December 6, 2018
Romulo at the equator (Emily Johnston)
Lots has been going on since IMG guide, Emily Johnston, flew down to Ecuador to meet our Ecuadorian partner, Romulo Cardenas, and her team. We’ve been sweating the storm on the East Coast and for good reason: one of our members couldn’t get ‘out of Dodge’. But Lauren is the epitome of “no problemâ€. Nothing phased this woman as she waited, made flight changes, waited more, made more flight changes and simply never gave up. Today at noon, she arrived in Ecuador.
Meanwhile, the rest of the team had a bit of a head start on her. They toured Old Town Quito Thursday morning, with Romulo as their guide, and then headed north of the equator in the afternoon to the town of Otavalo. Saturday morning was a visit to the famous Indian crafts market there. Then, time to rally for an acclimatization hike up Fuyafuya.
Team atop Fuyafuya (care of Emily Johnston)
Now the team is complete. Lauren arrived and all’s right with the world. More acclimatization, more training and then it’s on to their first objective — Cayambe. WAY TO HANG IN THERE, LUAREN. And nice job cruising up Fuyafuya today, team.
Phil Ershler