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Climbing Ilinza Norte

I'd been wanting to climb Iliniza Norte ever since I returned to Ecuador in August. The day I had hoped to do it originally was an unusually clear day all across the country, but my climbing partner was too sick to leave his bed. Saturday was the first chance I've had since then to attempt the climb.

We left Shell at 4 AM. The others in the group were Sandy, Harrison, Mike and Chris. It didn't take too long to travel over the BaÒos road at night. There was no traffic to worry about on the road wide enough for only one car, and it was too dark to see the sheer drop to the river on the left. Almost four hours later as we started over the 12,000 foot pass on the Pan American Highway, the left rear tire blew out. We managed to put on the spare, but in the process broke the end of the handle for the jack.

At this point I was disappointed, and thought we should probably head back to Shell. It wasn't wise to drive off the main road without a spare, and although we could buy a spare tire, it was going to be too late in the day to start a climb. The others didn't want to give up so easily, so we headed back to Latacunga in search of a spare tire. It didn't take long to find a very used tire in a tiny tire shop. There weren't many tires to choose from. In the US they wouldn't have even sold this tire, but here it cost us $8 and another dollar to mount it on the rim. They also used a hammer and grinding wheel to fix the jack handle. With that little problem taken care of we were on our way again.

Following directions from the guide book, we left the highway and easily found our way to the parking area at the end of the road. A little after 10:30 we started hiking. The mountain was in the clouds, and it seemed too late to start a climb. The trail started through the grass and some scattered shrubby trees. The trail climbed gradually until it reached a steep and sandy slope. After two hours and forty-five minutes we arrived at the climber's refuge.

We dropped a couple extra water bottles for the return, and then Mike, Chris, and I worked our way up the southeast ridge of the north peak. The Ilinizas are known as the twins, and there is south and north peak. The south peak is a little higher than the north, and is a technical climb up snow and ice. The north peak is 16,817 feet, and is a hike with some rock scrambling up the last section.

The clouds made it hard to find our way, but with the help of the guidebook and rock cairns we pressed on towards the top. In two different places we went the wrong way and had to back track. Earlier in the climb I told Mike and Chris that 3:30 should be our turn around time, no matter where we were. It was past that time, and we were so close to the top. At about 4:00 I told Mike we probably should head down. I was sure the summit wasn't that far away, but because of the clouds it was hard to know for sure. The fact that we only had two hours of light left kept pressing on my mind. I agreed to just a few more minutes. It turned out that the top was only another fifty feet above us, and we were soon snapping a few photos of ourselves.

At 4:15 we started our descent. Of course this was easier than climbing up, and we were able to save a lot of time by descending a long sandy slope, and bypassing the rocky ridge. An hour later we were back at the refuge. There was a German climber there who was a big help. Steven was his name, and he was spending two nights at the refuge in preparation for a climb of Cotapaxi. Earlier that afternoon he too had climbed the north peak. He shared cups of tea with us and then at 5:50 we left the refuge. By this time we all realized that we'd be walking for a while in the dark. Thankfully we were off the steep and rocky peak.

To make a long story short, we arrived back at the truck at 7:20, an hour after dark. We were able to follow the trail with the help of a couple flashlights, and later, by the light of the moon. Sandy and Harrison were waiting for us in the truck. They didn't know exactly where we were, but they helped by idling the truck engine and turning the lights on. Near the end, when we were hoping we were on the right trail, it was a huge relief to see those truck lights.

By the time we arrived home, it was midnight, and the end of a very long day.