Hobos Heading Home

With a week left to go before heading back to the US, Liz and I decided to leave Baños and make our way north to Quito with a stop or two along the way. Apparently one of the ´must-dos´in Ecuador is the Quilotoa Loop. Surprisingly, however, we asked a Danish girl in Baños (who had been living in Quito for 3 months) about the Loop and she and her friend seemed to have no clue what we were talking about. Had I asked them about a specific discoteque I believe they could have given us all the details in regards to cover charges, drink specials, etc. Just one more tourist on a different trip than us.

So the gist of the Loop is that you leave Latacunga early in the afternoon and approximately 2 buses run in each direction. There are a couple of small towns along the way with basic accommodation and it is suggested that you spend about 3 days making your way around the circuit. No bus does the entire loop in one shot, but it would take roughly 6 hours to do so if that were possible. A dirt road takes you through an incredible valley with a number of canyons and mountain views along the way. The road is about a bus and a half wide so it is always an interesting and nerve wracking situation when you come head on with another bus. If you are ever to do this trip, and heights are an issue for you, then I would highly recommend that you sit on the side of the bus opposite the valley. There are times when the tires of the bus are inches from the road´s edge which then becomes a straight drop to the valley floor. I was quite surprised not to see the occasional heap of twisted metal a few hundred feet below us, but then again, there is probably not much left at that point.

After four hours of some very impressive driving we got off at the final stop in Chugchilian and found a hostal we had heard good things about. Since there was basically no where to eat in this very small town our hostal included breakfast and dinner in their $8 per person rate. After talking to some other travelers about things to do we decided to catch the 5 am bus the next day to head to the town of Quilotoa and see the crater lake which it is famous for. Unfortunately all the buses run at unreasonably early hours.

The next morning we caught the bus along with a guy named Renee (Dutch) who was also staying at our hostal. After getting off the bus we made our way over to the rim of the lake and took a long look down. One of us said, ´Well, should we walk down?´Liz and I were hesitant since we had already seen a similar lake and our plan was to hike back to Chugchilian which would take six hours or so. Despite admittedly not being in that great of shape, and at an altitude of 3,800 meters, Renee was all for going down to the bottom. Liz and I kind of decided, ´Why not, we don´t want to deny the guy the chance to be awed by nature and snap a few photos.´Long story short, we made our way down, and then very slowly made our way back up. By this point we were all a little tired and had already ate all the food we had for the rest of our upcoming hike. I should mention that the night before when Liz and I searched Chugchilian for some food to take there was absolutely nothing except a ton of bananas. We decided to make a go of it anyway by using the map that had been passed on to us by the couple who hiked the trail the previous day. We had been warned of wrong turns, crazy dogs, and missing trail markers. After only half a mile of walking we were already lost and even more tired and hungry. Unfortunately we have found the trails in Ecuador to be poorly marked. So after a brief discussion we decided the best thing to do would be to turn around and get some food. In hindsight this was a very smart thing to do.

Quilotoa Crater Lake

Renee and Liz making their way down

After eating we headed out to the main road to see if we could flag down a car or catch the day´s only bus that would be passing by around 2:00. After being offered a ride for $20 the bus came and we got on. Buses will stop for just about anyone in order to make an extra buck regardless of how much room is available. In our case, no room was available in terms of western standards, but we were allowed on regardless. Not only was the amount of room enough to keep a sane person from getting on this thing, but the smell was extremely intense to say the least. Liz and Renee squeezed on and then it was my turn. The only spot unfortunately at this time was one that allowed me to hover above a woman sitting on the ground breast feeding her child along with a woman next to me who had a couple of baby chicks in her bag. So I now have to say that I am astounded by the number of women breast feeding in public that I see on a daily basis. I am not trying to be immature at all here. I just can´t get over how old some of these women look from working outdoors there entire lives and how old and big some of these children are. Some must easily be two or three years old. They are huge and it is happening wherever you go.

That night Liz and I decided that we had had enough of the Loop and it´s poor marked trails and we should try to move on to something a bit better. After some thought we decided to head northwest to another little place called Mindo. Mindo has some of Ecuador´s last remaining cloud forest and some outdoor activities as well. We figured this would be a much better place to pass some time rather than heading to Quito right away. So after another early morning bus (3 am this time), a change in Latacunga, and a failed bus catching attempt in Quito which led to us paying for a cab, we arrived in Mindo around noon.

We have been using the Lonely Planet along our trip to help us get from point A to point B, as well as to find places to sleep and eat. Going by what the LP had written about the hostal we chose in Mindo we thought we were in for a great budget option, but unfortunately we ended up with a complete dud. Why we didn´t just walk out I do not know. This place was easily the worst place we stayed in on our entire trip. Musty, dirty, a room that didn´t lock from the inside, a hole in the wall to the outside for vermin to come and go, damp, etc. etc. We already paid our ten dollars but decided to switch as soon as we woke up the next morning, if we could even ever fall asleep. Liz heard scratching noises above her bed at times during the night.

Over the last 6 years Liz and I have been very dedicated to the LP, but have now decided to support another guide book that meets our needs. LP has some great maps but we have also found alot of their information to be inaccurate and out of date. Apparently alot of the writers don´t even visit the places that are mentioned. We do realize that tourists do make contributions and that collaboration does take place, but there are also better options for travel guides out there. Also, once a hostal gets mentioned in the LP you can be sure that the price of that place is going to go up too.

Mindo was a cool and fun experience in the end. We had fun hiking around the surrounding areas, went swimming at a waterfall, visited a really cool butterfly sanctuary, and simply relaxed and had the occasional ice cream. One thing that humored us were the number of stray dogs around Mindo and how they would follow you around for extended periods of time. I guess they hoped to be adopted or at the very least to get some food off of you. One day we actually had three follow us in the span of only an hour or so.

The cute but not to helpful cartoon map of Mindo

Two of our companions

Once we had had enough of Mindo we decided to head to the capital and spend our last 2 and a half days in South America seeing what Quito has to offer. We have heard mixed reviews about Quito so we were not in any rush to get there. Mostly what we had heard was about crime. Everyone knew someone who had been mugged if they themselves had not. Liz and I, however, were not too concerned despite the negative reports. I hope I am not about to jinx us, but we have been lucky over the last six to seven years of serious travel and we feel we are fairly aware of our surroundings. Most of the people we have heard about we assume were out late at night and using poor judgment.

When you have money to burn, why not splurge for the finest linens and towels Quito´s hostals have to offer.

This towel seriously came with the room

So after two days of cruising around Quito, and four hours left before we head to the airport, I can only cross my fingers and hope that we don´t become unfortunate victims of street crime. Luckily Liz still has her can of mace which has only been used once, and that was on me after a late night trip to the bathroom - I am only kidding. All in all though this has been an absolutely amazing trip and we have been very fortunate that nothing has gone wrong over the last 3 months. I am quite surprised when I look back on our travels through South America because in a way it could not have gone off more perfectly.

As for the next two months before we head to Jakarta, Indonesia... well, the plan is to buy a home on the Virginia coast so we have a place of our own during the summer months. We plan to get that in order as soon as we return to VA on the 18th. Other than that, a few road trips to see some friends, maybe camp some more, and hopefully be in our own place come the end of June. I am sure we will see some of you, and if not, our doors will always be open in Indonesia and VA. Keep following our travels here and be sure to keep in touch.

As always, click on the following links if you would like to see more photos:

Quilotoa Loop
http://picasaweb.google.com/lizhaske/QuilotoaLoopEcuador?authkey=Gv1sRgCOPg1pDQp-DDggE

Mindo
http://picasaweb.google.com/lizhaske/MindoEcuador?authkey=Gv1sRgCPqrnbGT0rnj6wE

Quito
http://picasaweb.google.com/lizhaske/QuitoEcuador?authkey=Gv1sRgCKzCnomnqJ3QUA