Neck of the Moon

Neck of the Moon

Cotopaxi is a Quichua word that means neck of the moon. It is also a gigantic volcano that deserves the name. Depending on the report you read or hear it is the largest active volcano in the world. (Or second to a volcano in Chile) The top half of the volcano is always covered in ice due to the temperature and when it storms, you can see the sheet of ice climb down the mountain covering a larger and larger area. On this volcano also rests a gigantic glacier. When we started this school year, I was told about a program the school calls “Week Without Walls”. The premise of this is each grade level goes on a trip for a week with their grade level teachers to a site in Ecuador where they will learn about Ecuador, content specific curriculum, team building, and how to overcome adversity. The 7^th grade trip this year, and therefore the trip I was sponsoring was a four day, three night camping trip to Cotopaxi National Park. So basically, let’s so sleep in the shadow of an active volcanic ice mountain. Pretty sweet.

We were all given a packing list of things we should bring prior to the trip, and I went out and got most of it from a local outdoor store. I borrowed a few other things I didn’t have and I was set. We were all told prior to leaving that Cotopaxi is a very cold place. Quito stands are 9,000 feet above sea level but Cotopaxi National Park, where we would be camping lies at about 14,000 feet. It was going to be cold and the air was going to be thin.

As you may have read in the last post, we were just wrapping up a visit to the beach (sea level 0) and on our way back to Quito where I would be leaving the very next day for the camping trip. We had a great time, but a cut on my foot and an elevation increase of 14,000 feet were bound to cause some issues during hiking.

Me and the Crew

We left on Tuesday morning from the school and as we all gathered in the courtyard and waited for the bus, dozens of kids were decked out in their $1000 camping gear with smiles on their face and confidence in their eyes. I even saw one kid with a beanie and a cowboy hat on top. It was clear that they didn't know how to camp. Neither the smile nor the confidence would last long. When we got on the bus, the kids in typical field trip fashion sang random songs at the top of their lungs and eventually they asked to put the radio on to their favorite station. Of course, the station was 80s pop. We listened to “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and “We’re in Heaven”. Of course the Ecuadorian kids knew the song and belted it out since all this country listens to is 80’s pop. I couldn't help but crack up. Go ahead, click it, set the tone.

We took the bus for about an hour and a half and after being told some of the history of the park (in complete Spanish) we drove through some beautiful scenery. There were huge dirt canyons called lava flows coming down from the volcano that were at least thirty feet wide and 40 feet deep. It looked as if God himself reached down and ran his fingers through the rock as if he were a child running his hand through sand. After driving a bit longer, we found a campsite. The instructors of the program assured the teachers that we were only needed as representatives from the school and that they would have supervision, food, activities, and discipline on lock down. When we got there, and got off the bus, it was clear that this was going to be a challenging trip. It was no higher than 50 degrees outside, which was about 25 lower than it was in Quito. The instructors gave the kids a brief orientation on how to set up their tents and during that time, all three of the teachers set ours up. Each tent was to house three students and each teacher was supposed to get their own tent. This is not accurate. I ended up sharing my tent with the other male teacher on the trip. I normally wouldn't mind this, but when the tents are small enough that neither fully grown man can lay down in them without crunching their legs due to being too tall, that’s a problem. Oh well, I was determined to make the best of it, and I was friends with the guy I was bunking with, so we set up our tent and moved our bags in. Sidenote: the ground was frozen and we had to use rocks to hammer in the spikes as if we were cavemen. Also since I did not have a mat for under my sleeping bag, I had to borrow one from the company. The mats are supposed to keep you off the cold ground and also provide some padding from the rocks underneath the tent. Well...the mat they gave me was about 18 inches long, and clearly meant for an Andean child. It went from my collarbone to my bellybutton. The most disappointing thing so far was that we had been in the park for about two hours but had yet to see the famous volcano.

Home Sweet Home

As soon as we set foot in our tents, the heavens opened up and the rain began. With the rain, the temperature dropped about 30 degrees. We were very fortunate to have set up our stuff because had we been outside, we would have been much more miserable. The thunder was some of the most fierce I had ever heard in my life and I lived in Central Florida for the past five years. With the rain and thunder came terrifying lightening, and of course hail. The storm dropped the temperature, froze the ground, and lasted about 4 hours. During the storm, there was nothing to do but put on more layers and lay in the sleeping bag hoping the tents they gave us would hold under the howling wind and deluge. (With a few exceptions of some water leakage, they did) I was later told that Cotopaxi is famous for its storms as it sits on the edge of the Andes. The high pressure altitude and cold of the mountains frequently meets the low pressure heat and moisture of the Amazon basin that lies right beneath Cotopaxi on the far side.

When the storm finally subsided, there were a bunch of red faced, shivering cranky pre-teens begging to go home and some began to tear up due to the cold. We then ate our lunch of hot dogs and mashed potatoes, which cooled to the temperature of a corpse immediately upon being served. The kids then started to do some team-building stuff and the other two teachers and I went on a hike of our own for about two hours. When we came back it was time for dinner, which was unflavored ramen noodles and a scoop of tuna. We ate like champions.  Due to the rain, there would be no warming campfire with which we could roast marshmallows and dry our weary bones, and we still couldn't see the volcano. We wondered aloud why they picked the spot they did for our campsites.  

That evening, during the time when you are supposed to sleep, I sat there wide eyed and freezing because the sleeping bag I borrowed was too short for me to use properly. By properly I mean, I couldn't use the hood to complete my full Dracula coffin. I was wearing long johns, thermal pants, hiking pants, an underarmour shirt, thermal top, hoody, gloves, hat, and buff (the neck and mouth covers that make you look like a ninja) and I couldn't sleep because the biting cold on the four inch exposed part of my face was enough to chill my entire body. Giving up on the notion of sleep, I got out of my tent to use the bathroom at 2 in the morning and low and behold, the clouds had cleared and standing before me was the behemoth volcano, Cotopaxi. The nearly full moon was shining on it and the glow that came from the moonlight reflecting off of the icy glacier and snow cap made the whole volcano come alive. It looked like a ghost mountain. I have been camping many times before and I have seen some cool stuff, but seeing Cotopaxi looming before me like a giant reflecting in the moonlight is one of the most majestic things I have ever seen in my entire life. I sat there in the below freezing temperature and just stared with my mouth agape for about 6 minutes. Of course, after I was done, I couldn't sleep for the rest of the night because I had just been standing outside and was even colder.

Good Morning Ice Mountain Volcano Beast

One of Many Many Water Breaks

After about a total of one hour of sleep, I was greeted by the morning fog (well technically cloud that happened to be at ground level where we were) and by the chatting and giggling of 13 year old girls. I was snapped back into the realization that I was supervising a field trip and it was time to get up.

We ate a nice wholesome breakfast of sugary cereal with yogurt on it instead of milk (common Ecuadorian way of serving it) and tea, that turned cold upon being poured. After breakfast, we packed up a backpack and organized our groups. Each teacher would join one group as we went on a hike. Every student was given a job, which I thought was pretty cool. We had two navigators who had to lead the way with a compass and map, one trash collector, two cooks, one leader, one pace setter, one time keeper, and one water control

Away We Go

person whose job it was to decide when we have water breaks. At high altitude water is extremely important since your cells have to open up to get more oxygen, thus being unable to retain much water. It also helps in cold temperatures as with dehydration, your blood circulates like a lava lamp rather than a river like it should.

View from the Ruins

We took off on our hike and after going about thirty steps and hearing the phrase “Water Break!” twice, it became apparent to me that it would be a long trip. Oh well, I was there for the kids to explore and have some fun. We hiked for another 5 minutes and “Water Break” echoed the from the mountains again. I nodded and drank some and nearly as soon as I tied my shoes to continue I heard “Water Break!” again and nearly lost my cool. Along the way we saw some wild horses, wild cattle, and some lizards. After all of these animal sightings, we got another “Water Break!” After again reminding myself that I was there for the kids and this wasn't about me, I endured the next 7 “Water Break!”s and after about two and a half hours we arrived at our destination, the Inca Ruins of Ingapirca. When we got there, it was the cooks’ job to make us all lunch, which were ham sandwiches. While everyone was eating, I wandered around the site and found it to be one of the most incredible things I've ever seen.

Inca Building Foundation

The location was a large hill/mountain smack dab in the middle of a valley surrounded by mountains. Any invaders would have to hike through the Andes, hike up an additional mountain no matter which direction they came from, and once over the mountain they would be at a strategic disadvantage below the fort, forced to climb up another mountain protected by rock walls. The thought that went into it was incredible. The ruins weren't much now as they had endured hundreds of years of Cotopaxi super storms, but the walls were still about four feet off of the ground and the foundation of a few rooms could be found. Based on nothing more than a little bit of time I spent studying the Incas during college, I imagine the rooms were meant to serve as an armory and a medical facility as the area was

What Remains of the Inca Fort Walls

clearly a military post rather than a residential area. I went back to the lunch site, excited for the guides to explain the history of the spot when yet another storm opened up and we had to begin our trek back to the camp site. So essentially, we hiked for 3 hours to see Inca ruins and discuss their historical significance, then we ignored the sacred ground that thousands of warriors dedicated their lives to defending and a bunch of 12 and 13 year-olds ate ham sandwiches and left. I think that’s how the Inca Gods would have wanted it, although it left a lot to be desired on my part. Needless to say, as someone who appreciates history so much, I was seething a bit at the brushing over of such significant world and local history. I frowned until the hail and rain and cold bent my face out of the frown due to the numbing cold. That night, we again ate like kings and had some unflavored ramen with cold tea. We deserved it for our lack of appreciation that day.

After settling into the tent that night, I was lying there and all of the sudden heard some kids yelling. 

Confused as to what they were talking about yet too cold to get up, I ignored their warnings. A moment or two later I heard a wild horse sprint through the camp and stop outside of my tent. He/she couldn't have been more than three feet outside of my tent. Thinking about the lack of fear the thing showed running through camp and the fact that I was in a paper thin tent, I was convinced at that moment that I would soon be trampled, but it ended up walking away.

The next morning after a few more hours of sleeping we packed up our things and went on a nice 5-6 hour hike through the cold while lugging our 60lb backpacks. It was awesome. I really enjoyed this hike. It was a great workout, gave me an opportunity to conquer the thin air, and truly made the kids struggle through and later overcome some adversity. Along the way I saw a few more wild horses and two wild Andean wolves. There is more to come with them later. There were a few kids who collapsed to the ground under the weight of their limited expectations and heavy backpacks with their eyes full of tears. I don’t think the students I have ever experienced much physical adversity of any kind. I appreciated that they did it, and then conquered it.

When we got to the new campsite, we set up our tents and they even had an extra for me! I finally had my own tent like a grownup! When we were all settled, we had lunch which was unflavored ramen and tea and then hung out for a while. When it was the kids’ turn to cook dinner, they got to work and when the meal was finally ready, we looked up to see that our camp was being surrounded by two Andean Wolves, which for all intents and purposes are nothing more than small foxes. They kept darting through the camp and trying to snag food. They were also clearly not afraid of humans as they had no trouble picking up food packages the kids had left out. We had to have dinner in shifts so other people could use flashlights to scare them away. We saw nothing but darkness in the woods until our flashlights came across these little devils stalking us. This became a game of cat and mouse for a while until everyone had the opportunity to eat. After dinner, we packed up and went to sleep in the tents.

I slept soundly and warmly I might add (more layers) until about 2:30am when I was awoken by a stampede of wild horses running through our camp. There were about 6 horses and they luckily avoided all of our tents.

The next morning, we ate some breakfast and the kids were taken on a solo. A solo is a part of this company’s program where they drop kids off in the wilderness for multiple hours with the hope that the solitude and wilderness will enlighten the kids to some sort of spiritual awakening. After a few hours, during the debriefing it became apparent that the kids did not have a single deep thought. They mostly thought about pizza, video games, and bugs. I was a bit disappointed until I had one student come up to me and tell me about his experience and how he thought about life and death and how cyclical it was and how temporary and fleeting time was. I was amazed. My mood changed dramatically with the one student having a break through. I guess that’s what teaching is about sometimes.

After the solos, we all packed up and went back to school. I think as a whole it was a great trip. It was full of some adversity, some bonding, and some educational opportunities. It was everything it was meant to be. I am sitting here now on my couch, in my warm apartment, with all of the creature comforts I have come to appreciate and I’m glad I went. 

Until Next Time, Cotopaxi