A couple of months have passes since the last time that I climbed a mountain. My original plans were to keep on going to the mountains (and exercising in general) until we began a new mountain season, but plans usually fail and instead I ended up going to parties, barbecues and dinners. I can't complain, it's been a fun summer, but as the summer ends its time to go back to the mountain, more or less.
So the on sunday I got back together with my mountain climbing group, Zona Verde, and we went to the Ilaló. The Ilaló is a small mountain (3,194mt) right between two valleys: Tumbaco and los Chillos. We went up the less frequented route that starts in los Chillos. The climb was pretty easy, not too steep, sunny and it went through a lovely forest. Our first stop was the second highest "peak", also known as the Cumbre de la Cruz. At its top there is a big metal cross which you can see in the pictures and which you can climb up to if you dare. I doubt it is a normal activity to climb up the cross, there aren't any stairs, just the structure that the actual cross is made out of. So if you are careful and you want a great view, climbing up is lots of fun.
The cross, the climbing up the cross and the view from the center of the cross
After a quick stop at the cross we continued to the highest point of the Cerro Ilaló. After that we came back down towards a town called Tingo where we had lunch and then we headed back to quito.
It was a great summer day although maybe too sunny and very dry. You can actually see what the summer has done to the mountains around Quito. If you look at the picture that I took from the top of the cross you can see a dark black area on the left side. That is what is left from one of the summer fires. However, even with the sun, heat and dust it was a great first mountain for the season. New ones will come in the following weeks, after I come back from my summer vacation in Turkey!
The Cerro Ilaló
