EXPERIENCING ECUADOR during CARNiVAL

THE SUMMIT WAS socked in with clouds, and though we couldn’t see two feet in front of us, the smell of sulfur from the cauldron of the volcano was strong. It didn’t matter what it looked like; we had made it. We were on top of the tallest active volcano on the planet! You only get a couple of minutes to really celebrate the fact that you brought yourself to this spot, which, in our case, included trudging in deep snow and mixed rain for six hours. When climbing up the mountain, you are totally in the moment. There is literally nothing on your mind other than putting one foot in front of the other, aside from the occasional almond or M&M you scarfed down during your three-minute break every hour. After our brief celebratory moment on top, it was time to get back down safely. Sitting pretty at 19,347 feet, the Cotopaxi Volcano in Ecuador was a mountain we had always wanted to climb and something I still can’t believe we did.

On our descent, we saw other small climbing groups and gave them lethargic ice axe high fives as we passed. One girl puked, and another two guys were dizzy and really hurting from the altitude. Other guides addressed our guide, Jorge, respectfully as “maestro,”