down to the refugio, having prommised Eve I would not take any unnessecary risks. Though I had failed to reach the summit I had succeeded in climbing above 5000m (~16,000 feet) for the first time.

Back at the refugio Mary and Eve had packed our bags. We left at around noon, hiking quickly down to the road to El Chaupi, where we arrived at around 2:45. We hitched a ride into town in the back of a pickup filled with a bunch of kids and, thanking the driver, ran to catch the bus back to Machachi. In Machachi, we caught a bus to Quito, from were we took a cab back to the house.

If you would like to see a slide show of photos from my trip to Los Ilinizas, just go to my Picasa Web Album.