‘It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves’-Sir Edmund Hillary

One of the main reasons I decided to add a few days in Quito onto my trip is I wanted to visit Cotopaxi. Terra Sur not only made it happen but exceeded what I could have imagined. While I am sure there are lots of options, including hiking the mountain, I did horseback riding. It was the second time riding a horse in a national park as when I was but a wee Kels, on a family vacation to the Grand Canyon, we rode horses around the rim. It is one of my favorite memories of my favorite place. This is to say, it has been about 30 years since I sat on a horse but what better place to do it than Cotopaxi, the second tallest and most famous mountain/volcano in Ecuador.

I was picked up and then headed towards the national park! I was the only one who was doing the horseback riding, so I was them until I was dropped off with my guide. The main group was going to hike part of the mountain and boy was I glad that is not what I did. The weather can be unpredictable and the day we went was cold and rainy. Well, the group that did the mountain had a kind of miserable time. The mountain was not only cold but very windy and it was snowing. Some did not dress appropriately (although Christian from Terra Sur told me repeatedly conditions could change and dress in layers and I was only horseback riding in the park). So I had a great time and they had an okay one (they mountain biked down the side and that seemed like fun). Nearly all were jealous of my day and did not know it was an option. Again, so happy I worked with Terra Sur (not sponsored at all and I paid for my trip, just a big fan)!

As we entered the park we stopped at a small cafe to eat a snack and some warm beverages (we also did lunch there). They have a special tea that is supposed to help with altitude but use caution as it can also upset your stomach. It is also made from the same plant used to make another, lets say illegal powdering substance, so if you enjoy the tea, while you can buy it in Ecuador, you cannot bring it back to the US (and I assume anywhere else). Outside they also had some alpacas so was able to say hi and pet them!

Once I was dropped off by original guide introduced me to my guide riding. He did not speak a lot of English and I do not speak Spanish so we did the best we could. I will say, since he did not speak a lot during the ride other than to point out a Ecuadorian condor and make sure I as okay, it was very peaceful sitting in the silence of the birds and wind through the brush. The ride was about 4 hours. I had a lot of layers and was given a poncho for extra warmth. It vacillated from windy, drizzling, to sunshine. Still chilly. I have a REI puffer that had lots of pockets which was great since it was hard to access my backpack, I just stuck my water and gloves in different pockets. I alternated from wearing my Goodr sunnies.

I had my fav Danner hiking boots but the real MVP was my Kühl Vantage Lined Joggr, which were gifted to me. The way the way they held up going through thick brush, bushes, shrubs, and my getting stuck in a small tree (it was fine and I stayed on the horse), I was so impressed. The pants are lined, so I stayed really warm in the wind. They did not even get a snag let alone a tear with the all I went through. Just so impressed, so much so that I bought a pair of their winterized leggings for my trip to Iceland, which are an investment, ie a higher price point than I usually do but worth it (I’ll share more in my post about Iceland). I will be going to Costa Rica in December and plan on looking at bottoms for that trip as it will be a lot of adventuring. I just really love their stuff and slowly adding pieces.

Back to the ride, we navigated around the park, weaving across ridge lines and into the low country. I am not sure what my horses name is so I called her Bullseye (from Toy Story). A very sweet horse who did not like water very much. A couple times she refused to cross some of the bogs. I did see a few bunnies and birds but the greatest moment of the trip and worth every bit of how sore I was the next couple of days…wild horses!

As we were entering into the valley, and Cotopaxi was finally peaking through, a band of wild horse ran across. A dozen of them or so. Just running past me. I have seen wild horses once before in Oregon but this was even cooler, partially as I was on horse back. But there were so many and just running free. I was so grateful to have my new zoom Lumix lens to capture all of the action, snaps I would never have been able to get without it. I was present in the moment and an awareness that it is something so few will ever get to experience.

Then I was disembarked at the lagoon where I watched the rest of my group descend on bikes from the mountains. My horse riding guide disappeared with the horses as quickly as he appeared the first time. It was the most magical day, something that I will hold on to. The day I was able to ride among the wild in the shadow of one of the world’s greatest peaks.