3-months married and off to Ecuador! Thank you to everyone that was able to come to the wedding. We had an absolutely incredible time, and we hope that you did too.
After settling into married life and our new jobs (just in case anyone was worried, settling in included Zion NP slot canyons, So Utah mountain biking, Bryce NP hiking, and a good deal of night biking.... It was time for Ecuador, our Honeymoon, and our second big international adventure.
From SLC to ATL to QUITO, we spent the first night renting a wonderful room in a beautiful colonial home situated in the countryside close to the airport.
<http://www.booking.com/hotel/ec/la-casa-de-la-primavera-aeropuerto-tababela.html>
It was the most comfortable and relaxing home, the best way to spend your first night and morning. I really did not want to leave, and rightfully so, because our plan to catch the late morning bus to Banos was ultimately derailed as soon as we left the comfortable confines of the casa.
After about 1-hour of hanging out on the side of the highway at a gas station, we quit on the bus idea and hired a taxi to Banos ($75 - 3.5 hours on way). Which at the time seemed like robbery, but in hindsight was money well spent. We even got a good deal because the taxi driver had never been to Banos. Disaster averted and marriage on track, we arrived at our posh digs in Banos.
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| Our Honeymoon Suite at Luna Runtun "Adventure" Spa |
As far as Honeymooning goes, Luna Runtun is about as nice as it gets. Not only did we have our own incredible suite decorated with rose petals. We had incredible views through our giant window of the town below. We also had a balcony overlooking the valley in case it got to stuffy inside. Not that it ever got to stuffy, the weather was always a pleasant sixty-five with a sure bet of afternoon thunderstorm. Oh, and the balcony also came with a private hot tub.
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| Views of the Banos valley from our private balcony. |
What really sold us on Luna Runtun was their incredible pools and baths. They did a great job of advertising these incredible pools with photos like the one below on their website.
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| Dani relaxing in one the hot tubs. |
The Tungurahua Volcano is the focal point of Banos and the backdrop for the Luna Runtun Spa. Luna Runtun is situated approximately 800 ft directly above the town of Banos on the flanks of the volcano. Short walks and hikes from the resort offer incredible views of the summit as well as sweeping panoramas of the Banos town/valley.
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| Tungurahua Volcano |
Tungurhua tops out at 16,480 ft providing just over 10,000 feet of prominence when viewed from Banos. The views are breath-taking, and when we arrived in town, the peak was recently frosted with snow from a afternoon thunderstorm. Tungurhua is also a "very" active volcano that since 1999 has had several major eruptions. In '99 and '06 substantial eruptions deposited large amounts of ash and rock that have made travel to and from villages along the east and north flanks very difficult. Banos, situated on the south slope, is less in harms way, but in 99 was only feet shy of final resting place of several lava flows. These lava flows can be viewed from the town, and are a testament to nature, as they are mostly re-vegetated and hard to spot.
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| Dani eating desert at lunch |
With all meals included we spent a lot of time dining on the fantastic food. Ecuadorians do large portions all the time. We had 3-course meals for lunches!
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| Of course the snowman kept the holiday spirits alive and well. |
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| Each afternoon our incredible mountainside existence would be interrupted by an incredible rain cloud. |
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| Up on the hillside overlooking the Luna Runtun hotel. |
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| The entrance to the incredible stone lined pools and spas. |
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| When we were not eating or lounging, we went on hikes up the flanks of the Volcano. Narrow-Jungle trails like the one above interlace the tracts of farmland and serve as quick travel routes for locals to get from point A to B. |
Christmas day was our final day in Banos. We spent a lot of time walking around town watching the community celebrate the holiday and waiting for the bus to return to QUITO ($3 with free movies).
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| Me with Cotopaxi cloaked in the afternoon clouds. |
Except this time we planned to hop off the bus on the side of the Pan-Am highway near the entrance to the Cotopaxi Natitonal Park. In case anyone does not already know, neither Dani or I speak any Spanish. We try to order food and ask for directions, and commonly mistake our successes on verbal communication. When in reality, it was a universal gesture that got our point across. Despite our difficulties, we communicated our plan to the bus driver, and found ourselves again on the side of the highway, except this time in the rain.
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| The truck that we found to take us up to Cotopaxi. |
Not to worry because after only a few minutes of wheeling our luggage down the median, Francisco picked us up in his pick-up truck offering $30 transportation (1-hr) to our planned mountain lodge accommodation http://www.tambopaxi.com/en/
As mountain people, we found ourselves at home in the highlands surrounding Cotopaxi. The national park surrounding Cotopaxi is a protected area and free from civilization and the agriculture that spans most of Ecuador. One the greatest things about Cotopaxi was the weather. Clouds were constantly rolling in and out of the landscape.
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| Clouds forming over the Sincholagua Volcano. |
Cotopaxi National Park also has two other volcanoes that are non-glaciated but quite spectacular. They cried out to be climbed, but we were not equipped for any alpine ascents. We instead focused on trekking around the highlands, taking in the scenery and sweeping landscapes.
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| Indian Paintbrush? |
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| Wild Horses |
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| We just set off across the plains from the hostel with no goal/direction in mind. |
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| Can you tell that we found the clouds awesome? |
We spent 3-days at Tambopaxi in the Cotopaxi NP. On the second day we hiked from the hostel to the Refugio on the north side of the mountain. It was quite an undertaking, and when mapped out totaled ~ 12.5 miles and 3600 feet of elevation gain. The hostel had an awesome "box lunch" deal so that you could be outside and on the go all day.
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| Moving up the flanks of Cotopaxi. Dani looks "cold". |
After climbing a 1/3 or so way up to the Refugio the weather started to really suck. Side-ways rain became the status-quo. Again we were not completely prepared for the elements, and we became quite cold and grumpy. This event now ranks up in the top-five coldest moments ever. As some of you know, I enjoy ranking life's coldest memories, so as to never forget them.
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| Close to the Refugio. |
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| The Refugio Jose Rivas 15,953 feet and a new altitude record for both of us. |
After reaching the Refugio the sun popped out more frequently and made for better lounging weather
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| Dani lounging. |
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| The park and lot and road that we could have taken. |
After Cotopaxi it was off to Quito the capitol of Ecuador. Where we did cultural tourist attractions like museums, architecture, and public gardens. We also visited the "Mitad del Mundo" aka the center of the world. Dani may disagree, but I would recommend others that may share a similar fear of theme parks, exotic road-side zoos and cotton candy to also avoid the Mitad del Mundo.
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| Dani posing with a flower in the Quito Botanical Gardens |
While in Quito we road the Teleferico, an aerial tram, up the slopes of the nearby Pichincha Volcano. Lots of downhill mountain bikers were also riding the Teleferico!
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| Sweeping views with Quito below. |
Quito is the highest "altitude" capitol city in the world at 9,350 feet. The southern section of the city is home to the "old town" and has many beautiful churches and government buildings. It is a great place to walk around and take it all in. Quito also has a great bus system, which allows one to get around the city quite easily for an entire day for a few dollars at most. Also, we would like to give a shout-out our favorite Quito neighborhood restaurant
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| Puerto Lopez fishing boats. |
Next it was off to Puerto Lopez from Quito by bus. This bus ride classifies as my "most" unpleasant bus ride of all time. It rained the entire trip and at 80+ degrees, water was literally falling from ceiling and condensing on every surface. It made sleep near impossible and for a long overnight trip. To top it off - the bus arrived early in Puerto Lopez (4 AM), so we spent a few sleepy hours in the city bus terminal before dawn, when we ventured into the town/beach to stash our luggage at the hotel until check-in. Thank goodness for cribbage and cross-word puzzles.
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| Los Frailes Beach. |
Fortunately we had beaches like this to relax on! and the hotel had bikes that we could ride down the beach. Hostel Bella Napoli: https://plus.google.com/103957613548500451407/about?gl=us&hl=en
Dive Shop:
http://www.maresecuador.com/
$100 per person per day
Watch the video below to see some of the footage from the dives. We saw sea turtles, puffer fish, trigger fish, and even a clown fish! We spent the last day relaxing on the beach. We booked a flight from Manta to Quito to condense our exit travel into one-day, which cost about $100 versus the $4 bus ride, but was well worth the extra day of vacation and convenience.
P.S this video edit is "very" poor. Only family could really enjoy it, but it does give a nice glimpse into our 2-weeks in Ecuador (Banos, Cotopaxi, and Puerto Lopez). Thanks Mallory and Phil for the Go-Pro!
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