Peru? Bolivia? Ecuador?

[Epic Shakedown]

I am hoping to do some easy mountaineering/backpacking in the Andes this winter. Looking for words of wisdom on destinations, outfitters/guides, trip planning websites, flight advice, etc. I have limited Spanish, but will be with a friend who is fluent. Looking to do everything inexpensively once I get past the plane ticket. I have limited technical glacier experience, but years of winter and backcountry travel.

Have wanted to take a big international trip for years, but Alaska, Cascades always gets me most excited. Now I can only take vacation November through February.

 

[cbcbd]

This past winter I went to Ecuador to climb volcanoes for 17 days with Acadia Mountain Guides. We spent time getting to know Quito and other spots while we acclimatized , learned glacial skills, and climbed up Illiniza Norte, Cayambe, Cotopaxi, and Chimborazo.
In my opinion those were great starter high altitude mountaineering mountains with pretty reasonable access from Quito. I wouldn't consider them "easy" since they range from 16K-20K feet in altitude and that really gets to you, but technically they are not that bad, with only few sections of 45degree+ neve.

There are plenty of guides in Ecuador if you want to hire one to take you up the mountain for the day. There were many outdoor shops in Quito that cater to mountaineers, one that I remember of was Tatoo, and I'm pretty sure they'd be able to point you in the direction of a reputable guide service.

Now, how much you want to actually learn about glacial travel (crevasse rescue and such) and rescue is up to you and I'm not sure which specific guides will provide that down there.

In addition to the mountains we climbed there are other ones in the area that are harder technically, like Antisana and Illiniza Sur.

A good guide on Ecuadorian climbing is Ecuador: A Climbing Guide

Some pics:
Cotopaxi
Cayambe
Chimborazo

 

[Ridgerunner]

Climbing season

All three are good choices but we just returned from Arequipa in Peru to climb Nevado Chachani ( 6 075m) in July and were delighted with the area : pics here . You can stay and eat in Arequipa for cheap and guided climbs are approx. 50 to 70$ per person in a group. It is very dry but expect some rain / snow from January to Mars. Acclimatization is of the utmost importance and since Arequipa lies at only 2 400 m, you need to go to lake Titicaca (3 800 m) to start your trip and then go trekking for 2-3 days near the Lagunas de Salinas ( 4 400 m) prior to tackling the volcanos. Have a good aclimatization schedule and you will do fine. Diamox also helps if you are there for only 2 weeks.
I was in Ecuador in January also and the mountains are great : pics here. Quito is a bit more expensive though, the currency being the US dollar.
Bolivia is also great...
Feel free to ask more specific questions on lodging and logistics.
You will get hooked on America del Sur !

 

[Oldsmores]

I did the same three peaks as cb in 1995 with American Alpine Institute. Great guides (Steve House was one of them), great program (at least at that time), but not inexpensive. Of course, Chimborazo is currently erupting .
Ecuador is nice because even at high altitudes it's pretty temperate. Climbing Chimborazo (20,703) we started at 1 a.m. and I don't think the temp ever went below 20°. There are cattle grazing on Pinchincha outside of Quito at 15K or 16K feet!
Have fun!

 

[Ridgerunner]

Chimbo is quiet

Oldsmores, a buddy of mine summitted Chimbo 2 weeks ago and it is fine. Tungurahua is the one erupting near Banos.

 

[Oldsmores]

Oldsmores, a buddy of mine summitted Chimbo 2 weeks ago and it is fine. Tungurahua is the one erupting near Banos.

Right you are - the news report I saw a couple weeks ago erroneously identified it as Chimbo.

 

[cbcbd]

I did the same three peaks as cb in 1995 with American Alpine Institute. Great guides (Steve House was one of them), great program (at least at that time), but not inexpensive.

You had Steve House as your guide? Man, that's pretty cool. He set a lot of solo first ascents in Ecuador also and of course is now the climbing powerhouse we all know.

 

[Oldsmores]

You had Steve House as your guide? Man, that's pretty cool. He set a lot of solo first ascents in Ecuador also and of course is now the climbing powerhouse we all know.

Yeah, he was amazing. We had a down day at one of the refugios and we watched him do a solo ascent right up the fall line just for the heck of it. That was back in the day when he had to schlep mere mortals up volcanos to pay for his climbing

 

[Bolivia]

Some info on Bolivia

Having spent two years in Bolivia with the Peace Corps gave me some good knowledge on the country. Unfortunately, I wasn't into serious hiking at the time so I didn't do anything like you are planning.

There are many great hikes in the Bolivian Andes. The main ones are not far from La Paz which is 12,000' high. English speaking guides are available but you'll likely need to book in advance. One drawback to going to Bolivia at this time is that the recently inaugurated government is not very gringo-friendly. The stronghold of its political support is right where you'd want to hike in the high Andes.

My biggest piece of advice (for hiking in any of the Andes mountain areas of these three countries) is that you MUST ACLIMATIZE FIRST!!! If you don't take the necessary time for this, you will get a good case of 'soroche' (AKA altitude sickness) and won't be able to complete your trip or, at least, to enjoy it. It's a long way, a lot of time and mucho dinero to go there and not be able to enjoy it to the fullest.

Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.