Mountains, volcanos and more mountains!

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Latacunga, Isinlivi, Chugchilán and Quilotoa

We were dropped off on a busy, dusty road and our first impression of Latacunga was: 'why the hell did we come here?' But all along the 10min walk into the centre, the small city became much prettier and in the evening, when the traffic was gone, its narrow streets with rustic lighting could even be considered charming. We stayed for 1 night at hostel Tiana, a very friendly place with an outdoor cafe/chillout area.

The next morning we took a bus to Isinlivi, a small Andean village. The bus ride was both spectacular and scary, with hair-pin bends on ridiculously steep paths. But we arrived safely and went on a small hike to the top of a hill overlooking the village with a 'bienvenidos a Isinlivi' sign. Hostel Llullu llama was very pícturesque with its llama, pigs and chickens in the garden and eco-friendly toilet (i.e. a compost heap). After enjoying the spectacular views we had an excellent oven-bake for dinner with a french couple who had been travelling and camping for 1.5 years, starting in Alaska!

After a cold night, a bright and early start to the hike from Isinlivi to Chugchilán, which took about 5 hours. First we descended to the river bed, and then walked along it, encountering several bridges along the way (including a proper suspension bridge!). Then the trail went uphill to Chugchilán, another small village. The weather was great for the whole hike... sunshine with a little breeze. The views and the colours were just amazing: pastures, steep fields, valleys with the mountains as backdrop. As it was Sunday, there was a very relaxed atmosphere in Chugchilán: the youth was playing volleyball in the main square, the old men were playing cards, and the women were chatting and grilling meat for dinner.

Again, an early night and an early start, this time on our way to volcano Quilotoa. This hike was mainly uphill to village Guayama grande, and then up the side of the volcano (in total 1000 m up). The most astonishing moment of the whole trip came when we looked over the ridge of Quilotoa into the crater lake. We then descended into the crater and walked about two-thirds of the way round to get to Quilotoa town. There we took a bus back to Latacunga.


Baños

After a night of well deserved rest in Latacunga, we set off to Baños, the thermal town of Equador. Situated at 1800 m it is in a valley surounded by mountains with dense forests and the Tungurahua volcano. The first day we explored the town and found a nice place to eat before going out and enjoying the Baños night life (i.e. $2.5 cuba libre). The next two days were used mountain biking and treking around the town. We especially went to see the Paillon del Diablo waterfalls, where we were able to get behind the stream. That is what you call a large Q (volumetric flowrate for the newbies)!

Tomorrow we are off to Guayaquil before leaving to the Galapagos on Saturday 😊

Hasta la vista, chicos!

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