It is 6 in the morning, the fog is disappearing, and the cold is intense but the yearning to be in to the summit of the highest active volcano in the world, giving us extra energy to complete the remaining 200 meters. Yanasacha, a giant rock wall located up to 5700 meters is now behind the summit and us this visible. We have achieved it! We are in the summit of the volcano. The sky becomes unstuck and to the south, the giant Chimborazo gives us the good morning while to the north, the jealous and mysterious Cayambe reminds us that between both mountains, we can see almost half of the serranía of our small country.

Cotopaxi Volcano has 5978 meters high. You must visit Cotopaxi if you want to obtain an idea of the beauty of our country.
At 10 in the morning, we enlist our mountain gear, we should not forget anything, crampones, thermal clothes, and raincoat, glasses, cap, harness, ice axes and gloves are indispensable to visit this mountain.
From the entrance of the national park until the slopes of the volcano are approximately 60 minutes of journey. We drive trough a pines forest, the Andean forest and finally across the paramo at 3600 meters high. We arrive to the limpiopungo lagoon, located just in the base of the volcano. It is here where we will spend the first night. After a short walk around the lagoon we return to the campsite to rest. A warm bonfire lights the eyes of at least a dozen of Andean wolves that visit us amid the night in search of food. The night is cold, the height makes its first havocs, and breathing becomes difficult.

With the first sunbeams we get up. We must lift the carps and prepare to reach the refuge at 4900 meters located in the border the glacier. We arrive with a delicate snowfall, which after 30 minutes is terrible snow and ice storm that locks us in the refuge. We light the chimney and we share that time with the people that, like us, have come to conquer the mountain.

The storm is over, but it is the guide's advices not to leave the refuge until the low temperature consolidate the recent snow. The night has fallen and we couldn’t practice the ice climbing techniques on the glacier as it was planed. After a slight dinner, we prepare to sleep at the 7 pm. The anxiety is such that we can hardly sleep. The acclimatization of the previous night allows us to breathe normally and the high sickness it’s no longer a problem.

At midnight, every body wakes up and prepares to the up coming journey. All of us prepare our mountain gear. The cold is intense; there is good climate although in the near mountains there is an intense storm that threatens us. A brief glance to the city of Quito that illuminates the horizon says goodbye to us. We leave the refuge and with a short prayer we begin the ascent.
It takes 40 minutes until the border of the glacier. There we dress our crampones and anchor our selves with the rope. Between each member of the team there are 5 meters of rope, our only life jacket in the mountain. .

Now we begin to feel the weight of the ice and the snow in our boots. The intense snowfall of the afternoon before made the road heavier. Fortunately the storms that threatened the expedition have gone away. Every time I am more accustomed to the mountain. Now we are walking faster. A brief rest makes us see the lights of the refuge below in the slopes of the volcano while to our right Yanasacha appears, as announcing that the most difficult part of the ascent approaches. The final 200 meters are really hard, with a bigger inclination. With every step we should assure of nail the boots to ice. The summit appears with the sunbeams. The sensation of crowning the mountain make us fell like we have crowned the summit of the world. A wide plain takes us on the edge of the crater. Full with emotion we get lost with the look inside that abyss covered with ice and rock. A small steam cloud coming from the inside of the crater it alarms us and excites us at the same time. We are in an active volcano.
The descent begins with caution; the first meters are the most dangerous. After a couple of hours we are in the edge of the glacier. Without the crampones the descent for the sandbank is the amusing part of the expedition. Among jumps, fallen and laughs we arrive at the refuge where a box lunch awaits us.
After keeping our baggage, we give a brief glance to the volcano that we have just crowned while the last groups finish their descent.
From the lagoon, the volcano is different now; the best image in our adventure flashes in our memory while the white mantel of the Cotopaxi disappears among the Andean forest in our way home.