Hiking Cotopaxi — Disappointment Ranch

Cobble roads near Cotopaxi National Park lead to a very bumpy ride!

Cotapaxi is a large, active stratovolcano and is the second highest summit in Ecuador. It is fairly accessible however, and is a great day-trip activity if you are in the area. We stayed at the Secret Garden Hostel and arranged to visit Cotopaxi through them as an optional activity. The cost was $30 per person (January 2019) and included transportation between the Hostel and Refuge parking area, a guided tour and snack. After breakfast at the Hostel, we left via an early 90’s era Toyota Land Cruiser at 8:30am for the very, VERY bumpy ride to the entrance of the Cotopaxi Reserve National Park, and then through the park to the parking area.

Halfway to the entrance we stopped at a rural homestead that rents bikes for those wishing to cruise down the volcano on two wheels. I think the cost for rental was $5-$10 depending on how far you wanted to ride. The Aussie hostel host we spoke to had advised taking a thorough test ride to make sure everything you might desire in a bike-ride down a volcano is in order (inflated tires, brakes, gear shifts and some level of confidence in the overall hardware) also warned that these were “South American bikes” and to not expect too much by way of shocks. A third bike was loaded up as a backup (which was needed!). I opted out of this adventure – just two of the seven in our group decided to go for it.

Inside the park, the “road” passed through several boulder fields with beautiful distant views until we reached the main drive. Along the way, we happened to pass within 30 meters of a group of wild horses (cool!).

We continued up the much wider main road, which was also very bumpy. The road had quite a steep grade by time we reached the parking area. Once the driver parked, he quickly put some wheel chocks (volcanic rocks) behind the wheels. This is not the kind of place where you want to come back to find out your parking brake failed, and your vehicle has tumbled several thousand feet down the volcano!

Unloading at the Cotopaxi N.P. Refuge parking area.

We set off for the 60-minute 1km (.6 mile) hike up to the Jose F. Ribas Refuge. The parking area is at 4500 m (14,765 ft) and the Refuge is at 4864 m (15,960 ft). We had been at sea level just 2 days earlier, so let me tell you, the air felt VERY thin. We were really sucking wind and had to stop often to catch our breath. None of us were affected by altitude sickness, thankfully - we just had to be intentional about taking full breaths of air and continuing to drink water. Stopping to rest often was a great opportunity to turn around and admire the gorgeous view of the surrounding area far below.

The view between the parking area and Refuge.

Cotopaxi Refuge, I believe the boulder is from an avalanche that occurred in the late 90’s.

The Refuge offers a small cafe as well as overnight lodging for those ambitious souls attempting the summit. The rest of the family decided to stop their ascent at the Refuge for a game of cards and some hard-earned hot chocolate. I decided to join the remainder of the group for the additional hike to the lower glacier. After about 30 minutes of hiking, we’d reached the tip of the glacier at 5100 m (16,730 ft), a new record for me, and took some obligatory victory photos!

Interesting colored volcanic rubble near the lower glacier.

Hanging out at the cafe inside the Refuge.

After a careful descent to the Refuge, we enjoyed sandwiches and banana bread our guide had brought along. A local school group had also arrived and several of the kids were closely (no space bubble!) watching the card game underway.

The trek back to the truck was easy. The loose volcanic scree dampened each downward step and made it easy to keep traction and stay in control. At the truck, the two British blokes who had rented bikes unloaded them from the roof rack and geared up for the crazy bike ride down the volcano. They took off while the guide struggled to get the diesel truck to start in the cold mountain air. When he uttered the universal phrase ‘uh-oh’ we began to worry a bit, but after a few more attempts we were off. By time we started, the bikers were almost a mile ahead of us. Partway down, one of the guys swapped out his bike for the backup bike since his chain had derailed and was occasionally locking up the rear wheel and causing some unwanted fish-tailing. They made it safely down to the designated spot in the flat area of the park to load the bikes back onto the truck for the (I’ll say it again) bumpy ride back to the Hostel. We were back by 1:30pm, in time for a late lunch. Overall, a great day and would definitely do it again!