We headed out early this morning with our guide, Luis. We made our way south along the Pan-American Highway to Cotopaxi National Park, enjoying stunning views the whole way.
We picked up a local national park guide as we turned off the highway and headed to the registration area. (The bathrooms there were some of the most disgusting I have ever seen in my life!!) We continued to an interpretation area where Luis showed us a map of what we would be doing. We had a cup of Coca tea to help with the altitude since we would be hiking to 4810 meters- almost 16,000 feet - and had just been at sea level yesterday!
The road was long and super bumpy since it was under construction. The sun was shining on the mountain and we were very excited to get a photo from the top!
We parked the bus and got ready to hike the Refugio Jose Fribasst. It didn't look that far away, but it was almost straight up the mountain.
As we started to hike, giant clouds rolled in bringing hail and snow and blocking our views below. The altitude hit harder than I expected. I needed to stop every few feet to catch my breath. The dizziness set in next, which made the climbing so much harder. I felt like every time I blinked it took a minute for my eyes to adjust again. By the time we reached the top, nausea had also set in! We thought we had been super slow, but Luis told us that we made it in about 30 minutes... apparently it normally takes 1 to 1.5 hours! I wish we had known this, we might have slowed down a bit!
At the top, it was hailing pretty hard and we were in the middle of a thundercloud. The Ecuadorians were all super excited- many of them had never seen snow before since they live at the equator.
My nausea was pretty bad, so we decided to head back down to escape the altitude, rather than continue on further.
As we got closer to the car, we spotted an Andean wolf. It came to the parking lot to try to get food from the tourists, and many were happy to oblige.
Next, we drove to Lake Limpiopungo to do some more hiking.
We had the option of just taking photos from the viewing platform or hiking around the lake. We were freezing and starving, but we opted for the hike. It was kind of marshy with low plants everywhere. Our guide stopped every so often to tell us about a plant's uses or have us smell unique ones (one smelled like spearmint, another like chocolate). We saw lots of birds and an Andean rabbit.
It was beautiful and we were glad we decided to do it.
After the hike, we headed down the long road out of the park and dropped off our park guide at the entrance. We went in search of a restaurant that would serve cuy (guinea pig) but it was father's day and everyone was sold out already. Instead, Luis took us to his favorite local restaurant and helped us order our meals. Amanda and I shared a couple of options that were delicious and had amazing fresh squeezed juices.
On the way back to Quito, we got stuck in a terrible traffic jam which almost doubled our drive time! The drivers here are crazy. We did get to see an amazing sunset over the mountains. I can't describe how much Ecuador looks like Ireland to me. The shades of green are stunning! The only big difference is that Ecuador is warm.
Once back at the hotel, we realized we were super dehydrated and needed to get some water. We set out in search of a convenience store. It was only about 7PM, but the sun sets at 6PM every day, so it seemed much later. Everything already looked shut down for the night. We met a couple from Minnesota along the way but didn't find a convenience store that was still open. We did find a bakery where we bought giant waters and one of each kind of cake instead! We went back to the hotel, piled on my bed and devoured the cakes while watching a little tv before bed.
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
2 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
3 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.