My journey to the middle of the world

by Aaron Hotfelder on

In 1736, a team of French explorers traveling through Ecuador attempted to mark the exact location of the Equator– that imaginary line separating the Northern hemisphere from the Southern. Well, their GPS devices must have been on the fritz, because they marked it about 250 meters from its actual location. Still, the Mitad del Mundo (“Middle of the World,”) monument was built on that erroneous location, surrounded by a park and shops that sell more Equator-related memorabilia than you can shake a stick at. (Side note: Everyone who visits the Mitad del Mundo is not actually required by law to take that same dorky photograph that I am seen in here, but it sure seems that way.)

My visit to the very touristy Mitad del Mundo may have been a bit disappointing, but my trip to the “real” Equator, the Museo Solar Inti Ñan, was surprisingly enjoyable. Though it’s less visited and marked by only a small road sign, it was one of the highlights of my trip to Ecuador, partly because of some truly mind-blowing tricks that can only be done exactly on the Equator.

We’ve all heard that water going down a drain rotates in a different direction in different hemispheres. But what happens when the drain is directly on top of the Equator? Check out this short Youtube video to find out, and compare it to these two. Cool, huh?

Here’s another neat trick. We were just a couple steps away from the Equator, and our guide told us to put one of our hands on top of the other. Then he said, “Now don’t let me push your hands down.” He pushed down on our hands as hard as he could while we resisted. Our hands didn’t move. Next, we stood directly on the Equator and did the same thing, and he pushed our hands down easily.

My friend and I repeated the experiment without the guide and the result was the same– we really were weaker on the Equator. Now, I have no idea why this is the case (I was sick the day they taught physics in high school), and I’m not in a hurry to find out. Without an explanation, it will always seem like magic, and I want it to stay that way.

Climbing Ecuador’s Mt. Cotopaxi– the world’s tallest active volcano

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Several months ago, a friend named Justin and I decided that, after months of playing in Ecuador, we wanted a real physical challenge. We visited a tour company in Quito to find out what they could offer, and we were intrigued by their ad for a grueling hike up Mt. Cotopaxi, the world’s tallest active volcano at 19,347 ft. After ironing out some details, and confident in our physical fitness levels, Justin and I were assigned a guide, and we were on our way.

The bus and jeep rides to the base of the mountain were breathtakingly beautiful, and once we arrived, we hiked up to the “base camp” refuge by about 3:00 pm. Our guide, Carlos, prepared enormous plates of food for us, and insisted that we eat as much as possible. Justin and I did as much carbo-loading as we could, and we had already slumped back in our chairs when we saw Carlos bringing in two more giant plates of food. He laid the plates in front of us as if to say, “And now, for the main course.” After some protest, we nibbled dutifully.

At midnight, after getting no sleep due to an altitude-induced headache, I got up, along with 20 or so other climbers, to begin the cold, dark ascent. As this short article about the hike up Cotopaxi puts it, “After you add illness, inexperience and altitude, we had the makings of a great adventure.”

We practiced using crampons and ice axes for the first time, roped ourselves to our trusty guide, and began our slow, plodding ascent. After about five hours of trudging up the mountain, Justin’s asthma had him in a bad way. I didn’t feel so great either. Justin made the tough decision to turn around, and because we were all roped together, that meant I had to come down too. Frigid and exhausted, I feigned great disappointment.

Though we didn’t quite make the summit, and even though the climb was bone-chillingly cold, I’d still do it again. It can be easy to lounge on the beaches, or go out drinking every night, or just generally turn into a waste of space when on a long trip. My advice, though I don’t always follow it, is to challenge yourself not to fall into those easy traps. Pick an activity you think you probably can’t do– and give it a shot. If you succeed, great. If you fail, well, sometimes it’s not the worst thing for us to be knocked right on our asses.

More on Cotopaxi here and some scenic photos of it here.

Photo of the Day (7/7/07)

by Adrienne Wilson on


Butterflies are some of nature’s most delicate fluttering creatures. So when they are captured with wings fully spread, relaxing on the soft pink petals of a flower and posing for a passing photographer in the Ecuadorian Amazon they must also be granted a moment of fame on Gadling. This POTD was taken by fiznatty and several other beautiful butterflies and creepy crawlers from Ecuador can be found in the Gadling Flickr pool.

Mt. Everest: the Highest Point on Earth?

by Justin Glow on

Most of us learned early in life that Mt. Everest was the highest point on earth. Today the mountain is lusted after by adrenalin-hungry climbers looking to stand on the top of the world. But is Mt. Everest really the highest point on Earth?

It depends on how you look at it.

Because the Earth isn’t a perfect sphere, but actually an “oblate spheroid” — meaning it bulges at the equator — there’s another point on the planet that is actually closer to outer space than Mt. Everest: an inactive volcano in Ecuador, Mt. Chimborazo. Although the mountain stands almost 10,000 feet below Mt. Everest, the equatorial bulge extends its peak 1.5 miles further into space.

“If you define ‘highest’ as highest from sea level, Mount Everest is still champion,” says NPR’s Robert Krulwich. “But if you want to stand on the place on Earth that is closest to the moon, that would be Mount Chimborazo!”

Join the Great Turtle Race of 2007

by Justin Glow on

Leatherback sea turtles are some of the largest reptiles around, second only to crocodiles. They’re also an endangered species. The obvious thing to do is race them, right?

A handful of sponsors, including Yahoo! and Travelocity, have joined together to organize the Great Turtle Race of 2007. Eleven leatherback sea turtles will be outfitted with satellite tags and tracked from Costa Rica to their feeding grounds at the Galápagos Islands — a trip that is expected to take around 14 days. Here’s where you come in. Log into the site and choose your favorite turtle; each is given their own name (I picked Genevieve) and trading card complete with a biography and a range of statistics. Once you choose a turtle, you’ll be notified via email as to its progress as it makes its way to the Galápagos Islands.

The Race was organized to benefit something, no doubt, but the website is pretty sparse on details. The ‘donate’ button takes you to Network For Good, but their website only tells you who you’re donating your money too, not what it goes to benefit. After a lot of digging, I finally came across a report on Leatherback Trust Inc — the company soliciting donations — whose mission simply states (in all caps!), “TO SAVE THE LEATHERBACK TURTLE AND OTHER SEA TURTLES FROM EXTINCTION THROUGH A VARIETY OF MEANS.”

The race is less than a week away, yet much of the site seems to be unfinished. This is surprising, since it’s branded with a “Powered by Yahoo!” badge. Not too flattering. Even so, it’s an interesting way to generate interest in the leatherback turtle. For more information, head to GreatTurtleRace.com, or check out a video after the jump: