In Quito I found a company offering downhill mountain biking trips on Cotopaxi in the Andes Mountains. They provide all the equiptment, 2 guides and transport you to the parking stop at 4,500m. From there you bike down stopping for lunch on the way. There is a support vehicle following at all times so if anything goes wrong you have backup.
In Quito they said that Cotopaxi is the largest active volcano in the world but wikipedi says otherwise. Eiher way its pretty high and the downhill mountain biking was excellent. It was cloudy the day I was there so the snow capped peak is only barely visible.
I wasn't prepared for how cold it would be when we got to the starting point. There was a strong wind, low visibility and some sleet. Luckily I was able to stay in the car until the bikes were ready.
Once we got moving we were decending fast and it warmed up quick. The skies cleared and the sun came out. The decent was great, fast paced and challenging. Tough on arms and wrists due to the terrain although the suspension helped somewhat. We crossed rivers, passed wild horses and stopped near some inca ruins for lunch.
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| Parking at 4,500m |
In Quito they said that Cotopaxi is the largest active volcano in the world but wikipedi says otherwise. Eiher way its pretty high and the downhill mountain biking was excellent. It was cloudy the day I was there so the snow capped peak is only barely visible.
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| Cloudy Cotopaxi |
I wasn't prepared for how cold it would be when we got to the starting point. There was a strong wind, low visibility and some sleet. Luckily I was able to stay in the car until the bikes were ready.
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| Preparing for the ride down |
Once we got moving we were decending fast and it warmed up quick. The skies cleared and the sun came out. The decent was great, fast paced and challenging. Tough on arms and wrists due to the terrain although the suspension helped somewhat. We crossed rivers, passed wild horses and stopped near some inca ruins for lunch.
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| Better weather as we descend |
christ dave, that is some adventure, don't know if i'd like the thin air at that altitude, fair play for enduring though.
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