After breakfast, short drive to the Ilinizas Ecological Reserve. The car will drop us at the La Virgen parking lot (3900 m/12795 ft). A pack horse will be waiting to take the heavy gear up to the Nuevos Horizontes refuge, so all you need to carry is your daypack. The 3- to 4-hour hike leads along a beautiful meandering trail with grasslands and Polylepis trees to the Nuevos Horizontes refuge (4650 m. / 15.256 ft.) just below the saddle between Norte and Sur. Briefing and dinner.

Night in refuge (4650 m / 15256 ft) / Including breakfast, box lunch and dinner

At 4.00 a.m. light breakfast and start the ascent. The average time to the summit is about 3 – 4 hours. From the saddle that divides Norte and Sur, we ascend a rocky trail on the southeast ridge. The route has a few steeper sections and some rock scrambling through steep gullies before reaching the peak. With clear weather you will enjoy awesome views of Iliniza Sur and Cotopaxi. Descent to the refuge and after a short rest, on to the parking. Transfer to Cotopaxi National Park.

Night in lodge (3850 m / 12631 ft.) / Including breakfast, box lunch and dinner

After breakfast drive to the parking lot (4600 m / 15902 ft.) and hike to the entrance of the glacier. In today´s glacier class, you will learn the principles of rope travel, walking safely with crampons, practicing hiking techniques for ascent and descent, using the ice axe, basic self-arrest techniques. Besides building confidence for the technical part of the climb, the glacier class improves your acclimatization. Honoring the climb high, sleep low rule, we return to the lodge for a good night of sleep before the final ascent. 

Night in lodge (3850 m / 12631 ft.) / Including breakfast, box lunch and dinner

At 11.00 a.m. depart from the lodge back to the parking lot at 4600 m / 15092 ft. After a 50-minute hike we arrive at the José Rivas refuge. Lunch and free afternoon to rest and prepare for the climb. 

Night in refuge (4800 m / 15748 ft.) / Including breakfast, box lunch and dinner

After a coca tea with a light snack, around midnight we hike to the glacier where we put on our crampons. The glacier slopes have an average steepness of 30 – 35 degrees. We will cross several crevasses and negotiate a few ice seracs before reaching Yanasacha (Black Rock) for the final challenging stretch, with a steepness of 35 – 40 degrees. At the summit you can enjoy amazing views of the crater and the Volcano Avenue with other snowcapped peaks. The descent to the refuge takes about 3 hours. On the way back to Quito we will have lunch in a restaurant. Arrive at about 14.00.

Including breakfast and lunch