Cayambe (volcano)
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Cayambe or Volcán Cayambe is a volcano in Ecuador, in the Cordillera Central, a range of the Ecuadorian Andes. It is located in Pichincha Province, some Template:Convert northeast of Quito. It is the third-highest mountain in Ecuador, at an elevation of Template:Convert above sea level.<ref name=VolcanoDiscovery/>
Cayambe, which has a permanent snow cap, is a Holocene compound volcano which last erupted in March 1786.<ref name=gvp>Template:Cite gvp</ref> At Template:Convert, its south slope is the highest point in the world crossed by the Equator, and the only point on the Equator with snow cover. The ice cap covers an area of about Template:Convert and there are glaciers on the eastern flank descending to about Template:Convert, whereas those on the drier western flank reach about Template:Convert.<ref name=VolcanoDiscovery>Template:Cite web</ref> The volcano and most of its slopes are within the Cayambe Coca Ecological Reserve.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Cayambe was first climbed by British adventurer Edward Whymper and his two Italian guides and companions Jean-Antoine Carrel and Louis Carrel in 1880.<ref name=vw>Template:Cite web</ref> They made first ascents of most of the volcanoes in Ecuador. Cayambe remains a favorite of mountaineers today. The main route runs through a much-fissured terrain of moderate inclination, and only in its final part does the slope increase to 45°. There is a formidable bergschrund to cross at about Template:Convert. On the final stages, there are many cracks and seracs to be overcome, and there are extensive views from the summit.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Cayambe was considered especially beautiful by Alexander von Humboldt, whose writings in turn inspired Frederic Edwin Church to paint the peak, setting the stage for his painting The Heart of the Andes.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Template:Comparison of Earth farthest points.svg Cayambe's peak is the point of Earth's surface farthest from its axis; thus, it rotates the fastest as Earth spins.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
See also
References
- Cayambe, Instituto Geofísico de la Escuela Politécnica Nacional