Mojanda, Mountain summit in Pichincha and Imbabura, Ecuador.

Mojanda is a volcanic summit on the border between Pichincha and Imbabura provinces that reaches 4,263 meters in elevation. Three crater lakes named Karikucha, Yanakucha, and Warmikucha sit within the caldera and form prominent features of the landscape.

This mountain and its neighboring volcano Fuya Fuya have been inactive for roughly 200,000 years following major eruptions that shaped the current caldera. The volcanic activity of that distant past left its mark on both the land and the geology of the entire region.

The three crater lakes carry Kichwa names: Karikucha, Yanakucha and Warmikucha. The surrounding páramo grassland above the cloud forest is regularly grazed by cattle, a use visible on the slopes. The lakes received protected status in 2002, and the site lies about 20 minutes by taxi from Otavalo, a largely indigenous town.

The crater lakes sit in the summit caldera reached by road from Otavalo, about 10 km to the northeast; the lakes have held protected status since 2002. Cattle graze the surrounding páramo grassland, so expect livestock and muddy ground on the trails. The summit stands at 4,263 m, so allow time to acclimatise before walking around the lakes.

Fuya Fuya, the companion volcano of Mojanda, partially collapsed about 165,000 years ago, opening a large caldera to the west. New lava domes later rose inside that depression, and the youngest ones were never glaciated, so they may date from the Holocene.