Camping Equipment Rental in Cuenca?

Hello,

First I don't think is allowed to camp in El Cajas by yourself. You need to look in a Tourist agency for camp there and get a guide.
Travel agencies have all the necessary equipment to camp there.

Maybe somebody else can confirm this.

Vinny

Thanks Vinny.  My only source right now is a probably outdated brochure I found online, found here http://www.etapa.net.ec/PNC/pnc_bibdes_map_caj.aspx

It says a guide is optional for what we plan on doing, but it doesn't specify if it's optional only for day-hiking or also for camping.  I had some friends visit for the day a few months ago, and they didn't need a guide, but they didn't camp. 

I really hope a guide isn't required.  If so, it's pretty much just encouraging people to sneak in and hike around without telling authorities of their hiking itineraries. Paying for a guide will not be an option for us, so we'll just have to make it a stealth mission.

Also, if anyone knows of a place in Cuenca that just rents equipment I would appreciate any info.

I just got off the phone with a guy who rents camping equipment in Cuenca.  His name is Adrian Aguirre, and his phone number is 0991518593.  He speaks Spanish and English.   He has everything I will need.  I'll post his location and my experience with him later.   

I think there's at least one other place that rents equipment.  It's called Accion Sport, located at Bolívar 12-70 E between Tarqui y Juan Montalvo.  I tried calling them, but they didn't answer.  If anyone in Cuenca is super bored and happens to be walking near here, I would be very grateful if someone could confirm that this place exists and that they rent camping gear.

I think I know exactly the place you are talking about. They have lots of backpacks and stuff hanging from the walls, so wouldnŽt surprise me if they rent as well.

Do any of these places rent mountain-climbing equipment? I'm planning to learn that when I get there, but I don't want to invest in a lot of expensive equipment until I know I want to get serious about it.

Thanks Nards.  Glad you could confirm it. 

     I know in Quito there are at least two places that rent mountain climbing equipment.  One is called Extreme Adventurers & Sportswear. Most people just call it Extreme.  It's on Calama, between Reina Victoria and Diego de Almagro, just a block from Plaza Foch.  The other is Los Alpes, on Reina Victora between Wilson and Gen. Baqudano.   The main difference between the two is Extreme rents its stuff cheaper, but the gear has seen more use, and Los Alpes is more expensive, with generally better condition gear.    I go to Extreme and just make sure everything is working before I leave.  It's wise to reserve gear a few days to a week in advance.

I would imagine there's places in Riobamba that rent gear too, since many people stay there before climbing Chimborazo or El Altar.  Probably the same with Latacunga, because it's so close to Cotopaxi and Illinza Sur.  I can't with certainty though, because I've never tried looking for gear rental in either city.  I'll let you know about Cuenca when I get there, but since the closest mountain that requires technical gear is Chimborazo (I'm excluding Sangay and El Altar because of their remoteness and difficulty) you might be better off renting it in the city that's closest to the mountain you want to climb.

jm141302 wrote:

... you might be better off renting it in the city that's closest to the mountain you want to climb.

Thanks. Somebody here (might have been you) put me in touch with a climbing school/club in Quito called Zona Verde, and I've been getting their emails about events. They seem to always set out from Quito, so I would probably rent there.

Bob

Got back from hiking two nights in Cajas National park, and I used Adrian Aguirre for my camping equipment.  He met us at our hostel with the equipment, and then we called him and met his girlfriend a few days later to return it.  It worked well, but a little more expensive than what I'm used to in Quito.  I also walked by Accion Sport and they had stuff to rent too. 

We didn't need a guide to camp, but we also unintentionally skipped the control point when we entered.  They caught us on our way out and were a little annoyed that we didn't register or pay the $4 per night camping fee.  We just paid as we left and it was okay.  Cajas is a fantastic place, and I would spend weeks out there if I could.

How much did it end up costing to rent all of the equipment?

kmh0309 wrote:

How much did it end up costing to rent all of the equipment?

Just wanted to be sure your knew, you were asking in a thread with the last post being in September 2013. I also looks like jm41302 has returned to the EEUU, so they may not be monitoring the thread anymore.