Virgin Passport to Ecuador

Last night I was browsing through the copiously used pages of my first two passports inclusive of the extra pages that had been put into both. On this trip to Ecuador I’ll use a virgin passport (my third). I noticed that along with destination change ups my picture has changed up dramatically.

The first pic marks the youth of my triathlon days wide eyed and eager and a really poor hair cut choice. The second a mixed bag of tri’s and adventure races under my belt with some vacation thrown in and the look of a content veteran abroad. The current and recent picture shows many more wrinkles around cheeks but a sparkle amid those eye lines that isn’t present in the old passports. Wisdom? Maybe. Continued youthful disposition despite the faltering shell? I think so.

My pre-trip whine: I realized yet again I hate to pack. Despise it. If I weren’t such a cheap skate and gear control freak I’d hire someone to pack for me. I know its because I don’t tend to have to pack like ‘normal’ people, I usually have mega gear and very specific items needed and because I have packed in such large quantities over the years of passport use, gathering these items can be as tedious as doing the dishes over and over each day.

But hey, I have a dog who loves me and a pretty cool life and I’m off tomorrow to Ecuador!

Here is the general itinerary:

- Fly to Quito via Miami
- Hike Pasochoa (13,766 ft)
- Hike Guagua Pichincha (15,692 ft) then drive to the area of Lasso and Latacunga which are south of Quito and close to Cotopaxi. Stay in village.
- Rest day in village, explore, visit schools and shop. Overnight at a mountain lodge inside the Cotopaxi National Park (~13,000 ft).
- Drive and hike to the refuge on Cotapaxi. After the ascension to the summit of Cotopaxi (19,388 feet) drive down to the lodge
- Drive to Chimborazo area and stay in a private mountain lodge where we’ll enjoy not only the best sunsets in Ecuador but a magnificent view of Chimborazo (20,696 ft)
Here is the link for the lodge – check it out!
http://expediciones-andinas.com/Base_Camp.html

- Relax and acclimatize during day. Start of the ascension in the night
- Drive back to Quito

SWITCH SERIOUS GEARS!

The next day we’ll check out Quito and hang.
- Fly to the Amazon and Kapawi lodge. We’ll be on a very small plane and will have to fly then canoe into the lodge area. www.kapawi.com
Several days – hike, explore, canoe, birdwatch
- Canoe, then fly back to Quito. Over night in Quito – then fly home the next day.

I’m bringing my new GoPro camera to take video footage of the climbing and jungle fun. Stay tuned for some fun video footage! www.goprocamera.com

I’ll be posting as often as possible along the way – join me!
Enjoy a safe 4th of July.
Terri