Chimborazo

Imagine being so tall that your head is always covered in a fluffy white blanket of snow, even when the sun is shining warmly on your sides. Fluffy clouds tickle your peak as they drift by in the bright blue sky. All around you is a warm, green land, but you stay cool and icy at the top. I am a giant, snowy mountain resting near the Earth’s tummy, called the equator. My full name is Chimborazo, and I am a sleepy volcano in the country of Ecuador. For a long, long time, I have been watching the world from way up high, and I have a wonderful story to tell you.

I am a very old volcano, but I am not grumpy or loud anymore. My last big rumble happened a very long time ago, around the year 550. Since then, I have been quiet, watching people come and go. Many brave explorers have tried to climb my steep, snowy slopes. One of them was a man named Alexander von Humboldt. On June 23rd, 1802, he climbed higher and higher, learning all about the different plants that grow on my sides. He didn’t quite make it to the top, but he was happy with everything he discovered. Many years later, another brave climber came. His name was Edward Whymper, and on January 4th, 1880, he became the very first person to reach my tippy-top summit. It was a very big day. Now, I will tell you my biggest secret. The Earth is shaped like a bouncy ball that’s been squished a little, making it wider at the equator. Since I am right on that wide part, my peak is the farthest point from the center of the Earth. That means I am the closest point on our whole planet to the sun, the moon, and all the twinkling stars.

Being the closest point to the stars is a big job, but I also have important work to do right here on Earth. The ice and snow on my peak melt in the sunshine, and the fresh, clean water trickles down my sides. This water gives people and animals something to drink and helps the farmers grow food in the fields below. I am also a home for special animals. Fuzzy, gentle creatures called vicuñas run and play on my slopes. They are my friends. When people look up at me, I hope they feel inspired. I want to remind everyone to dream big, reach high for what they believe in, and never forget that they are close enough to touch the stars.