Ecuador
Geography & Climate – Activities & Conditions – Tour Idea – Facts – Request – Ecuador News
Geography & Climate
- Instead of our four seasons, there are wet and dry seasons. The weather patterns depend also very greatly of the geographical position: the Galapagos Islands and the coast, the Andes and the Amazonas
- Galapagos and coastal regions: influenced by the ocean currents. The hot and rainy season goes from January through April. The rest of the year is cooler and drier.
- The dry season in the highlands is from July through August and from November to February. It doesn’t rain daily in the wet season, however. The weather is difficult to predict because this zone is influenced by the coastal weather and the Amazonas.
- In the Amazonas (or Oriente), it rains almost daily. September to December are the driest, and June to August the wettest.
- El Nino happens at irregular intervals every few years. This phenomenon is characterised by abnormally high oceanic temperatures. It causes strong rainfalls, flooding and mud avalanches in coastal and mountain areas. The year following an El Nino year is even worse and is called La Nina.
Activities
- very limited to the highest peaks like Cotopaxi or Chimborazo, but with a very short descent on a brutally icy slope.
- Volcanoes: high altitude climbing in Ecuador is comparably simple – approach, infrastructure and low degrees of difficulties on the mountain. However, the access to these mountains is restricted: all peaks above 5.000 m need to be climbed guided by an accredited, ecuadorian mountain guide. There are about a dozen peaks above this altitude. In principal, Ecuador is a great country to experience and to try out your first high altitude climbs.
- Andes: there are National Parks around the main volcanoes with many treks and refugios. They vary in length and difficulties. You can get support (donkeys, guides) almost everywhere.
- Amazonas: several days treks in the jungle are possible, but guides are strongly recommended!
- Travel weather | Mountain weather | Sea weather
- Automobilclub Ecuador
- no avalanche forecast for Ecuador | Volcanoes | Severe weather warnings
- Security warnings | Health issues
Tour idea – Ecuador 5 Volcanoes
- Where: Ecuador Andes
- Peaks: Pasachoa, Corazon, Illiniza Norte, Cayambe, Chimborazo
- Activity: Mountaineering
- also included: Trekking
- Season: June to September
- Length: 11 days / 10 nights
- Day 1: Arrival & meeting in Quito, Ecuador. Accomodation either in Quito or in Mountaineer Lodge in El Chaupi. Depending on the time of your arrival, we will have time for a city tour & the Equator Line monument.
- Day 2: We drive through the Andean highlands and start hiking at the trailhead which goes through primary Andean forest (great for bird watching). From the summit of Pasochoa (13,778ft/4.230m) we may see some of the highest volcanoes in Ecuador – pending on the weather.
- Day 3: Our hike today is another acclimatization peak: Corazon (15,702ft/4.786m). Technically straightforward but important for the next climbs.
- Day 4 & 5: We ascend to Nuevos Horizontes Hut (15,580ft/4.750m), a 3-hour hike from the parking lot. We will relax for the rest of the afternoon and prepare next day’s climb. The climbing day starts early in the morning and the approach to the top of Illiniza Norte (16,818ft/ 5.126 m) involves an easy 3-hour scrambling.
- Day 6 & 7: After breakfast, we will drive to Ruales Oleas Cayambe Refuge and later in the afternoon we will do some ice practices on the glacier. At midnight, we start our climb; the ascent takes about 6 to 7 hours. From the summit of Cayambe (18,996ft/5.790 m) we will head back to the refuge in 2 to 3 hours.
- Day 8: Rest day at the Quilotoa Shalala Lagoon including a visit to a local indigenous market, Saquisili (Thursdays) or Pujili (Sundays). The tour includes a steep hike down to the lagoons shore.
- Day 9 & 10: We will walk up from Hermanos Carrel refuge (15,744ft/4,800m) for about an hour to the Whimper’s Hut (16,400ft/5.000m), where we will have dinner and get some rest until 11 pm. There will be an early light breakfast served just before we get our gear ready and start climbing up to the Chimborazo Summit (20,702ft/6.310m). After returning to the Hermanos Carrel refuge, our transportation will be ready to take us back to Quito.
- Day 11: Transfer from the hotel to the airport and fly back home.
- Base for the calculation: 2 persons
- Costs per person: 1.420 USD
- All meals, accomodation and transport is included
- Entries to the National park included as well
- Team: UIAGM Mountainguide and driver
- The prices depend from the booked services and can be arranged individually.
- This tour and the price is given as an orientation to you.
- This tour idea is just one of many possibilities. You don’t need a vehicle, but horses? Only a guide? Or just some equipment for rent? We can organize everything…
- Send us your request and we can answer your questions immediately.
Country facts
Immigration
- Visa for UK/US/CAN: 90 days on arrival
- Currency: Ecuador uses the US$ (USD) – Converter
- Time zone: UTC-5 or 4 hours prior to New York City
Transport
- Road traffic: right-hand traffic
- Long distance coaches
- Domestic air traffic
Communication
- Country domain: .ec
- Country phone code: +593
- Emergency: 911
