Playing at the Equator

June 5 - 13

I did some running back and forth around the equator to maximize my fun.  Enjoy :)

Quito is a high capital city at 2850m (9350 feet) and very green. I took the teleférico up towards Mt. Pichincha and then climbed the remainder of the way to 4694m (15400 feet). The air was definitely very thin up there and the clouds were obscuring any view I might have had from the summit. Anyway, its always great to get out and hike.

Basilica del Voto Nacional

Plaza Grande

While in Quito the Pope came to town so I went down to the old airport to see the mass of people. Here's what it looks like.

I ended up backtracking to Latacunga (2 hrs west of Quito) so I could go do the Quilotoa trek. Its similar to Crater Lake and I felt that I should check it out as well as enjoy a small trek there. I met a Swiss guy named Matt at the hostel in Latacunga and we ended up hiking this trek together in 2 days. The Swiss definitely hike quickly and it was nice to have someone go my speed. The countryside around Quilotoa is beautiful and it makes me wonder if most of Ecuador is like this and the tourist just doesn't see it.

I love how I can be right on the edge.  This would not be the case back home. haha!

Cloud Forest Hostel

A bridge that has seen better days...:)

Talkative pig :)

After returning to Latacunga, I decided to do a 1 day trip to Cotapaxi where we were supposed to be able to climb to the bottom of the glacier. Well the weather was so bad (80km wind and sleet being blown into our faces so hard it stung) that we only made it to the Refugio. That's still at an altitude of 4800m. I met couple from New Mexico, Lucio and Cat who were awesome and I decided to go north with them to Otavalo so I had some great people to hike Laguna Cuicocha.

Lucio is from Mexico although he doesn't look like it.  Cat is a world traveler and is showing Lucio how great it is to travel.  They're both teachers and make a great couple.  In Otavalo we visited the market and we all came away with something.  I did end up buying some colorful orange and red pants that will be good for the hotter climate up north.  Look for a picture of them in a future blog post.

Beautiful colored yarn at the market in Otavalo

Hiking around Laguna Cuicocha was nice even though the day wasn't sunny.  Its another volcanic lake with a couple islands in the middle and about 14km around.  It made for a nice day hike with Lucio and Cat.  

I ended up coming back to Quito so I could see Sal & Gisela.  Its always great seeing them and I consider them my family.  I had some good Indian food with them and Lucio.  Then we made an afternoon trip to Mitad del Mundo (middle of the earth) or where the equatorial line is. I didn't feel like paying money to go see the line as I did that the last time I was here in 2008. So I took a picture of the monument from the entrance.  

Middle of the World

Peace of Vilcabamba

June 27 - July 3

I spent about 1 week in Vilcabamba which has a reputation as being the valley of longevity. Its a very pleasant climate and a peaceful valley.  I stayed at Hostería Izhcayluma. ( http://www.izhcayluma.com/en/ ) The place is like a resort but I paid hostel prices for the dorm. :)

Yoga Shala

Dorm patio area

Looking out from the dining area

Beautiful rainbow and sunset

There was lots of great hiking and I ended up hiking with 2 Canadian gals, Justine and Carlee that didn't smoke and could move up the trail at a good pace.  The not smoking part was great as I hike with another group and there was someone that was smoking along the hike and it really made it unpleasant.  Justine and Carlee were great as they acted like a married couple at times, which amused me greatly.  One would say something but the other would interject that it wasn't that way.  Thank-you girls for the laughs that we shared.  Enjoy South America.

The mountains reminded me of Hawaii

My plan for Ecuador is to not spend that much time as this is my 2nd time here and I've already been to Baños and Galapagos in 2008.  I am anxious to spend more time in Colombia and so I hope to get there before August.

Bugging to Ecuador

June 25 - 27

I was in need of a different kind of travel adventure, when I decided to ride in a VW Bug that a German guy bought in Peru.  His name is Christian and he was headed to Vilcabamba Ecuador.  I knew it was going to be an adventure when he mentioned the brakes didn't work well on it.  I spent half a day with him on getting that sorted out.  Turns out the rear brake line from the proportioning valve had a hole in it.  He was also concerned about the engine when it came to the oil level.  It didn't appear to be leaking to much, but I think he was concerned about oil gumming up one of the spark plugs.

The trip was going to take 2 days from Huanchaco Peru to Vilcabamba.  The first day we would go as far as Piura and then the remaining the 2nd day.  This seemed simple enough and would equal that of a bus journey.

We left around 9am in the morning and motored along at 80km.  Our speed impedance were the notorious Peruvian speed bumps and paying numerous tolls. (we went through 4 or 5 toll booths.)  We made it to Piura before sundown and had time to walk around.  In the plaza there were a lot of people watching Peru vs. Bolivia in the COPA games.  Peru had no trouble in winning that game.

Our plan was to get up early so we would have extra time at the border in case it was needed.  Well that night there were a lot of noisy people coming and going out of the hotel and we didn't sleep well.  We got up later at 8:30am and headed for the border.  We made it there before noon time, but ran into a snag as Christian thought they had given him 90 days to be in Peru when it was only 30 days.  So he had to pay a $50 fee which required driving 15 minutes back down the road to the next town with a bank where they handled the transaction.  I think the Immigration people are being sneaky as they only gave me 60 days even though I'm allowed 90 days.  I think they're doing the reduced days so they can get people with the fine.  So if you travel to Peru, make sure they give you the full 90 days.

After we got checked out of Peru, we crossed a bridged over the river that is the border.  It was easy to get the Ecuadorian tourist card, however the registration for the car held us up for 5 hours.  They didn't have power so they weren't able to process the card even though they tried making copies and were going to send it to another city where Christian could get processed.  While waiting I walked back across the bridge and bought some piña since we both were thirsty.  I decided I was willing to take the gamble on drinking the untreated water and see if my stomach would be fine.  Bad decision as I noticed it wasn't happy later that evening.

The power came back on around 5pm and the paper work was processed in 10 minutes.  The road wound its way up into the mountains immediately and our racy-red Bug bugged along in 1st gear.  Every time Christian had to shift from 2nd to 1st, it would grind as the 1st gear synchro was bad or maybe the Bugs don't have that.  On the way down the mountain we heard something metal smacking the bottom side. We stopped to see what had fallen off, but it must have been something he hit in the road.  However further along we heard something rattling loose in the engine bay.  We stopped again and this time we found that the nut that held the air cleaner top on had come loose.  Luckily it was sitting in the engine bay.  We bugged on, slow on the climbs, and fast on the down hills.  After a while the Bug started running rough.  We stopped for fuel and I took a look at the carburetor and discovered that the sensor wire from the distributor to the carburetor had come off.  With that reattached it ran much better for a while.  As we were descending to Loja, the Bug started running terribly.  Since it was already almost 11pm, we decided we would spend the night there.

Ah, the adventure is not over as the next day the Bug still ran bad and we took it to a mechanic.  Basically the engine needs to be rebuilt and so that will cost $600.  That was devastating news to Christian as he had already invested so much in it.  I told him owning a car is like being married.  You have to do maintenance and there are costs associated with it.  I think he's getting a better picture of that now. haha!  The mechanic thought we would make it to Vilcabamba which was only 40km away.  We started out and the first big hill was just to much for it.  I got out and did a song and dance with the Bug.  Christian would rev the engine up and then drop the clutch, while I was outside pushing my heart out.  We did this song and dance several times until we crested the hill.  I was beat and all to happy to get back inside and enjoy the drive down the hill.  We made it to Hostería Izhcayluma and that was goal.

I hope you've enjoyed reading this traveling adventure of mine.  I think its things like this that make traveling exciting and worth the journey. :)

Coastal Rest In Huanchaco

June 22 - 25

I took an overnight bus from Lima to Trujillo which is 9 hours up the coast.  I actually stayed in Huanchaco, which is a small town on the coast.  It was very peaceful and nice to have a few days to chill.  I saw a really nice sunset and also met backup up with Sal & Gisela whom I met 4 months earlier on the Navimag ferry in Chilean fijords.  They're one of the nicest couples I've met in my travels and it was nice spending a day with them.  We went and walked the ruins of Chan Chan (pre-Inca ruin) which has huge courtyards and many carved shapes into the rock hard earth.  It rarely rains here, so things have been preserved fairly well.

Huanchaco

This dog enjoys the ocean :)

Beautiful sunset

Grass boats

Chan Chan