The summit’s just there,” yells my guide, pointing over the spindly grasses clinging to the steep side of Pasochoa Volcano. I look out over the perfect pyramids of ice and stone that encircle us like the rings of a planet and silently plead with my heart to slow its beat, with my lungs to breathe more deeply.

My eyes brim with tears as my partner wraps his arms around me. “You’re a trooper,” he whispers. “And troopers don’t cry.”

“I’m not crying,” I pant into the gales of sharp, howling wind. “We’re 13,000 feet above sea level. It’s just the altitude, I swear.” I’m only half lying.

The four-day lodge-to-lodge trek through Ecuador’s Avenue of the Volcanoes was my idea. We’d hike by day and cozy up to the fireplace at night in a dreamy checkerboard of adventure and relaxation. The trail itself didn’t concern me. We’d done longer trails before; we’d even done them carrying all of our gear. It was the thought of the Andean altitude that turned my blood cold.

The weather in Ecuador varies greatly by region, while the temperature remains pretty consistent throughout the year. December through to May is the best time to visit if you plan on lying on the beach, despite it being the rainy season, whereas visiting the Amazon during this period is not ideal as it is often too wet, forcing trails to close. If you're planning a trip to the Galapagos Islands then please click here for our dedicated Galapagos page.

Whenever I ask someone who has been to Ecuador how long they spent in the country, their answers always go something like this, “I was there for three months, but I had initially planned to only stay a week.

Blending lush tropical rainforests and snow-capped mountains, Ecuador is a fantastically diverse and vibrant country located along the Equator in the northwestern part of South America. The country is home to 1,289 named mountains, the highest and most prominent of which is Chimborazo (6,268m/20,564ft).

Mount Chimborazo is Actually the Highest Point on Earth | Condé ...