We'll base ourselves out of Banos for a few days and do some 'touristy' stuff.
From Banos (south and then westerly) it's mostly just a scenic drive, with a private driver / guide.
We'll cross over the Andes Mountains and end this drive at the beach town of Olon ... we will explore here for a week. Our last move will be, further north along the coast to Puerto Lopez and our final week in Ecuador.
From Banos (south and then westerly) it's mostly just a scenic drive, with a private driver / guide.
We'll cross over the Andes Mountains and end this drive at the beach town of Olon ... we will explore here for a week. Our last move will be, further north along the coast to Puerto Lopez and our final week in Ecuador.
Many tourist drivers like Fredy, stop at the frequent San Cristobal shrines to donate a small sum and ask for safe travel.
It's much less expensive to make this drive by bus ... however, that travel mode has multiple stops to pick up passengers, the commercial bus drivers really don't want to stop for viewpoints or photographs and don't share the amount of cultural and historical information that our driver Fredy did.
This is a 910 km drive over some of the highest passes in the Ecuadorian Andes; it's a twisty road with many hairpin curves, mud-slides, wash-outs and on-going road repair.
Quito to Banos
We left the high population density of Quito and traveled through a mostly agricultural region, interspersed with a few small villages along the way.
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| Quito ... looking west |
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| Quito ... looking east |
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This is a Choza ... scattered across agricultural fields, these indigenous, rough-thatched huts are still used by older Ecuadorian farmers today. They spend nights in the huts, work the fields or watch livestock throughout the day and return to more comfortable dwellings after a time away. Younger generations are slowly abandoning the practice.
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Roasting Guinea Pigs ... from 'life as a family pet to a roadside rotisserie'. Families often raise guinea pigs for their own consumption and sometimes for sale. We were told, a good sized pig could sell, at roadside, for as much as $30 on the skewer. |
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... vertigo!!! ... well, it was only 10 feet but I just couldn't nudge myself over to that stake on the right.
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| ... a Lady and a Llama |
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Lake Quilatoa ... a much colder ambient air temperature, where we are standing, than you would expect. This is a water-filled caldera and the most western volcano in the Ecuadorian Andes. The 3-kilometre (2 mi) wide caldera was formed by a volcanic collapse about 600 years ago, producing toxic emissions that reached the Pacific Ocean, and spread an airborne deposit of volcanic ash throughout the northern Andes. The caldera has since accumulated a 250 m (820 ft) deep crater lake. (Source: Wikipedia) |
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| ... domesticated Llama |
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Mount Cotopaxi at 5890 metres is the second highest peak in the Ecuadorian Andes. Mount Chimborazo at 6268 metres is the highest but was cloud covered the day we drove past. For comparison ... Canada's highest peak; Mt. Logan in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon Territory is 5959 metres. |
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| Yambo Lake |
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Banos to Puyo
We signed up for one of those touristy bus rides ... yaknow, the ones we said we'd never do.
I t w a s j u s t k i n d a o k! ... very loud Latin music, 6 mountain tunnels (5 of which, were actually two-way!!!), several sheer vertical canyon drops, many infrequent guard rails sections, cars without brake-lights, cars without headlights during our night-time return, mules and roosters and dawgs crossing, some cobblestone highway, speeds 30 - 90 kmph, leaky air brakes, damperless shocks, no sway or anti-sway control ... FABULOSO ... or, (as Fredy would say) SPEKTAKULAR!
The bus ride itself was probably the most exhilarating part of this part of the route. Our driver, Romano drove us from Banos to Puyo (just inside the Amazon) ... 'This spectacular 61-kilometer road drops nearly 1,000 meters in elevation along the Pastaza Valley to the edge of the Oriente. There are nearly a dozen waterfalls (photos tomorrow) along the Ruta de las Cascadas.'
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| Rio Pastaza |
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The indigenous village we visited, just inside the edge of the Amazon Jungle at Puyo is permanently occupied by 57 people, but at one time had a population of 250. We were favoured with examples and displays of some of their 'old ways' ... dancing, face painting, blowgun hunting. The village natives recreate much of their history faithfully and sincerely; tourists are asked to contribute a very small amount (in our case $1.50 each) which would be used for the repair and on-going maintenance of the community buildings and infra-structure ... we were more than happy to contribute. |
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This Boa Constrictor is a pet and an employable member of a local family ... well fed on local rodents and birds; or I would not have done this otherwise. I could feel the animals muscles and tendons squeezing as I held it though; maybe it was just tired of that steady diet?!? |
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| Golden-manteled Tamarin Monkey ... only the Pocket Monkey is smaller. |
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These sweet young ladies were collecting flower petals for the families 'next table setting'. We saw them a little later swimming in Rio Pastaza. |
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| Our dugout canoes await ... |
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| Overlooking the Pastaza River |
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Well that was different !! ... 1/2 an hour on the CII Rio Pastaza ... 'without a paddle in my hands'! Our dugout canoe leaked badly and had to be bailed constantly by the sterns-man, everyone gunnel-grabbed, a particularity unstable craft, I ripped my pants on an exposed nail, my camera battery died ... way toooo much fun!! |
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| Homes along the way ... |
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| Cascada Hola Vida |
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In Banos
The further we venture, from the large Ecuadorian cities like Quito and Guayaquil, the more enjoyable our time spent, in the smaller villages and surrounding landscape becomes.
1 or 3 days in those cities is enough time to experience any major cultural offerings. Banos is a very pleasant city for walking and features enough history and culture to keep most folks interested. And, it would also appeal to the younger, adrenaline seeking crowd. Many of the extreme sports are well represented here; zip-lining, bungee jumping, ww rafting, mountain biking ...
1 or 3 days in those cities is enough time to experience any major cultural offerings. Banos is a very pleasant city for walking and features enough history and culture to keep most folks interested. And, it would also appeal to the younger, adrenaline seeking crowd. Many of the extreme sports are well represented here; zip-lining, bungee jumping, ww rafting, mountain biking ...
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| One of our better meals ... |
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Banos to Rio Verde
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| Cascade Dgoyan |
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| Cascade Manta de la Novia |
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Even this elderly couple was unsuccessful at trying to convince us to hop on, 'weanies that we are' ... they got on the cable car to return to their granja (farm) on the far side of the river. Then they just disappeared into the mist ... somewhere near Cascade San Jorge |
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| Cascade San Jorge |
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| ... commercial Trout ponds |
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| Rio Verde |
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Pailon del Diablo (Devil's Cauldron)
The Pailon del Diablo is the most impressive waterfall in the region. It is made up of 3 waterfalls, the highest is about 100 meters .
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Banos to Cuenca
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We were well hosted by Edgar (Owner) and his Mom at La Villa del Penon. The hotel is about a 30 minute walk (or $1.50 taxi ride) into the centre square of Banos, this is a quiet location, breakfasts are very good and Edgar is super friendly and helpful in providing information on the local culture and activities. Among other things, Edgar stays awake until the last guest returns to the hotel in the evening, ensures taxi rides are on time and helps with baggage. We even had a wonderful farewell treat of delicious local chocolate - thank you Edgar. If you find yourself in the Banos area, definitely stay here. There is also a friendly house cat and dog on the premises ... |
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| Overlooking Banos |
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| ... a very traditional Ecuadorian cemetary |
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For anyone who is interested ... the Ingapirca Inca Trail's trail-head is located mid-horizontal and near the right side of the photo above ... it's all uphill from there until termination at the Inca Ruins in Ingapirca (Completely cloud covered when we arrived, see stock photo below).  |
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A flood in Cuenca ... timed perfectly for our arrival, torrential rain, dime-sized hail, catch basins spurting runoff upwards of 4' into the road. |
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Cuenca to Olan
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| In Cajas NP |
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| ... wild Llamas |
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Mud slides are an on-going maintenance issue, at many locations along Andean Mountain roads. This one wasn't bad ... some have shut the roads for days, unfortunately, others have resulted in multiple deaths.
Made it to Olon!
We have dos semainos (two weeks) left on this trip and we'll spend one week in Olon and one week in Puerto Lopez.
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We're LOAFin Around
... but without LOAF this time (he's in his winter spa).
Follow along, if you like.
Wikipedia and others have provided backlinks.
All photography is by LOAFin Around, unless otherwise noted.
And finally, here's a link to our complete Quito to Olon photo gallery ... if you're still interested.
All photography is by LOAFin Around, unless otherwise noted.
And finally, here's a link to our complete Quito to Olon photo gallery ... if you're still interested.
Wry and Crusty ...
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