On my recent trip to Ecuador I visited the north side of Cotopaxi which was about a two hour drive from Quito. We hiked around the foot hills of the mountain and at times were slightly above 14,000 feet above sea level. The picture above was taken from about that altitude. The following is a poem I wrote about this mountain and Quito.
Standing in the middle of the world
looking toward the mountain base
the wind takes my fears
the clouds fall around me
and slowly take me in
I close my eyes, I am back there tonight
hiking towards
white with mixtures of grey
nothing but soaring birds, nothing but pouring rain
pouring
I do not make it to the top
each breath will no longer take me
but those visions
like looking down from a star, forever
and so I find the air too thin,
descend
10,000 feet above sea level
the face of god carved into a mountain
an addiction the altitude bleeds
and I am free
flying, flying from the heart of the city
I close my eyes, landing on