Hi everyone,
me and my friend are going to be travelling to Ecuador this upcoming June in 2024 in hopes of summiting some volcanoes out there. We attempted Chimborazo last September and turned around at 6,015m due to improper acclimatization. We have been looking at the laws and are somewhat confused on whether there are any exceptions to climbing these glaciated peaks without a guide as we have all the gear necessary and have been training in Colorado. We are also looking for climbing partners so if anyone has information on the laws or wants to join on this expedition please let me know! Thanks!

Was just climbing in Ecuador in February. Officially yes you need guides, there are park rangers at the park entrances and also walking around near the parking lots. I was stopped and questioned once, they only speak Spanish. If you have climbing equipment with you and no guide they wont let you climb up to high camp. It seemed they were most active on the weekend. The rangers are the only ones who will say anything, the hut keepers and guides you encounter will not care if you are climbing without a guide, and they are all friendly and super helpful. It is totally possible to go alone tho, I just climbed Illiniza Norte and Chimborazo solo. As of mid February, a team of 5 guides summited Cotopaxi and determined it is now safe and open for climbing again (according to all the local guides) so theres another option for acclimatization. If ya have any questions or want more info let me know.