We are psyched to be back in Ecuador! The Madison Mountaineering team has been hard at work acclimatizing on smaller peaks that surround Quito. And now, we are excited to share that the team successfully reached the summit of Cotopaxi with 100% summit success! The team had an excellent day on this iconic mountain; clear skies, no wind, and good route conditions made for smooth climbing to the summit. Now that they are off the mountain safely, it’s back down to lower elevations to rest up, recover, and get ready for their next big objective: Chimborazo! Expedition leader, Estalin Suárez checks in with this dispatch from the summit of Cotopaxi:
Hello, World!
This is a Estalin calling for Madison Mountaineering Ecuador Volcanoes expedition. We are at the summit of Cotopaxi (5897m/19,347ft), 5,897 meters!
So, it took us a little bit more than seven hours to reach the summit, but worth it! We got that really, really beautiful day, zero wind, clear sky. The snow, it was pretty pretty good.
So Travis and Rob, they’re feeling really great! Yeah, so stay tuned for the photos later.
Nearing the summit of Cotopaxi while above the clouds
Aerial shot above Cotopaxi
Drone shot of climbers taking the final steps towards the summit of Cotopaxi.
Climbers, Rob and Travis on an acclimatization day on one of the many peaks surrounding Quito.
Above the clouds on the Illinizas.
Sunrise while climbing Illiniza Norte.
Summit! Illiniza Norte
Cumbre on El Corazon!
In addition to these expedition dispatches, you can also follow our teams as they make their attempts on the world’s most formidable mountains on:
– Amazon Alexa devices with the Madison Mountaineering Flash Briefing skill:
- Enable the skill and add to your flash briefing to hear our daily audio expedition updates on select expeditions. Just say, “Alexa, play my flash briefing.“
– Instagram: