Day 1 (12/25/05): Departed USA. Arrived in Quito. Overnight at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 2 (12/26/05): Local sightseeing in Quito. Visited "Mitad del Mundo" (Equator Monument). Rained most of the day. Ate at The Magic Bean. Slept at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 3 (12/27/05): Still raining. Decided to take the Teleferico to the upper tramway station (4050 meters / 13,287 ft) to acclimatize. Got wet from all the rain. Back down to Quito to sleep at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 4 (12/28/05): Mostly cloudy, but no rain.....yeah!! Again took the Teleferico to 4050 meters. Started the Rucu Pichincha (15,413 feet) hike at 10:00am. Summited by 1:00pm. The last 200 feet to Rucu's summit was interesting scrambling on mixed class 3 rock/snow. Took our sweet time descending talking to various other groups. Got back to the Teleferico upper station at 3:00pm. Slept at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 5 (12/29/05): Rented a small 4WD truck (a Chevrolet Vitara). Drove up to 3820 meters (12,533 ft). Couldn't drive any higher because of major mud on road. Started the Guagua Pichincha (15,728 feet) hike at 10:50am. Summited by 1:30pm. Talked to a Polish & German guys at the summit. Left summit at 1:45pm. Back at the rental car at 2:58pm (~ 4 hrs roundtrip). Then, drove to Aloasi, Machachi and stayed at Hosteria La Estacion (10,140 ft).

Day 6 (12/30/05): Corazon (15,708 feet) acclimatization hike. Started walking at 7:30am from an elevation of 3160 meters (10,367 ft)....not too far from Hosteria La Estacion. Summited at 12:40pm. Stayed 10 minutes at the summit taking summit photo and eating a snack. A thunderstorm developed around 2:00pm while descending. Back to where we started at 3:15pm (~ 7 hrs 45 min roundtrip). Then, onto Hosteria La Estacion for a hot shower and dinner. Slept at Hosteria La Estacion (10,140 ft).

Day 7 (12/31/05): Rest day. We drove to Lasso to visit the 17th century Hacienda La Cienega. Also, drove to the main entrance of Cotopaxi National Park. Slept at Hosteria La Estacion (10,140 ft).

Day 8 (1/1/06): Drove to La Virgen trailhead (3950 meters / 12,959 ft): the trailhead for the Ilinizas. The approach hike to Iliniza's hut Refugio Nuevos Horizontes took 2 hrs 20 min. Slept at Iliniza's hut (15,256 ft).

Day 9 (1/2/06): Climbed Iliniza Norte (16,817 feet) via the Normal Route. Started at 6:09am. Summited by 7:58am and back at the hut by 9:00am (~ 3 hrs roundtrip). Picked up our camping gear and walked to La Virgen trailhead. Drove to Quito to sleep at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 10 (1/3/06): Rest day. Traveled to the town of Otavalo (2-3 hrs north of Quito). Visited the luxurious Hacienda Cusin of San Pablo del Lago, Imbabura. Also, visited Laguna de Cuicocha near the base of volcano Cotacachi (16,204 ft). Drove back to Quito, passing through the town of Cayambe. Stayed at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 11 (1/4/06): Up early to travel from Quito to Cotopaxi National Park. Drove to the car parking area situated at 15,092 ft. Put packs on for the 1 hour hike to the hut. Slept at the Jose Ribas hut (15,748 ft).

Day 12 (1/5/06): 1st attempt on Cotopaxi (19,347 feet) via the Standard route. Woke up at 12:15am. Started to climb at 1:30am. Socked in clouds; poor visibility; 1.5 feet of new snow overnight meant avalanche risk. Decided to turn around at 5255 meters (17,241 feet) at 4:04am. Back at the Jose Ribas hut at 4:56am. Went to sleep from 5:00am 'til 9:00am. Defeated by conditions, we went down to Hosteria La Estacion to rest overnight (10,140 ft).

Day 13 (1/6/06): Decided to forego our attempt on Chimborazo for a 2nd attempt on Cotopaxi. Again, traveled to the Cotopaxi car park area (15,092 ft). Again, slept at the Jose Ribas hut (15,748 ft).

Day 14 (1/7/06): 2nd attempt on Cotopaxi (19,347 feet) via the Normal Route. Woke up at midnight. Started climbing exactly at 1:00am. Got to the ice wall near the Yanasacha before dawn. Waited for daylight to tackle the crux of the route (a small 50 degree step) by the bergshrund. Summited at 7:40am. Stayed 15 minutes at Cotopaxi's summit. Back at the hut by 9:53am (~ 9 hrs roundtrip). Drove down to Aloasi for much-needed rest at Hosteria La Estacion (10,140 ft).

Day 15 (1/8/06): Rest day. Traveled to Baños. Slept at Hotel Palace, Baños (5,971 ft).

Day 16 (1/9/06): Decided to hike the active volcano of Tungurahua. Drove to the end of the road on Pondoa (8,900 ft). Started the hike from 8,900 ft at 8:00am. Reached the Tungurahua huts at 12,467 ft (3800 m) at 9:30am. Kept going beyond the Sangay National Park warning limit sign until the roars from the Tungurahua volcano were too much. It sounded like it could erupt at any minute. I got to 13,812 feet (4210 meters) at 10:30am. I waited there for 15 minutes listening to the roaring active volcano. This was by far the most scary part of the trip. The summit was still another 2,644 vertical feet away. I started down at 10:45am and was back to the parked truck by 11:57am. Took a shower at Hotel Palace in Baños and checked out by 1:00pm. Drove back to Quito to stay at Hotel Antinea, Quito (9,140 ft).

Day 17 (1/10/06): Flew back to USA.