Top 10 Glaciers in Ecuador
Ecuador's glaciers are among the most unusual on Earth. Sitting within a few degrees of the equator, they persist only because the country's volcanic summits are high enough — several above 5,000 metres — for temperatures to remain below freezing year-round and for snowfall to exceed summer melt. These are not the vast valley glaciers of Patagonia or the high-latitude ice caps of Iceland; they are compact, high-altitude tropical ice masses clinging to volcanic cones and high páramo ridges, receiving abundant precipitation from both the Pacific and Amazon sides of the Andes. They have been retreating throughout the twentieth century and into the twenty-first, and several have declined dramatically since the first systematic surveys were conducted. What remains is precious, scientifically important, and accessible to visitors willing to ascend into the high Andes.
Use the map to locate Ecuador's volcanic glacier peaks and plan routes between them along the famous Avenue of the Volcanoes.
1. Chimborazo Glacier, Chimborazo Province
The ice fields of Chimborazo (6,263 m) are Ecuador's most extensive glacier system and occupy the flanks of the highest peak in Ecuador and the point on Earth's surface furthest from the planet's centre due to equatorial bulge. Several named glaciers descend from the summit plateau, including the Thielman and Reschreiter glaciers on the northwest face, which were historically the source of ice harvested by local chagras (Andean workers) for use in Guayaquil. The summit remains one of the least frequently climbed major Andean peaks due to difficult high-altitude terrain, but the glacier front on the Whymper route is reachable by acclimatised hikers. The Chimborazo glacier area has contracted significantly since the first aerial surveys of the 1970s.
2. Cotopaxi Glacier, Cotopaxi Province
Cotopaxi (5,897 m) is one of the world's highest active volcanoes and Ecuador's most iconic mountain, its almost perfectly symmetrical cone draped in glaciers that radiate from the summit crater rim. The glacier cover extends over the upper cone above approximately 5,000 metres, with several prominent glacier tongues visible from the paved road that ascends to the Jose Rivas refuge at 4,800 metres. The volcano's eruptive history makes Cotopaxi's glaciers a significant lahar hazard: a major eruption could rapidly melt ice and generate destructive mudflows down the valleys to the north and west. A significant eruption in 2015 caused temporary closure of the national park and accelerated surface melt on the upper glacier.
3. Cayambe Glacier, Pichincha/Imbabura
Cayambe (5,790 m) is the only place on Earth where the equator intersects with permanent snow and ice: the glacier at the summit lies almost exactly on the equatorial line. The mountain's southern flanks receive heavy precipitation from the Amazon basin, making it one of Ecuador's snowiest volcanoes and supporting a larger glacier area relative to summit altitude than drier volcanoes further west. The standard climbing route accesses the glacier from the Ruales-Oleas-Berge refuge at approximately 4,600 metres. The summit plateau is a broad snow and ice field with cornices and crevassed glaciers descending in multiple directions.
4. El Altar Glaciers, Chimborazo Province
El Altar (5,319 m) is a deeply eroded caldera complex whose inner walls support several small glaciers descending from the rim and into the caldera bowl. The caldera floor hosts the Laguna Amarilla, a green-tinted crater lake surrounded by rugged glaciated terrain. Access requires a two-day trek from Candelaria to the Collanes plain, from which the caldera rim and glaciers are visible. The glaciers here are smaller and more fragmented than those on the major stratovolcanoes but are set in one of Ecuador's most dramatic mountain landscapes.
5. Antisana Glacier, Napo Province
Antisana (5,704 m), east of Quito in the eastern cordillera, has one of the largest remaining glacier areas in Ecuador after Chimborazo and Cayambe. Its glaciers drain partly toward the Amazon basin via the Antisana river system and were historically important as a water source for Quito via managed intake systems. The Antisana Ecological Reserve protects the mountain and its páramo surroundings, and the reserve is accessible from a road east of Pintag. Condors frequent the high-elevation terrain around the glaciers, adding to the wildlife interest. The southern and eastern faces retain the most extensive glacier areas.
6. Ilinizas Sur Glacier, Cotopaxi Province
Ilinizas Sur (5,248 m), the higher of the two Ilinizas peaks, supports a small but distinct glacier on its summit cone, visible from the valley below as a white patch against dark volcanic rock. The glacier is accessed via the Albergue Ilinizas at approximately 4,700 metres, and the climbing route involves mixed glacier and rock terrain that requires crampons and ice axe. The Ilinizas are among the more technical peaks in Ecuador and see fewer visitors than Cotopaxi or Chimborazo, despite their relative accessibility from Quito via the Panamericana highway.
7. Sangay Glacier, Morona-Santiago Province
Sangay (5,286 m) is Ecuador's most remote and continuously active volcano, located in the eastern cordillera within Sangay National Park. Its glacier exists under constant threat of burial and disruption from eruptions, which deposit fresh volcanic material on the ice surface. Sangay is rarely climbed due to its remoteness and active eruptive activity. The glacier represents one of the unusual cases worldwide where ice persists in close proximity to an active eruption centre. Access requires a multi-day trek through the lowland jungle fringe of the national park.
8. Quilindaña Glacier, Napo Province
Quilindaña (4,919 m) is a less-visited volcanic peak in the eastern cordillera between Cotopaxi and Antisana. Its summit area retains a small permanent ice and snow cover, though at the lower elevation of the major Ecuadorian peaks it is more vulnerable to warming. The peak sits within the remote high-páramo country east of the Cotopaxi National Park boundary and is accessed via multi-day expeditions from the Antisana or Cotopaxi approaches.
9. Pichincha Glacier, Pichincha Province
Rucu Pichincha (4,696 m) and Guagua Pichincha (4,784 m), the two peaks of Pichincha immediately west of Quito, once supported permanent ice and snow at their summits. The remaining ice at Guagua Pichincha is limited and considered by some researchers to be relict ice rather than a self-sustaining glacier, but snowfields persist at the summit regularly. The active crater of Guagua Pichincha erupted in 1999, depositing ash on Quito and the surrounding region. Rucu Pichincha is accessible from Quito by cable car and trail.
10. Carihualirazo Glacier, Chimborazo Province
Carihualirazo (5,020 m) is a glaciated volcanic peak adjacent to Chimborazo, its summit accessed by a relatively straightforward route from the Chimborazo road. The glacier here is a small ice field on the summit dome, smaller than the major peak glaciers but set in the same high Chimborazo reserve landscape. The summit provides excellent views of Chimborazo's main glacier complex and the high páramo terrain of the Chimborazo province.