Climber: Michael Radin (Lynnwood, WA)
Guide: Jose (Pepe) Landazuri
6:56 pm Dec. 16th.
This is Pepe calling again. Today Michael and I climbed 13,776 – foot Pasochoa. The weather was just perfect. Everything was clear – Cotopaxi. Cayambe, Antisana — and we had spectacular views.
Michael is very, very fit! Usually this hike takes 4.5 – 5 hours, but with Michael it took less than 3 hours. So we came back very early and had lunch just as we came off the peak.
Because of the speed we had extra time, so in the afternoon we went to a hot springs where we enjoyed a pretty scene and relaxing hot springs at different temperatures. What a great follow-up to a hike or climb!
After that we headed back to Quito. Michael is looking forward to another great diner and a good night’s sleep before we head to our next big objective, Guagua Pichincha (15,670 ft /4,775 m) on Monday morning. That hike will push his acclimatization along very nicely. Michael has been doing well with the altitude, so this should be a perfect next step for him. OK – I’ll call again sometime tomorrow to let you know how it went. Bye for now from sunny Ecuador!”