Blogs from Quilotoa, Centre, Ecuador, South America

The final push.Today was the day when we were either going to conquer the Quilotoa Loop or it was going to conquer us. Even chances, slightly weighted towards victory to the mountain if you were a betting man. We were on our way by 0800hrs with 980m to climb before we reached the marvellous spectacle that is the Quilotoa crater….an ancient volcano that lost its top in an explosion of massive proportions, leaving a crater that is 250m deep and filled with greeny blue water. We had seen photos and it did look amazing. But first there was the small matter of getting up there. The first hour and a half was spent on a descent into a river valley through beautiful farmlands where every inch was cultivated no matter how steep the slope. We promise ... read more

From the Amazon to the mountains in mere hours, we managed to survive the extremely packed Quito buses (prime for pick pocketing, have your bag in front of you and nothing in your pockets) at only 25 cents a trip, to get to the south bus terminal (bus C4 to the end). One way to Latacunga then a change for Quilotoa on a local bus, both trips took two hours. We arrived at Quilotoa which is a small village on the top of the crater. A town with half built buildings and average $30 total per night accommodation but priced per person. Our accommodation included dinner and breakfast. At 3900 masl, the temperature was quite cold so having layers is necessary. We spent a very cold night in our room covered in three blankets. The aim ... read more

Dienstag, den 14. Juni bin ich um 5h30 aufgestanden um einen Bus zum Quitumbe Busterminal zu nehmen. Das Bussystem in Quito ist super, nicht zu kompliziert und die Busse sind ziemlich günstig (0,25$). Von Mariscal aus dauerte es ungefähr 1 Stunde bis zum Busterminal aber glücklicherweise war um diese Uhrzeit noch nicht viel los im Bus. :-) Von dort aus nahm ich einen Bus nach Latacunga. Dieser Bus kostet nur 2,5$ und braucht ungefähr 90 Minuten. Der Bus war sehr bequem und die Landschaft sehr schön. In Latacunga habe ich dann ein Taxi zum Hostel Tiana genommen. Dort haben sie eine sehr günstige Gepäckabgabe : nur 1$ pro Tag wenn man mindestens 1 Nacht dort schläft und am Tag der Übernachtung ist es gratis. So zählte ich nur 3$ und war mein ganzes schweres Gepäck los ... read more

Latacunga is a base for hiking the Quilotoa Loop, so the following day we left our big backpacks at Hostel del Sendero and boarded a bus to the tiny village of Isinlivi. The hike is not actually a loop but instead a series of trails and dusty roads near the Quilotoa volcano crater. We opted for the two day hike from Isinlivi to Chugchilan to Quilotoa as it had the most interesting scenery and passed through some tiny villages. The hike (24 total kms and a total ascent of 1600 m) was also a head and fitness check for the upcoming Inca Trail. In Isinlivi we stayed at the posh Llullu Llamas hostal, complete with a spa and amazing 3 course dinner. We now understand why it's everyone's favourite hostal in South America. They have really ... read more

After an overnight bus ride from Guayquil to Latacunga, we arrived 04:30am. It was rather cold and the hotel we booked was closed until 7am. We curled up at the door step under a sleeping bag and wearing coats using our backpacks as pillow. After about 45 minutes Tommy decided to let Tuppence have the sleeping bag and pace the block instead, keeping close watch all the while. Thankfully at 6:30am the owner came out for a morning bike ride, upon seeing Tuppence curled up, he immediately invited us in organised our room and arranged breakfast to be ready at 8:00am giving us time to nap. Latacunga is a rather unremarkable city, still we both enjoyed wandering around the markets and parks. It is rather interesting to observe how people of different cultures live, despite the ... read more