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Cotacachi, Ecuador, 2 Day Guided Ascent

Cotacachi, Ecuador, 2 Day Guided Ascent | Ecuador

Come and spend 2 days climbing the wonderful Cotacachi peak in the Andes of Ecuador with Marcelo, an ASEGUIM certified guide.

Not specified

2 Days

All year

Fit

Beginner


Description

Less than 70 kilometers away from the Ecuadorian capital city of Quito, Cotacachi (4,944m) is a fabulous peak. The eleventh highest peak in the country, climbing Cotacachi is a great opportunity for beginner level climbers to experience the feeling of scaling a majestic mountain.

From the summit of Cotacachi peak, you will get to enjoy outstanding views of the countries other great peaks, including Cotopaxi (5,897m) and Cayambe (5,790m). You will also get to see the Imbabura crater. And when you gaze straight down, you will get to stare into the beautiful blue water of the Cuicocha lake.

This 2 day excursion will begin in Quito. From there we will take a short drive to the Cotacachi reserve. Once there, we will take a scenic five hour hike around the Cuicocha lake. Afterwards, we will have some lunch and head to our base camp. At the base camp we will have dinner and sleep for the night.

On the following day, we will wake up early, have breakfast and begin our climb of Cotacachi. Our ascent of this great mountain will take approximately 4 hours. Once we reach the peak’s apex, you will get to enjoy the views from the summit before we descend back to the base camp and make our way back to Quito. The descent should take approximately 3 hours.

Climbing Cotacachi is a great start for anybody who wishes to scale more peaks in Ecuador’s famed volcano avenue. So if you want to enjoy this wonderful 2 day adventure, just send me a request.

Would you like to learn more about mountaineering, while climbing another great Ecuadorian volcano? Then come and join me on this 5 day expedition on Cayambe.

Price includes

- Accommodation included

- Guiding fee

- Breakfast

- Lunch

- Dinner

- Transport during the trip

Price details

Please contact us for price information.


Details

More info

The itinerary is subject to change as a result of weather, snow and road conditions, as well as the health of the participants.

Meeting point

Quito

About the guide

Guide profile image

Marcelo

4.00

(1)

Mountain Guide

Marcelo was born into hiking boots in Riobamba, a small city in the Andean Region of Ecuador. At the age of 10, he was already racing up and down the mountains and was allowed to accompany his father as he guided tourists. Since childhood he loved climbing the mountains. He has climbed all the peaks in the Ecuadorian Andean countless times. 

In 1999, he moved to Germany for five years and, apart from learning German, he also found time to climb and hike in the Alps. He climbed Grossglockner and Mont Blanc, among many other peaks. He graduated as Mountain Guide at the ASEGUIM in Ecuador. He is a loyal member of the German Alpine club Section Cologne DAV. 

In 2004 he returned from Germany to work in his father’s mountain tour company ANDESTREK EXPEDITIONS, where he led countless successful expeditions in the Ecuadorian Andes. In 2015 he and his German wife started their own Tour Company MAPUDI TRAVEL & TOURS which has been in operation since. 

He studied 2 years at the university and obtained the degree of NATIONAL TOURIST GUIDE and received his NATIONAL GUIDE CERTIFICATION from the ECUADORIAN MINISTRY OF TOURISM. After that he continued studying for 4 more years and obtained the degree of BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION OF HOTELS AND TOURIST OPERATIONS. He manages 2 Bed & Breakfasts, one in Quito and the other in Baños. These serve as a Base Camp for the Expeditions in Ecuador. 

He has more than 30 years of experience climbing mountains. These experiences prepared him to guide routes all around the world. He became a UIAGM/IFMGA/IVBV Mountain guide at the year of 2017 and since 2020 has been guiding tours during the summer into the east and west Alps and during the winter tours in Ecuador. He speaks fluent German, English and some Italian and French. He works together with certified guides by ASEGUIM and UIAGM.

Languages

Spanish | German | English

Certificates

ASEGUIM | UIAGM | IFMGA

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What people are saying about Marcelo

Wayne

4.00

My guide Marcello was/is an outstanding teacher. He showed great patience and attention to me as I struggled to gain understanding of safety procedures, knots, rescue techniques etc. During the climb he was always alert to the surrounding conditions and to my physical stamina. Marcello motivated me to climb much higher than I would have been able to do without his support. The single drawback to the training ,in my opinion, would be the use of a mountain cabin for the early days of training. The cabin was unfinished, covered with cement dust from top to bottom and without basic sanitary supports (no bathroom, no toilet paper provided, no running water). The location offered good space for a mountaineering training course but was not as comfortable as the original option of the “Refugio” at the base of the mountain. Marcello did give us the information on the change in advance but without seeing either facility the choice was a blind one. I would recommend Marcelo as a guide in the future and would gladly climb with him again. As with all adventures in Ecuador the language and cultural barriers can be a large part of any misunderstandings. I felt Marcelo worked very hard at making things clear and at the same time I know there were times that information passed back and forth came out inaccurate (that just happens).


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