Ecuador: High Altitude Mountaineering School

Today, your guides will show you their city. From the high bell towers of the Basilica to the vivid culture of the historic district, Returning to your hotel in the early afternoon, you will have time to rest, enjoy the scenery, and prep your gear for tomorrow's acclimatization climb on Pinchincha

Today it's time to push out acclimatization. The wildly scenic "teleferico" gives us a 2,800' boost to start our hike of Rucu Pichincha. This 4,698m/15,413ft peak is the easternmost summit of the more prominent stratovolcano named Pinchincha, and delivers expansive views of the surrounding peaks and valleys. A quick descent brings us back to Quito and a tasty dinner.

Leaving Quito behind, you head north towards the town of Otavalo and the ancient stratovolcano known as Mojanda. Towering above the lake that fills the old crater of Mojanda lies the craggy summit Fuya Fuya (4,263m/13,986ft). Marking another wildly beautiful acclimatization hike on our path to the glaciated giants. Descending back to the famous textile town of Otavalo, you will be treated to historic luxury at the 18th-century Hacienda Pinsaqui.

You are ready to head up to our first giant. Driving east from Otavalo, you will wind up the lower flanks of the massive Cayambe (5,790m/18,996ft). The rugged stone edifice of the Refugio perched on the ridge will give you shelter and warmth during the days to come. After settling into our bunk rooms, you will spend the afternoon up on the glacier, learning about the fundamentals of footwork, balance, and other techniques needed to climb these prominent peaks. You'll be welcomed back to the Refugio with hot drinks and fantastic food prepared by the excellent staff.

Up early, you'll spend another training session on the glacier to further practice your climbing skills and learn about more complex topics such as ropework. The group will return to the Refugio midday to rest and pack for the big climb. You will spend the afternoon resting, hydrating, eating, and then an early bedtime in preparation for the big climb.

Your preparation and training are ready to be tested. After an early wakeup and hot drinks and snacks (typically around midnight), you'll move up the rock steps and onto the vast glaciers above. The rhythmic crunching of crampons, the sway of the rope, and the first inklings of morning light from high above the clouds are all classic aspects of mountaineering and will frame the first several hours of your climb. Higher, the glacier becomes complex and challenging. Your team will navigate around huge crevasses and drop-offs on your way to the top. Cresting shy of 19,000ft (5,790m/18,996ft), the summit of Cayambe is a proud achievement and offers commanding views of the surrounding mountains. Off to the south, you can make out the glaciated summits of Cotopaxi, Antisana, and Chimborazo.

After the descent back to the Refugio, we return to Quito for dinner. Those flying home head to the airport for flights scheduled after 11 p.m. or the following morning. The rest of the team spends the night in our hotel in Quito.

Any remaining Cayambe-only team members depart Quito for home. After breakfast, climbers staying for the extension head up to the flanks of Cotopaxi and prepare for their climb in the coming days. The fun is only getting started for those staying on for the extension!

Waking up around 1 am, you'll have some hot drinks and snacks and set out for the summit of Cotopaxi. This climb will use all the skills you learned on Cayambe as we travel on snow and ice up to the volcano's rim. The final section of climbing will be the most difficult before you are rewarded with a stunning summit. After descending and packing up, you will drive to the beautiful Hacienda La Cienega.

We travel by bus to the Abraspungo Hostelry (2,750 m/9,022 ft.) Near the city of Riobamba and Chimborazo. We will drive south along the “The Avenue of the Volcanoes,” which are the high valleys separating the two Ecuadorian mountain chains. In the afternoon, we will reach Abraspungo. This comfy accommodation in a breathtaking setting gives us another chance to rest and prepare before our most challenging climb.

Today, we transfer to the El Castillo camp in the footsteps of El Castillo Ridge, 2 hours hike from the car. This camp is perched high on the mountain and gets its name from "El Castillo," the castle-like rock formation adjacent to the camp. You will see the glaciated route to the summit rise in front of you from camp, giving the team plenty of time to scout a good route across the ice.

Your final and most challenging climb. The route quickly ascends the glacier, on which the ice is often broken by many crevasses and almost vertical ice steps. Eventually, you will reach the Castillo ridge and follow it over the moderate ground to the summit. After taking photos and enjoying the views from the tallest point in Ecuador,  The descent to the Castle Camp takes three hours. After returning to camp, we will pack and descend to Plaza Roja, then travel to Riobamba town. The Abraspungo Hostelry gives us beautiful Andean scenery at the end of our climb

After breakfast, we will drive back to Quito. Goodbye dinner in the evening. Sadly enough, our journey has come to an end. Those flying home head to the airport for flights scheduled after 11 p.m. or the following morning.

Yes! The immediate goal of our climbing schools is to provide our guests with the required skills and experience to embark on more significant goals worldwide.

Your most challenging day will be the summit climb on Cayambe. We awaken early in the morning, employing headlamps. Climbing steadily through the night, we find ourselves high on the mountain. After achieving the summit, we descend back to Otavalo. You can anticipate 12 to 15 hours of continuous movement.

Yes, we supply the following gear at no charge for our mountaineering schools. Helmet, harness, crampons, ice axe, boots, and carabiners/ cord. This gear is available on a first-come, first-served basis, so please make your reservations earlier!

For the Ecuador Mountaineering School, we use mountain huts while on Cayambe and Cotopaxi, and we establish a campsite while climbing Chimborazo. 

We require purchasing trip insurance, and we also require rescue insurance on all expeditions. Trip insurance covers issues that would cause you to cancel your trip in advance. We recommend Ripcord for both types of insurance.

Our leadership has required all participants to be vaccinated for international travel. We have made this safety measure to protect our clients, our guide team, and the local people we interact with during our expeditions. We desire to do our utmost to mitigate the risk of Covid disrupting our expeditions, and keeping our teams immunized has become a vital part of our risk management system with international travel. Please contact us if you have any questions or issues regarding this decision. We'd be happy to hop on a call and discuss this further.

The cost of your trip include land costs (excluding in-town meals), this includes:

• Certified guides
• All lodging is according to Itinerary, including double occupancy lodging while in town and group lodging in mountain huts. 
• Breakfasts in town, all meals while on the mountain.
• Group camping and climbing equipment.
• All park/climbing permits.
• Scheduled in-country transportation.
• Airport transfers.
• Covid testing arrangements for re-entry into the home country (does not include the test cost).

The cost of your trip does NOT include:

• Flights to/from the country where the expedition begins.
• Extra nights in a hotel beyond the itinerary.
• Single supplement charges
• Excess baggage charges
• Airport taxes
• Visas
• In-town meals 
• Immunizations
• Gratuities for guides or local staff
• Travel and insurance
• Evacuations or hospitalization costs
• Alcohol and drinks 
• Other personal expenses  
• Antigen/PCR Covid test cost
• The costs of delays or changes to itineraries beyond the control of Benegas Brothers Expeditions or its agents are not included.