Ecuador Climbing Volcanoes, Imbabura & Cayambe volcano climbing tour

Imbabura - Cayambe (5 days)

Overview

Quick Info
Price: From USD 790 Days: 5 Grade: Intermediate Place: Central Andes
Overview
Imbabura (4.650m/15,256ft) is an extinct volcano located in the middle of a very indigenous region. Besides the interesting cultural visit to Otavalo and its world’s famous indigenous and colorful market, we’ll enjoy the acclimatization day of climbing Imbabura; we’ll walk through beautiful Páramo grass slopes and climb some rocky ridges close to the summit. Once well acclimatized, we’ll head to climb the massive Cayambe Volcano (5.790m/18,997ft), the third highest mountain of Ecuador and the highest peak along the equatorial line. There, we’ll have the opportunity to enjoy climbing the largest and most spectacular glacier found in Ecuador, while practicing and improving our glacier and alpine ice climbing skills.

PRICE 2011
No. Passengers	Price USD
2 - 3 pax	1090
4 - 6 pax	970
7- 10 pax	850
11 - 15 pax	790

◊ PRICE INCLUDES

•    All in country transportation.
•    All accommodation costs (hostelries (based on double or triple occupancy) and mountain hut fees). Hotels in Quito are not included (last night).
•    All meals (breakfast, lunch, box lunch while climbing and dinner), except dinners in Quito.
•    All group climbing gear.
•    Park entry fees and permits.
•    Certified bilingual Mountain Guide.
•    Glacier climbing ratio: 2 climbers /1 guide.

◊ PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE

•    Personal gear (see our Climbing Volcanoes Equipment List and Climbing Volcanoes Equipment Rental List)).
•    Hotels in Quito (last night).
•    Alcoholic and bottled drinks, and extra food.
•    Single room supplement (this supplement will apply if a match cannot be made or if there is a last minute cancellation).
•    Charges incurred as a result of delays, cancellations or early departures, all beyond Pioneer Journeys control.
•    Insurances (see our Insurance products and Information).
•    Tips.
•    Meals while traveling.
•    What it is not specified in the Included section.

Itinerary

Detailed Itinerary

• Day 1: Otavalo Market

Ecuador Mountain Climbing Tours Imbabura Volcano

Leaving Quito in the morning, we’ll drive 2 hours north to Otavalo, where we’ll visit the internationally famous indigenous craft market. We’ll have the opportunity to put in practice our bargaining abilities if we want to buy some wood carvings, colorful textiles or Panama hats. We’ll have a good lunch and, if we have time, we’ll visit and do a little scenic hike around the San Pablo lake. We’ll accommodate at one of our comfortable hostelries.

• Day 2: Imbabura Summit (4.650m/15,256ft)

Our climb begins at 5 am following a rocky ridge. Under normal conditions, no special skills are required. Nevertheless, our guides will be always prepared to overcome any difficulty in order to reach the summit safety (some times our path can be pretty snowy or we may encounter bad weather conditions). From summit you’ll have a privileged view of the Avenue of Volcanoes: Cayambe, Cotopaxi, Chimborazo…After our descent, we’ll head to enjoy a very good meal in one of our high standing associated accommodation facilities (colonial hostelry).

• Day 3: Skills review at Cayambe’s Glacier (4.633 m / 15,200 ft)

Ecuador Mountain Climbing Tours Cayambe Volcano

After our delicious breakfast we’ll go to the glacier base of Cayambe (4.633 m/15,200 ft) where we’ll review mountaineering skills (including self arrest, basic cramponing techniques, self rescue and crevasse rescue) and reinforce our acclimatization process. Overnight in the Cayambe’s Refuge in order to strengthen our acclimatization process.

• Day 4: Refugio Cayambe (4.633 m/15,200 ft)

We’ll spend the day relaxing and reinforcing what we reviewed the day before and preparing for the midnight climb.

• Day 5: Cayambe’s Summit (5.790 m / 18,997 ft), the third highest mountain in the Ecuadorian Andes

The Cayambe’s glacier is the biggest in Ecuador. Their beautiful massive ice formations and crevasses have all blue tonalities. Cayambe Volcano is the Earth’s highest point along the Equatorial Line and its eternal snows are also the only ones found in the Equator.
We’ll start our climb at midnight, so that we can take advantage of better snow conditions. Traversing up the crevassed slopes of the glacier and some rocky outcrops, we’ll reach the volcano’s summit (5.790 m/18,997 ft) in 8 to 10 hours. The astonishing views from there will certainly delight you: subsidiary north and east summits of Cayambe, caped peaks of Cotopaxi and Antizana, the vast Amazon plain. After descent, we’ll go back to Quito for a deserved rest in our hotel.

Photo Gallery

Climbing Volcanoes, Imbabura

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Testimonials

I will never forget this experience!

Climbing the volcanoes of Ecuador has been a unique and thrilling experience, specially Cotopaxi! But most of all I enjoyied meeting Pioneer Journeys climbing guides, sharing their adventures, learning from their experience and techniques.

I received a very professional treatment in a surprising natural spectacle.

What more could you ask for?

Lluís Casas – Barcelona (Spain)

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Overview

PRICE 2011

Itinerary