Charley’s 14th birthday
June 20th. Spending Charley’s birthday sitting in a mechanic’s yard wasn’t exactly what we had planned. To make matters worse, she’s unwell. We’ve both come down with head colds, and on top of that, the poor kid has a stomach bug and is feeling pretty miserable The original plan was to head up into Cajas […]
cuenca, 14-19 June
a little History Cuenca is Ecuador’s third-largest city. A charming colonial gem nestled in the Andean highlands. Founded in 1557 by the Spanish on the site of a former Inca city. Cuenca has a rich cultural and architectural heritage. Home to over 50 churches—most notably the grand blue-domed Cathedral. The city is also crisscrossed by […]
ingapirca ruins
history 13th June. Perched high in the hills, Ingapirca is Ecuador’s most significant set of pre-Columbian ruin. A quiet yet powerful testament to two cultures layered on one site. Originally built by the Cañari people, who worshipped the moon and lived here long before (500 years) the Incas arrived. The site was later adapted and […]
chimborazo National park
Climbing all the way from Banos, google decided to take us on the scenic route. Usually I second check the routing, but not this time.. oh well, it’s a nice part of the country to explore. We arrived at the park gates after they had closed, but they allowed us to come in and camp for […]
Banos
June 9th. Tucked between steep green mountains and perched on the edge of the Amazon basin, Baños is a little town with a big reputation—for hot springs, waterfalls, and just about every adventure sport you can think of. It feels more jungle like than highlands, with thick mist rolling through the valley in the mornings […]
quilatoa caldera hike
Cotopaxi to Quilotoa June 5. We left Cotopaxi National Park later than planned, probably should have spent the night at the park. But stopping at 3pm felt a little too early. We thought we’d make our way and find a place later to park up. The line on the map from Cotopaxi to Quilotoa squiggled […]
quito & Cotapaxi
history Quito is the capital of Ecuador and one of the highest cities in the world! Long ago, the area was home to Indigenous people, including the Quitu tribe. Later, it became part of the powerful Inca Empire. When the Spanish arrived in 1534, they built a new city on top of the old one […]
the galapogos islands
A big check mark on life’s bucket list. We managed to book a last-minute cruise online—six nights, seven days—for a small fortune, but still 60% less than the usual rate. The plane tickets weren’t as kind on the wallet, but it had to be done. We left Bruce safely tucked away at Andy’s “Coda Vista” […]
the equator
History 24th May. Up early and rolling, we arrived at the Equator monument before it opened at 8 a.m. First visitors of the day, we had the place to ourselves for an hour before the next people arrived. Our guide, who spoke excellent English, gave us a fascinating history lesson and an overview of the […]
ENTERING ECUADOR
May 19th. We don’t usually cross borders in the mid-afternoon, as they can take a few hours, but for some reason today we did. Stamping ourselves out of Colombia was the easy part. Cancelling the TIP (Temporary Import Permit) for the truck was more complicated. The officials needed to email us the cancellation confirmation, which […]
death road & las lejas
The Trampoline of death May 16th. This road is 70 km long, it climbs (or descends, depending on direction) from steamy Mocoa at 600 meters to nearly 2,800 meters in the Andes. We set off early on a Sunday morning in hopes we don’t meet too much traffic. Climbing steadily on the narrow dirt road […]
Tatacoa Desert & Natural History museum
May 14th. There are a couple of ways to reach the Tatacoa Desert, which lies on the far side of the Río Magdalena: either by crossing an old, decommissioned railway bridge or by taking a barge. We’d read reports of lighter vehicles crossing the bridge without issue, so we headed that way. Access was just […]