Iliniza Norte

Yesterday I came to El Chaupi, a barren little village an hour or so south of Quito, hoping to climb Iliniza Norte, which at 16,800' is probably one of the tallest mountains on earth that can be done as a day hike with no special equipment or training. A head for heights, though, is essential, as you'll see below.

Upon arriving I poked around for leads on a ride up to the trailhead, 9 km from El Chaupi. I wasn't sure I could swing 15 km and 7,000' elevation gain, and then back again, in the daylight hours. I soon ran into a German-Polish couple who were planning to climb Iliniza Norte as well, and they had a guide with a truck. Perfect! I invited myself to dinner with them to ask the guide's permission. He granted it, and we arranged to meet at 4 this morning. I went to bed in my chilly hostel (which I had all to myself), my cell phone's alarm set.

But woe unto technology, my fully charged phone found a way besides battery death to monkeywrench my plans! "SIM card not found." What!? I woke up at 5:03 to this message, panicked, threw on my clothes and pack, and sprinted to the rendezvous point--but to no avail. I would have to walk the 9 km after all, and if I walked them fast enough I might have a chance of catching up with the Europeans and getting a ride back down. Here's what the view behind me looked like as I began walking (that's Cotopaxi).

...and as the sun began to rise.
The mountain on the right was my objective. The left one is Iliniza Sur, possible only with crampons and an ice axe.
Is morning alpenglow also called alpenglow?
I was up on the páramo by this point, after 2 or so hours of hiking. The route up Iliniza norte follows its left (southeast) ridge. The descent is down the orangey loose stuff in the middle.
I made it to the refugio in 3 1/2 hours, despite the estimates I'd read that it should take 5-7. And I'd caught up with the Europeans! I was assured a ride down. I rested for a while, chatting with the refugio caretaker, who works 8 days on the mountain, 8 days off. Hiking and cell phone games are his antidote to boredom.
The Europeans and their guide making their way along the ridge. I eventually passed them, and then had trouble finding the route. I ended up climbing up the north side too early, past several pitons, knowing it was way too steep to be the proper trail. But I never left my comfort zone. Nor did the altitude make me headachey or dizzy. I was just plain having a blast.
I had the summit, marked by this doodad-bedizened cross, to myself for a half hour or so. There couldn't have been better weather for this hike. Clear views in all directions except the west, where a layer of cloud several thousand feet below obscured the forests on their way to the Pacific. The snow peaks of Cayambe, Antisana, Cotopaxi, and Chimborazo were all crisply visible, not to mention Iliniza Sur right in my face. This last view reminded me of surmising Hozomeen from Desolation Peak in the North Cascades.

Chimborazo as seen across the flank of Iliniza Sur.

What a nerd.

A nice view of the beginning of the descent, showing the steepness and exposure.

Lower down on the descent skiing in the dusty volcanic material was the fastest way down. I wished for a pair of gaiters.

Finally we got back into vegetation. After several hours on desolate rock and dust, it was a revelation.

Seen behind this perky little fellow is the trail down from the summit.

Thank goodness for the ride back down to the village! Since we got back to the parking lot at around 1:15, I would have had plenty of time walking, but my dogs were barking loud. This is one of the greatest day hikes I've ever done, right up there with the Sahale Arm in the North Cascades. Gorgeous, inspiring, challenging, fun. Here's to mountains.

I also took three video panoramas which you can watch here: http://www.youtube.com/user/morazanero