Being very close to Quito, Rucu Pichincha is a great peak for acclimatization purposes. It towers over Quito and can be seen from all over town. The parking lot (10,827ft/3.300m) is only 15 to 20 minutes by car from the center. From here we will ride a cable car (Teleferico), one of the highest in the world, for about 15 minutes up to the trailhead (13,451ft/4.100m). From this point, we will follow a long ridge for about 1,5 hours to the base of a steeper and more narrow ridge, which we will climb and scramble up for another 1,5 hours to get to the summit. We will pass by some sections of very interesting drop offs and cliffs which will make our ascent very interesting. After enjoying some time on the summit we will use the same way which we came up to get back down to Quito. Total climbing time is around 5 hours. Upon returning to Quito in the afternoon we will drive to Machachi, where we will have dinner and stay for the night (B/-/-)

We will leave Machachi early in the morning and drive south through the Avenue of the Volcanoes to the Cotopaxi National Park entrance. From this point it will take us around 30 minutes to get to a place called “Limpiopungo” (12,139ft/3.700m). It is a beautiful lake in the heart of the national park with gorgeous views of the surrounding peaks, including Cotopaxi. For the first section of our ascent we will hike along the lake and up through low growing Andean grass. This will be followed by a sandy section, which leads to the last part of the climb, which involves some short and technical walls, much scrambling and loose rocks. We will get the summit of Rumiñahui Sur (15,440ft/4.706m) after  4 hours of hiking and climbing; on the descend we will use a couple of rappels and the rest of the trail we can simply walk down until we reach the parking lot. The round trip will take us about 8 hours. Only a few minutes drive to Tambopaxi Lodge, which is located within Cotopaxi National Park. This is our place for the night; dinner will be waiting for us (B/-/-)

After a delicious breakfast in the Cotopaxi National Park, we will leave the lodge and slowly drive as high as we can for about an hour. We can usually reach (13,451ft/4.100m). From there we will follow a grassy ridge until we get to a rocky and steep area from which we will cross towards the right side of the mountain. During the next 4 hours we will make our way over slippery gravel terrain and loose rocks until we get to the last section. A 30m, almost vertical scramble that leads to the summit of Sincholagua (16,065ft/4.898m).  The ascent will take us between 3 and 4 hours and another 2 to 3 hours of descent. We might use one rappel to descend from the summit and will walk down the rest of the trail to the car. And finally we will drive back for another hour and get to Tambopaxi Lodge by late afternoon.  Overnight and dinner here (B/-/-)

Our climbing day starts at 2 am. We will have a light breakfast, pack our climbing equipment and leave the refuge an hour later. We will continue hiking up towards the saddle formed between both peaks and then head up to the summit of Illiniza Sur. It will take us between 4 and 5 hours to get to the summit (17,267ft/5.263m). The way back to the refuge will be an easy 2 hours hike. Once here, we will have something refreshments and snacks. We will pack our equipment and head down to the “La Virgen” parking lot from where we drive back to Machachi. Overnight in Hotel (B/-/-)

We will leave from Machachi early in the morning and drive east for about 3,5 hours through the Andean highlands until we get to Laguna Santa Lucia (14,118ft/4.300m). Depending on the road conditions, we will drive up for another 30 minutes or more, to the end of the road. Where is the base camp (15,092ft/4.600m). We will use the rest of the day for relaxation and hang out until dinner time wich will be served by late afternoon (B/-/D)

We will wake up at midnight and depart for the top (18,891ft/5.758m) around 1 am, after a light breakfast. The climb will take us 6 to 8 hours. We will hike for around an hour to the bottom of the glacier, where we put our crampons on and start the glacier travel. The first third of the way on the glacier is an easy walk. After that it becomes a heavily crevassed area where we need to navigate a lot in search for some snow/ice bridges. There are many steep snow/ice ramps before we get to the saddle between the south and main summits. From here we need to climb 2,5 pitches on a 50° to 60° steep snow/ice ridge which connects to the summit ridge. Once here we need to put in one last effort to get to the summit, another 30 to 40 minutes easy walk. Then we finally reach the giant flat summit of Antisana. If weather permits, we will take several minutes to rest, take pictures, eat, drink, etc. before we head back down. We will use a couple of rappels to descent some of the steeper sections. Antisana is considered the “Ecuadorian Denali”, due to its heavily crevassed glacier. The whole climb will take us around 10 hours. Once back at our camp we will rest for a short while, pack our belongings and drive back to Quito. Overnight in the hotel (B/-/-)