Travel

Be much obliged for any info on what people have put on their trotters for this trek....

I own Scarpa Mantas and Grivel G10 crampons but unsure if would be better hiring plastics and C2 crampons in Quito as offered by the travel company.  However they have also said my scarpas and C1 crampons would suffice - just a bit nervous, want the best possible combo to maximise my chances, tho of course, be nice if my own stuff would indeed be good enough.

Also if I take my scarpas, wondering if they would be too heavy for the other trekking we're doing on the trip - but do I really want to bring my Scarpas AND my lighter Meindl boots?  Aargh - help!!

.....cos me being me always has so much blinkin' kit and I can't be doing with also taking gear with me that I'm not sure to use, hence trying to make up my mind what to adorn my tootsies with BEFORE I go!

Indeed will the mantas keep me warm enough - would hate to end up with boot envy of those wearing cosy plastics - just concerned about the comfort and fit of hired plastics.  But I guess lots of people do it....?

Cotopoxi's glaciated, I did it in plastics and I think in an ideal world, that would be my choice - I'm maybe a little cautious after having a climbing partner get frost-bitten toes on Alpamayo wearing lightly insulated leather boots.  That said, a decent gaiter plus leathers, I like Yetis, would probably be enough, maybe some extra sockage if you can fit without compressing your feet - don't do that, it was probably at least half the reason my mate got frost-bitten, close-fitting technical boots...

Plastic boot hire is a little problematic in that they either fit your feet or not and the choice in Quito may be limited. If you were off on a sustained mountaineering trip in the Andes, I'd go plastic, but Cotopaxi is a short, steep hike on moraine up to the hut then an alpine start, and I reckon your Mantas should be fine for that.

As far as hiking elsewhere, I wouldn't choose to walk below the snowline in Mantas, I think it would be a world of misery. You'd be better off with some lightweight trekking boots or approach shoes ime.

Where are you trekking?

I dislike rigid boots on a walk up mountain, and even more do not think hired plastics would be comfortable. You will not want to go the extent I have, to make insulated articulated overboots for comfortable shoes. My shoes without the overboots are ideal for me at lower levels so the total weight is as light as possible.

 From where you are I would try to use my worn in boots by adding yeti gaiters and if there is room between the gaiter and your boot cutting some sleeping mat foam to fit in between, then as Jon says extra socks, but only if you have room. If you do have room for foam under the yeti's maybe any space in the boot would be best used for an extra insole to keep cold coming from below.

What minimum temperature have you been told to expect?

Then again your guide may throw a wobbly.

Leslie,

I do not think you have any problem with grip with your G10s and boots it is only cold that is the problem. If you are cold in your core your body will sacrifice your feet whatever insulation you have on your feet so keep your core warm. If your body sends nice warm blood to your feet but your legs are not well insulated the warmth will never get there so make sure your legs are insulated. If you are dehydrated or hungry you are not so good at heat production so keep drinking and snacking. If you are at altitude for a long time your body will adapt with more red corpuscles. This makes your blood thicker and a little more likely to clot. I have it on a doctors recommendation that a 1/8 th or 1/4 of asprin per day at altitude thins the blood and is good for anyone who may get a heart attack or stroke. That may be anyone but is certainly me. I take 1/4 asprin daily for high blood pressure anyway, I intend to double that at altitude. It strikes me that it might help against frostbite of the extremities too. I am not a doctor so this is only anecdotal. Asprin if taken without food or wrongly, can cause bleeding of the stomach so although it is available without prescription. There are risks. If I cut myself I certainly bleed longer than I used to.

Good circulation is restricted by tight clothing so do not squeeze on too many socks. Are you going to be given time to acclimatize or are you rushing up and down? If you are nauseous from going too high too fast you will not snack  or drink well.

Another idea we use is vapour barrier socks. A thin liner sock then a plastic bag big enough to take your foot. Then insulating socks that are kept dry from your sweat and thus are more insulating. Then if your boots might leak another plastic bag to keep those insulating socks dry from snow. Then a thin outer sock to keep it all together.

Your foot looses heat by conduction, convection, radiation and evaporation. The vapour barrier has stopped evaporation all together. If you are not sweating from being too hot your inner sock gets moist (and smelly) but it never gets worse than moist. Your skin stops putting out insensible perspiration if your skin is moist, (unless you are too hot). we have tested this it works! When we go high and cold we have made a vapour barrier suit. It is worth its weight

I tried Cotopaxi in hired heavyish boots and they were fine - I reckon lighter would have been OK too; but it can get a tad chilly so think on that.

We retired after a few of us had been blown over a couple of times. A mate had the same experience a few weeks earlier. I got back on the bike - much better idea

Just  a wee update for anyone who cares to read what I eventually decided to do, or to whom this thread may be of use to if you are also planning Cotopaxi....

 In the end I decided to buy  a pair of Scarpa Omega plastics - got them for the discounted price of £200 - and they were a dream!  Bulk a little strange to get used to at first but the comfort was not bad at all and the warmth was exceptional.

 I was very glad I made this decision to buy my own boots as the hire boots turned put to be a bit of a hit or miss - some folks got almost new pairs which fitted well, others got tatty old smelly things or struggled to get the right fit, there seemed to be quite limited pairs of each size.

One woman in my team got frost bite wearing her Nepal Sportiva boots so again i was glad of the plastics.

I was also glad of the extra security that the C2 crampons I did decide to hire gave me.  The glacier and crevasses had been moving a lot in the recent months and the terrain was challenging.

 So for me definately plastics and 12point crampons (but make sure they have the anti balling plates as the snow on top of the glacier was deep)  are the only way to go on Cotopaxi!

Thanks again everyone for your advice x

Thanks for reporting back! Its disappointing how many people don't.

So, are you going to give us some photos, or what?