Field Trip #2: Cotopaxi Volcano

1 Day (Oct. 6)
Price per person: $45

Field Trip Leader: Patricia Mothes

8AM Departure from Hilton Colon

Stop 1: At around 09h30 we will enter through the main park entrance on Cotopaxi volcano's lower SW flank and drive up the access road, passing a main channel for secondary lahars, of which 10+ events occurred in 2015 after eruptive activity left the flanks with fine ash and this was remobilized by precipitation. 40 minutes.

Stop 2: Visit to lahar detection broad-band seismic and acoustic monitoring station at Mariscal Sucre Museum. Walk of 10 minutes through brush. Explanation of functioning of the station and its role in providing an early warning about lahar descent and progression. 1 hour aprox.

Stop 3: Limpiopungo lake, with view of whole volcano, if it is clear; many birds, and an opportunity to talk about the long-term history of Cotopaxi and the evolution in how the IGEPN has monitored it. 1 hour.

Stop 4: Drive along the N. flank road through the lahar field, of which the 1877 lahar deposits are so evident. Drive along the Water canal road to the bend, then walk S for 1 km, viewing the scenery, seeing and sampling the 200 ky Chalupas pyroclastic flow deposits, and seeing the N. flank drainage network on map to understand the threats to downstream communities and infrastructure. Box Lunch. 2 hours aprox.

Stop 5: Return on Water Canal road and briefly look at scoria-bomb pyroclastic flows of 1877 and post-1877 eruptions and the important levees that they formed. 30 minutes

Return to Quito around 2 hours (arriving around 5-6 pm)

Includes:

Local park guide
Box Lunch
Comfortable Tourism Bus
Bottled Water