The Devil's Nose

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Up at 4.30am! aaah. It was a killer and very hard to eat breakfast which as always was accompanied by eggs at 5am. We got to the train station in Riobamba by 6am to bag a seat inside the carriage by the window. I resisted the temptation to sit on the roof for a number of reasons:
1) It was very cold
2) It had only recently been re-opened due to the deaths of a number of tourists
3) It looked uncomfortable
4) I wasn't allowed. Well my Dad didn't seem too keen so in the end I sat inside on a proper seat next to the window.

Amazingly it set off on time at 7am. In all the ride lasted for nearly 3 hours but sadly stopped before the famous Devil's Nose. The scenery was o.k. but nothing spectacular and it was disappointing not to be able to do the whole journey. Due to a number of landslides and other political reasons the track is in need of important repairs and often doesn't run at all. We rejoined our coach which had followed us the whole way incase the train had broken down or been forced to stop due to derailment and headed to Guayaquil in the South, the largest city in Ecuador and our last stop before our trip to the Galapagos Islands. Only one night left on land before 7 nights on a boat. I hope I survive and find some sea legs!

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Photos

Riobamba train station
The train!

Inside the train
6am and smiling!