Basejumper.com - archive

   Yo !

I'll be in Salinas, Ecuador next month for work, and would love to hear a bit about the place. Looking for any BASE object beta (towers?) and skydiving opportunities. Have seen the picture in Parachutist already ;) Any comments from the boogie crowd ?

bsbd!

Yuri, base416@yahoo.com

I spent some time in Ecuador mountaineering in the '80s. It is a really great place, folks are friendly and the Otovalans and other natives are truly amazing and open people.

As to BASE, at least on the mountaineering side things aren't so hot. Most of the climbing I know about there is volcanic (Cotopaxi, Chimborazo, etc.) and not very steep. There is the Illiniza massif which might have some exitpoints of reasonable interest, though it'd take some mountaineering skills to approach them as the altitude is 15,000+ feet. with glaciers, etc.

I was stuck in a hut during a storm for five days on that trip, and we had nothing left to eat but malt nut flavor Powerbars. To this day, if I smell those vile things I get quesy. . .

Peace,

D-d0g

oo, I know.

There is a train I took a couple times up to the mountains. It starts on the coast, and heads up. Can't remember the name of the town we caught it in. It ends up a couple hours south of Quito.

Regardless. They don't mind if you ride on the roof of the box car. Steam locomotive, tunnels and the works. It derailed 3 times on one of our trips. There is one point where the train goes up what is called the Devils Nose (Nariz del Diablo) It goes forward, hits a switchback, then backs up. Does that a couple times. You are basically going up a cliff. It would almost be steep enough to jump from the train at one of the switch backs. Probably not, but it is worth a look.Course you would have to walk back, but it would be worth it.

Regardless, fun trip.