Such a tall chimborazo. Chimborazo Volcano: The Highest Point of Ecuador Mount Chimborazo Coordinates

Chimborazo Volcano is located in the central part of Ecuador, on the territory of the Ecuadorian Andes, is part of the Cordillera-Occidetal mountain range. The extinct stratovolcano Chimborazo is the most high mountain Ecuador, whose peak is at an altitude of 6310 meters above sea level. Due to the location of the volcano in the zone of the Equatorial bulge, its peak is the most distant point on the surface of the globe from the center of the Earth. For a long time, Chimborazo was considered the highest mountain peak in the world, in 1856 the palm passed to Everest, whose height - 8848 meters above sea level, was determined by Indian mathematicians. The top of the volcano is completely covered with ice; on the northeastern slope, the glacial sleeve descends to 4600 meters above sea level. The caldera of an extinct volcano is located at an altitude of 5020 meters, its diameter is about 2 km, the edges are rocky, peaked. Chimborazo has four peaks - Winter peak (6310 meters), Ventimia peak (6227 meters), Polytechnic peak (5570 meters) and Nicolas Martinez peak (5570 meters). At the foot of the volcano, the Guayas River originates, flowing into the Gulf of Guayaquil. The first attempts to climb to the top of the volcano were made already in the 17th century. In 1802, the expedition of Baron Alexander von Humbold was able to reach a height of 5875 meters, in 1831 Jean-Baptiste Bossingalt and Colonel Hall climbed to a height of 6006 meters above sea level. The first to conquer the impregnable Chimborazo were the legendary climbers Edward Whymper and the brothers Louis and Jean-Antoine Carrel, who climbed to the top of the volcano in 1880. Many were skeptical about the news of the "capture" of the volcano, so Edward Whymper in the same year made a second ascent to the top of Chimborazo, but on a different route. The Winter Trail, which runs along the western slope of the volcano and leads directly to its summit, remains the most popular climbing route to this day. There are also several other routes to the top that are considered more difficult and dangerous. On the way to the top there are two transshipment bases - Carrel's hut (located at an altitude of 4850 meters) and Whymper's hut (located at an altitude of 5000 meters). Chimborazo is dangerous for climbers due to frequent avalanches and rockfalls. In 1993, one of the worst tragedies in the history of climbing in Ecuador occurred here - on the approaches to the summit, an avalanche covered a group of climbers consisting of 13 people, 10 of whom remained forever on the slopes of Chimborazo. In October 2002, an expedition exploring a new route to the top of the mountain discovered traces of one of the largest air crashes in Ecuador - the wreckage of the aircraft and the remains of the passengers of the ill-fated flight 232, which was carried out on August 15, 1976 on the route Quito - Cuenca. The aircraft disappeared from radar in the Chimborazo area, and searches for it continued for more than a month, but to no avail. The plane, along with 59 people flying on it, was declared missing, and only a quarter of a century later the fate of the HC-ARS board became known. Nevertheless, thousands of climbers from all over the world come to Ecuador to conquer the highest peak near the equator. Chimborazo is depicted on the coat of arms of Ecuador - the volcano and the river Guayas flowing at its foot symbolize the beauty and natural wealth of the country.

Chimborazo (Ecuador) - detailed description, location, reviews, photos and videos.

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At the edge of the earth, in the mysterious country of Ecuador, the top of the Chimborazo volcano, extinct one and a half thousand years ago, which is part of the mountain system of the Western Cordillera Andes, props up the clouds. The name of the volcano comes from the Quechua word "chimbo" - "on the other side", and "rasu" - snow. Its height reaches 6267 m (according to other sources, 6384.4 m) above sea level. The Indians living at its foot still treat the formidable peak with great respect.

Until the 19th century, Chimborazo was considered the highest mountain on the planet. If you measure the height of the mountains from the center of the Earth, Chimborazo is several meters higher than Everest.

ascent

Chimborazo itself is a giant ridge with 4 peaks, the highest of which are Ventmilla (6100) and Whiper (6300). The main feature of the area is the lack of seasonality, so you can conquer the peak at any time of the year. But the best periods are autumn and winter.

The standard ascent takes 2-3 days, but it all depends on the tour you buy. There are two shelters for a halt on Chimborazo: the Lower, located at the end of the road, and the Upper. Classic route:

• starting from the Karela hut at an altitude of 4600 m,
• ascent to a height of 5000 m to the Vampera hut (named after the first person who conquered this peak),
• climb to the fourth peak of Cumbre-Ventimilla - this must be done at night, until the sun melts the crust,
• descent until 10 am, as the danger of rockfalls and avalanches increases later.

Climbing routes

Trek on the North side - Las Muralas Rojas - takes 8-9 hours, the path on the North side through the Telman glacier - 8 hours, the southeast route takes a day and a half, the most difficult route is "Arista del Sol", 2/3 which is a rocky area, lasts 2 days.

As for difficult sections of the path, it is necessary to highlight the section up to the El Castillo saddle - this is a steep slope and on the way back there is a danger of rockfalls, and the section from the top of Ventimiyya (6267 m) to the peak of Vimper (Wimper) (6310 m), where you need to take into account that the snow covering the glacier becomes very soft in the daytime, and it is necessary to overcome it as early as possible, by 7-8 o'clock in the morning.

The city of Riobamba at the foot of Chimborazo

Basic moments

The top of the Chimborazo volcano is completely covered with ice, in some places descending to a height of 4600 m. Melt water from the mountain is the main water resource for residents of the provinces of Bolivar and Chimborazo. Over the past decades, the glacier has been greatly reduced due to the effects of global warming, as well as due to the volcanic activity of Chimborazo. Ice from Chimborazo is heavily mined for sale in markets, as well as for cooling cities where the climate is too hot for humans.

The first person to climb Chimborazo was the English climber and artist Edward Wimper. He reached the summit of Chimborazo in 1880.

The volcano is clearly visible from the coastal city of Guayaquil in Ecuador: in clear weather, the peak is clearly visible even at a distance of 140-150 kilometers.

The name of the volcano

There are several versions of the origin of the name Chimborazo. In many dialects of the Quechua language, chimba (in other dialects chimpa) means "on the other side", that is, "on the other side of the river" or "on the other side." In addition, the word razu means "snow" or "ice". Locals believe that the combination of these two words - chimbarazu - means "snow on the other side." According to another theory, the name is composed of the Chapalachian Schingbu - "woman" - and the Quechuan Razo, "ice (snow)", and together means "ice (snow) woman".

Tourists

You can get to Chimborazo from nearby towns - Riobamba and Ambato. From these cities to the volcano no more than 30 kilometers.

After Edward Wimper, literally every amateur climber considers it his duty to climb Chimborazo. Such popularity of the volcano among the conquerors of mountain peaks has several explanations:

• First, despite the fact that it is an inactive volcano, it is still a volcano. And, judging by the stories of some climbers, in some parts of the slope you can hear some kind of volcanic processes taking place inside Chimborazo. However, it is quite possible that many of these stories are the fruit of the imagination of people who want to conquer not just a mountain peak, but the most high volcano Ecuador.
• The second feature of this inactive volcano is the absence of a change of seasons on its slopes. The temperature at each section of the volcano does not change, and you can climb at any time, although climbers traditionally go to Chimborazo in autumn and winter.

It is not forbidden to climb on your own: there are no danger zones and access restrictions. But best option for tourists (especially for beginners) it is to take advantage of special tours that include excursions with climbing. Depending on the form of the tour, the ascent can last two or three days, with two stops during the ascent. Usually the beginning of the route is the Karela hut, located at an altitude of 4,600 meters. The next point of the route is Vamper's hut at an altitude of 5,000 meters. After that, tourists will have to climb to the fourth peak of Cumbre Veintemilla. This part of the route is traditionally covered at night until the morning sun melts the ice. It is recommended to descend from the volcano before 10 am: later, the risk of falling under an avalanche or rockfall may increase.

At self-climbing on common routes, precautions must be taken. For example, the section up to the El Castillo saddle is a very steep slope, which, moreover, on the way back can unpleasantly surprise tourists with unexpected rockfalls. Another dangerous section is from the summit of Veintimilla to the summit of Whymper. The length of the section is only 70 meters, but it is here that there is a risk of breaking loose if climbing after 8 am, as the snow becomes very soft under the influence of the sun.

In this unique area, the mountains spread over an area of ​​several tens of square kilometers. The lowest mountain has a height of about 2,400 meters, while the average values ​​are about 4,000 meters. Among the huge number of peaks of this mountainous region, Chimborazo is a real giant, covered with eternal ice, descending to 4,600 meters.

About where the Chimborazo volcano is located, and what it is, is described in this article.

Location

Chimborazo is part of the Cordillera Occidental (ridge) in the Andes. What country does he belong to? The Chimborazo Volcano is located in Ecuador, 150 kilometers from its capital, Quito. It belongs to the andesite-dacitic stratovolcanoes.

It is well visible in sunny clear weather even from the city of Guayaquil, located in the coastal zone (distance about 140 km). The city of Riobamba is located 30 kilometers southeast of the volcano. To the cities of Ambato and Guaranda from Chimborazo, respectively, 30 kilometers to the northeast and 25 kilometers to the west.

Description of the region

Almost always, the top of the Chimborazo volcano rises above the level of the clouds, thanks to which a delightful and unforgettable sight opens up to tourists when flying on an airliner. Once Chimborazo was a rampant volcano, but over time it subsided, and its top began to represent an ice point.

For the inhabitants of this region (the provinces of Bolivar and Chimborazo), the main water resource is melt water. In connection with global warming and ongoing processes inside the volcano, the size of the glacier has greatly decreased. In addition, ice is mined here for sale in the domestic markets of the country (for cooling), since the climatic conditions here are too hot for human life.

This volcano has long ceased: its last eruption happened 2-3 thousand years ago. By European standards, it is incredibly high. The height of the Chimborazo volcano is 6384 m.

At its very foot, the Guayas River originates.

It is believed that Chomolungma is the highest place on earth. If we take the value from its base to the very top as the height of the mountain, then McKinley and Ararat can be called the highest peaks. And if we also take into account the underground (or underwater) part of the mountain, then the highest can be called the mountain peak of Mauna Kea, located at the bottom Pacific Ocean. Only its peak is visible on the water surface.

There is another interesting point. If the height of the mountain is calculated not from the earth's surface or from sea level, and not even from the bottom of the sea, but from the center of the planet, then the mark in Ecuador can be taken as the highest point on the planet Earth. This is Chimborazo volcano.

This volcano has become the most distant point from the center of the Earth due to its favorable geographical location.

origin of name

According to the assumptions of scientists, there is more than one version of the origin of the name of the volcano. From some dialects of the Quechua language, chimba is translated as "on the other side of the river", and razu - as "ice" or "snow".

According to local residents the word chimbarazu translates as "snow on the other side". There is another version, according to which the name of the volcano came from the addition of two words: schingbu from Chapalach - “woman” and razo from Quechuan - “ice, snow”. When you combine these words, you get "snow woman" or "ice woman."

There are other versions explaining the origin of the name of the mountain.

About Climbing the Chimborazo Volcano

In those days when this majestic giant was considered the highest peak on the planet, many scientists and travelers tried to climb. In 1802, Baron Alexander von Humboldt broke all European records. He reached the mark of 5,875 meters. After Chimborazo lost his championship status, dreamers continued to come to these places to conquer this peak.

An interesting fact is that until 1880 no one suspected that this mountain was a volcano. The climber from England, Edward Wimper, reached the summit of Chimborazo that very year.

Route for tourists

The starting point of the classic climb is the Karela hut, located at around 4,600 meters. A jeep brings tourists to this place, and then the ascent is made up to the mark of 5,000 meters, where the Vampera hut is located. From this point, at midnight, climbers head to another point - Weintemille, located at an altitude of 6,270 meters. Experienced climbers believe that they should be on it no later than 6 o'clock in the morning, since the snow crust begins to melt later. And they usually go down no later than 10 o'clock in the morning, since then there is a possibility of avalanches and stones coming down.

Everyone knows that the volcano is not active today, but other troubles can await travelers. For example, part of the slope up to the El Castillo saddle is quite steep, so unexpected rockfalls often occur here. There are also areas where there is a risk of falling into the abyss when climbing after 8 am.

In conclusion, some features of Chimborazo

To complete our story, here are some interesting additions:

1. According to the stories of some climbers, when you are on the slope of the volcano, you can hear some processes taking place inside it. However, this is highly doubtful.
2. The features of the Chimborazo volcano include the absence of a change of seasons on its slopes. This means that the temperature in this area always remains unchanged. In this regard, the peak can be conquered at any time of the year, but tourists often come here in autumn and winter.
3. A characteristic feature of the volcano is that its surface is completely covered with snow. Under its cover is a centuries-old layer of ice.