Cotopaxi: There is an easy cure!

Highlights:

• Clear sunny day meant we saw lots of the surrounding volcanoes
• Picnic lunch on the shores of Lake Limpiopungo
• Teaching Marcelo how to throw a frisbee
• Beautiful Hacienda Santa Ana
• Experiencing the quick cure for altitude sickness: retreat to a lower elevation

We were scheduled to spend 2 days in the Cotopaxi area. Cotopaxi is one of the world’s highest active volcanoes and Ecuador’s 2^nd highest peak at 5897 m (19,347 ft). In the indigenous language “Cotapaxi” means “neck of the moon.” It is about a 2-hour drive from Quito to the Parque Nacional Cotopaxi. We hired a guide to drive us and give us a tour of the park before dropping us off for a night’s stay at Hacienda Santa Ana, which is just outside the park boundary. 

The roads in the National Park are very rough and we were glad that Marcelo, our guide, had a 4-wheel drive SUV. There were two spots where we crossed shallow rivers without the aid of a bridge! We stopped at the primitive visitor center for a look at the exhibits and have a cup of Te de Coca to help us with the altitude. We continued on, driving as high as we could to a dirt parking lot at about 4600 m (15,091 ft) elevation. From there, you can hike up to a refugio at about 4830 m (15,900 ft) elevation. The refugio is a rectangular building that has a café on the ground level and a dormitory on the second floor. Many mountain climbers use this as a base to launch summit attempts.

In the past I’ve had minor issues with altitude sickness – mostly minor headaches when I went from sea level to the mountains near Salt Lake or Tahoe for skiing. Knowing that Quito is at 2850 meters (9350 ft) elevation and that we’d be visiting Cotopaxi a few days after arriving, I starting taking Gingko and CoQ10 about a week before leaving for Ecuador. Both supplements are known to aid with adjusting to the altitude. Even so, both KC and I had minor headaches on our first day in Quito and we were quickly winded as we walked up some hilly streets in Old Town Quito.

At Cotopaxi we got out of the car and started our hike up to the refugio, I noticed I had a bit of a headache, so I ate a caramel de coca (coca leaf candy) that I had bought at the visitor center. It took us about 30 minutes to hike up to the refugio, pausing several times to catch our breath. KC was feeling great and wanted to continue hiking higher. My head was pounding so I hung out at the Refugio with Marcelo while KC hiked onward. I took some aspirin and ate an energy bar, but was starting to feel pretty crappy. The walk down to the car took about 10 minutes and then we drove to Lake Limpiopungo, where we had a bit of a picnic. I believe the lake elevation is about 3,800m (12,464 ft). I was beginning to feel a bit nauseous and the beef jerky and fried pork rinds we had brought to snack on weren’t helping. I laid in the sun napping while KC and Marcelo talked about a wide variety of things between world politics and ultimate frisbee. After about 15-20 minutes of teaching Marcelo how to throw a Frisbee, we headed north toward Hacienda Santa Ana.  

The Hacienda Santa Ana was a beautiful spot and I was looking forward to wandering the gardens before dinner. But first we were shown to our lovely room and invited into the living room for a welcome drink that was supposed to help with the altitude. The living room was a gorgeous room with a fabulous fireplace that made the atmosphere very cozy. We sat in front of the fire enjoying our warm drink. I can’t remember what it was called but I believe it was made from a local flower that grows on Cotopaxi. I was feeling quite lousy and couldn’t muster up the energy to wander around the grounds of the Hacienda, so we stayed by the fire and snacked on crackers. The friendly and attentive staff brought me some oregano tea which was supposed to help with my nausea. We went back to our room to bathe and I took a nap.

My head was pounding very badly and I was still feeling kind of nauseous. I somehow mustered up the energy to go to dinner, which was a set-meal and included in our stay. After one bite of our corn empanada appetizers, my nausea got stronger and I retreated to our room to get sick. KC came to check on me and realizing that my altitude issues were getting worse and not better, decided that we better talk to the staff about getting me down to a lower altitude back in Quito. I was bummed. I really wanted to spend the night in this luxurious Hacienda and we were supposed to ride horses the following day. But my head was pounding and it didn’t make sense to risk my condition getting worse. The hotel arranged for someone to give us a ride back to Quito and luckily our Quito hotel had a room available. We packed up our stuff and jumped into the back seat of a pickup for the 2-hour drive to Quito (the first 30-45 minutes being on extremely rough 4x4 roads). By the time we got into Quito I was feeling much better and once we settled into our hotel room, I was actually quite hungry. It is amazing what a 2-hour drive downhill can do for your symptoms. I think the Hacienda was at about above 12,000 ft and Quito is 9,350. KC was smart and packed my uneaten gourmet dinner in a zip-lock bag. I devoured it and went to sleep.

So, instead of horseback riding at the Hacienda the next day, we lounged in Quito, went to a museum, ate lots of yummy Ecuadorian foods (the next post will cover unique a food item) and drank coca leaf tea.