Gig Harbor climber seeks new adventure on the flanks of a volcano in Ecuador

Adventure and Signo Uddenberg go hand in hand.

A Gig Harbor native, Uddenberg went to college in California, got his first real job in Spain, works remotely in San Francisco, and currently lives in Quito, Ecuador. He was an athlete in high school at Bellarmine Prep, playing football, basketball and baseball.

“Half of my life is in Gig Harbor,” Uddenberg said. “Most of my closest friends stay there, so I go back quite a bit, and the second half of my life is in California. Now it’s split into thirds, because my wife is down here in Ecuador and her entire family is based here.”

Ecuador has a huge climbing community. Taking up the sport, Uddenberg began learning how to climb volcanoes and mountains, conquering landmarks such as Mt. Rainier and Mt. Shasta in California, Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania and reaching the base camp of Annapurna in Nepal.

Later this year Uddenberg, 35, plans to climb Volcano Cotopaxi, a 19,000-foot mountain in Ecuador. He will climb along with Karl Egloff, a world speed record holder, and a team of other climbers, including the U.S. ambassador to Ecuador, Michael J. Fitzapatrick, to raise money for an organization that provides low-cost prosthetics for amputees across South America.

“Cotopaxi is an iconic mountain,” Uddenberg said. “It has this really cool shape. You drive on the highway and go around a bend and when it’s clear, you see it. It has that impact Rainier has when you see it, it’s super iconic.”

The attempt is scheduled for September, but with COVID the exact date is yet to be determined.

Gig Harbor roots

Uddenberg was born and raised on Horsehead Bay. He attended Lighthouse Christian School, and later went to Bellarmine Prep.

“I was one of the water boys. Every summer I was out, jumping off the bridges, doing that kind of stuff,” Uddenberg said.

Uddenberg’s parents still live in Lakebay. Before COVID began, he used to rent a room from his parents, visiting the city every one to two months. Although he currently lives in Ecuador, Uddenberg said it’s likely his family will move back to Gig Harbor one day.

“It’s a special place in my heart,” Uddenberg said. “I’ve been fortunate to travel a lot of the world, and there isn’t a place I’d rather be in July than Gig Harbor.”

Travel and family

In 2003 Uddenberg went to study in California at Pepperdine University. In 2008 he got his first real job at a global engineering company in Spain. He stayed in Spain until 2009, but chose to leave to go to grad school at Stanford. From there, Uddenberg began his job in San Francisco at MKThink, traveling back to the city every one to two months.

In 2014 Uddenberg met his wife, Alejandra Espinoza, in San Francisco, and the two of them lived there until 2017.

“We met in San Francisco a week after she arrived,” from her native Ecuador, he said. “We dated and got married, stayed there for five years. The goal was always to go back to Ecuador to start a restaurant.”

The couple had their first child in March.

Climbing history

Uddenberg grew up hiking in the cascades. His interest waned during his high school days, but seven years ago a friend got a permit to climb Mount Whitney in California and invited Uddenberg along.

“You get a little bit of altitude there, and it was the first time I experienced altitude,” Uddenberg said. “We did such a quick change from sea level to 11,000 feet in 24 hours and I definitely felt it.”

After moving to Ecuador, Uddenberg met Karl Egloff, a world-class Ecuadorian climber. Egloff is best known for his speed ascents of high mountains. In 2012, he set a record for climbing Cotopaxi, climbing up and down in one hour and 37 minutes.

“It’s pretty incredible to know someone of that magnitude,” Uddenberg said. “He was doing things in ten hours what people take two weeks to do.”

Uddenberg said the effort it takes to climb a mountain is huge, and very rewarding.

“It won’t be easy and won’t be fun, but I think that my favorite part is getting out of the house and going to a stunningly beautiful place,” Uddenberg said. “We have this big, audacious goal with a high level of focus.”

Uddenberg met David Krupa, the CEO of the Range of Motion Project, also known as ROMP, a charity that raises fund to provide prosthetics for amputees. Each year, ROMP brings in 20 to 25 people to climb Cotapaxi, half being amputees.

Uddenberg was at the bottom of the volcano last year when many finished the climb.

“We brought a bunch of beer to celebrate with everyone at the end and I was inspired by their stories,” Uddenberg said. “This year I applied, I got the invite and decided to join.

“It’s supposed to symbolize the idea that nothing can stop you,” he added. “You climb this 19,000-foot mountain. Last year some people did it in seven hours, and some took 12 hours. Karl was running up and down the mountain and making sure everyone got to the top.”

Their goal is to raise $150,000, which would provide more than 100 Latin American people with prosthetics.

“When I think about standing at the top with Karl, my close friends, this U.S. ambassador, it’s an amazing collection of our time in Ecuador,” Uddenberg said. “Then coming down and we can all celebrate, it’ll be a pivotal moment for me.”

To donate toward the fundraiser, visit https://www.classy.org/fundraiser/2717019.

Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story stated incorrectly that Uddenberg and his wife had climbed Annapurna, a massif in Nepal. The couple reached the base camp, but did not climb further.

This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 8:50 AM.