Ecuador: Montanita, Quilotoa Loop y Quito

Montanita

I know we're not going to get any sympathy here but after our Galapagos adventure we did feel like we could use a couple of days of simply enjoying the beach and surf in the vibey little coastal town of Montanita...

Joh-nell found this really cool place for us to stay, which we would highly recommend if you ever find yourself in the Southern parts of Ecuador, Kundalini...It sits right on the beach, we literally just strolled out to the closest local surfboard rental stand, hired a couple of dinged-up long boards and enjoyed the warm waves of the Pacific Ocean! 

Ecuador never really featured much in our plans, mostly due to the fact that apart from the Galapagos, we didn't know much about the country...Thus we had no real expectations for what lay ahead...

Quilotoa Loop

The Quilotoa Loop is one of the better known Ecuadorian hikes, and something different to all our previous hikes. The loop is situated in the central highlands of Ecuador, the Cotopaxi province. You hike from village to village, and get to stay over in the local hostels, usually with a breakfast and dinner included. 

The focus of our hike was not just the unique scenery attributed to the central regions of the Andes but more to experience the Andean culture, to come in contact with Kechwa-speaking indigenous people and just witness their way of life. 

After a crazy bus-ride from Mantañita we arrived in Latacunga just after midnight. Not having booked a hostel in advance we were very relieved to find space in a dorm at the backpacker friendly Hostel Tiana. After an early breakfast, some route planning and information sharing between fellow backpackers we hopped on a bus for a two hour ride to Quilotoa, our first village. Quilotoa is famous for its massive, aquamarine lake filling the steep walled crater, which the locals believe has no bottom.

We arrived in Quilotoa, found a nice and vibey hostel. The hostels here reminded us more of a biblical type inn than the usual hostels we've become accustomed to in our travels, which was quite cool in way. As the temperature can easily drop to close to zero at high altitudes (situated at 3889m) they warm the rooms with small aga-stoves. Lekker!

After a delicious roasted lamb lunch we walked along the well laid out walkways on the rim of the crater and enjoyed the beautiful afternoon vistas of the lake, and how the different shades of light reflected from its surface. 

The next morning after breakfast the four of us and Josh, a guy from Seattle who is doing a sort of reality TV YouTube blog of his travels, which I reckon we're now part of, hit the trail on route to our next village and destination, Chungchila. 

Its a 10km hike, taking you first along the crater's rim, before descending down the seemingly endless array of valleys. All the way we enjoyed some spectacular views - distant mountains, hills, valleys, farm-patches, beautiful horses, and just the vastness of the skies above. As the trail is not marked and there are often quite a few paths, and not all of them lead to Rome (or Chungchila), you still had to ask the locals / hikers for directions every once in a while. Keeps you humble in these technology dependent times! 

"Not all those who wander are lost"

Chungchila was pretty much a one-horse town, with the only sign of life an occasional dusty tumbleweed blowing across the street, it was a place right out of Albertus' western novels...We booked into a hostel, Cloud Forest, and enjoyed a proper post hike siesta. At the hostel we also bumped into an Australian couple who we had met about a month ago in La Paz at the death road. 

Okay make that a two horse town

Dinner was as always... a 3 course meal, a sopa (quinoa, pollo or veg) mains- a plate with rice, beans, lettuce&tomatoes, a meat/fish or chicken, postres- fruit, all followed by a cup of té. 

The second day we hiked a 12km route to the next village, Insilivi. It was a fantastic hike, again mostly due to the fact that we didn't have any expectations...

The route took us down into this massive valley that felt like one of those places that have escaped the vices of time. We were spellbound by the views of the surrounding mountains, walked past the most beautiful green pastures, and along a strong flowing river. 

Every now and then you walked past the native people working in their fields, or just going by their daily lives. Beautiful purple flower fields with sweat peas, horse paddocks, pig sties, corn...it's all part of what makes this hike unique...

We were amazed by how incredibly peaceful, happy and friendly all the locals were. Not influenced by advancing technology or trying to keep up with a fast paced lives of the Jones's for that matter. Even though they do not own cars, designer clothes, smartphones or go on destination holidays, they had a certain glow to them, a certain content with life as it is. 

Something tells me this is the right path...

We arrived at one of our favourite hostels yet, Llullu Lama! Situated on a hill overlooking the valley, with a cozy woodfire stove, comfy couches and delicious meals! 

Kristi en Baloo op Llullu llama se stoep!

We had our typical post hike 1 litro beers on the stoep and just enjoyed the stunning views and the relaxed atmosphere. 

The next morning Albertus & myself went for a hike up a nearby hill with panoramic views of the entire valley, and spent some time lazing on the hill and just enjoying the serenity. 
In the afternoon we caught two busses to get back to Latacunga where we left our big bags and stayed over night, eating mexican food at a fantastic little family run restaurant. 

Quito

The next morning we had a relatively short two hour bus ride to Quito, Ecuador's capital! This place played a big part in the history of South America, it was where the seeds of revolution were first sowed and despite Cusco having been the center of the Inkan universe, Quito is literally the center of the world as it is situated right on the equator line! 

Free walking tour - Quito

We stayed at very nice and social hostel, the Community Hostel, and again attended a free walking tour on our first morning to get the low down on what the city was about...We unfortunately only had one day in the busy capital but did feel like we got a good feel for the place, which was perfectly topped off with a rooftop party at our hostel, with great views of the city, cool people, home brewed beer and great local food, on our final night in town...

We left for Colombia the following morning (at 02:00 am) for a harrowing 25 hour bus ride to the Southern city of Cali...ja backpacking is nie vir sussies nie - They say nothing is for certain in life but death and taxes but in South America it's death and taxes and a crying baby on a bus! At least we got to stop at this amazing church built across a river, Las Lajas, just on the other side of the Colombian border. It looks really out of place with its Gothic towers and detailed architecture, nestled in the middle of a lush green valley! It was really one of the most impressive man-made structures that we've seen on this trip! 

Like Bolivia, Ecuador impressed us a great deal...This place is often seen only as a place to fly to when you want to get to the Galapagos or as a long bus ride to get from Peru to Colombia...That couldn't be more misguided...The country has such beautiful and unique natural surroundings, lovely people and a proud culture and is a wonderful surprise in a world where expectations are becoming ever more difficult to exceed...

Adios Ecuador, hasta luego!