Cotopaxi's Ecuador National Park was created in 1979, is the second national park created in Ecuador, and it is also the second one in number of visitants, following the Galapagos Islands. In 1970 José Rivas began to build the shelter in an altitude of 4.800 meters.
It is located at the south of Quito. In the park we found the Cotopaxi (5897meters) and the Sincholagua (4893metesr) volcanoes, and the picks: Rumiñahui (4712meters) and Morurco (4840meters).
Between these mountains there are several valleys, lagoons and rivers, in an altitude of more of 3500 meters. You can access the park in 4x4 vehicles.
The first documents that evidence Cotopaxi's eruptions are of 1534. In these eruptions the city of Latacunga was three times destroyed till 1877. Its last eruption was in 1942. This is an active volcano, the world's higher active volcano.
The German Wihelm Reiss with the Colombian Ángel M. Escobar were the first to climb it in the year of1872. In 1877 a huge explosion finished with the mud and ice of the volcano's north face, since then many climbers use this side of the mountain to get to the top.
Now a days the budget of the park in been reduced, as a consequence there are less guards and less projects for its protection. An alternative for this problem is to privatize the park or to give its management to a non governmental organization. The Environmental Ministry is now a days administrating the park. For more information about excursions and trips to the Cotopaxi, visit: trips and excursions near Quito.
Some of its main attractions are:
Limpiopungo Lagoon: it is a perfect landscape to take pictures, enclosed by the Cotopaxi, Sincholagua and Rumiñahui.
Santo Domigo Lagoon: it receives its water from a spring and it is delightfully decorated with walls that once were part of the Inca's empire.
Sunfana's Plain and viewer: from the viewer you can appreciate the green pine forests over a measureless plain.
Pita River: here you can fish trouts with previous authorization of the INEFAN. The river has a wide of 8 meters and it is not very deep.
Mariscal Sucre Museum: with a small compilation of flora and wildlife, and pictures of the area.
Recreation Area "El Boliche": the favorite way to get to "El Boliche" is by train, here you can admire beautiful landscapes, native flora and wildlife, and it is an ideal place for camping.
You can climb the Rumiñahui, Sincholagua and Morurco, with the right equipment and guides.
Inca Pucará de Salitre Military Fort: located at the east over a hill, in a huge oval wall of 1.20 meters high.
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