Hike around Leguna Cuicocha

The town of Cotacachi sits at about 8,000 ft. elevation and Leguna Cuicocha is up at 10,000 ft. on the side of Cotacachi Volcano, with and elevation of 17-18,000 ft. Needless to say, the air is a bit thinner than we are used to coming from sea level in Hawaii. Heavy exertion tends to make your chest hurt and you feel a bit light headed, resulting in frequent rest stops. As you can see the views were spectacular with Andean volcanoes in all directions. The lake is actually an extinct crater on the south side of Cotacachi volcano. There are two cinder cones that form islands in the middle of the lake. Although the trail is about 8 miles, it seemed like 20 or 30 as it meandered up and down and around all the valleys and ridges around the lake. If you look closely at some of the photos you can see parts of the trail. These photos are a pan from right to left around the lake, starting with the first photo through the 4th. In the background you will notice terraced farm lands and off in the distance some of the other Andean volcanoes. The final photo reminded us of the many hikes we took up Buster Brown, an old cider cone in Kamuela on the Big Island.

**Forgot to mention that you can click on the images to enlarge them

Cotacachi, Kamuela meets the Teton's

Cotacachi and the surrounding area are unlike any place we have ever been. It's like merging the green pastures, eucalyptus trees and rain forests of Waimea on the Big Island and plunking it down at the foot of the Rockies. Only in this case the mountains are the massive Andean volcanoes and the pastures and farm lands are dotted with quaint villages filled with gentle Indeginas people. The first phota is of the town square with the local cathedral in the background. Second is Cotacachi volcano, which is to the west of town, taken early in the morning from the roof terrace of our hostel. Third is Imbabura volcano, which is on the east side of the valley created by the two volcanoes. Fourth is several local Indeginas school girls walking in a parade. And the last one is a roof top view of the cathedral.

Cotacachi is a beautiful village of about 5,000. It is much cleaner and orderly than the other places we have been so far. They have adopted the tilte of the "Eco city" of Ecuador. The village is surrounded by agricultural land so there is an abundance of fresh produce. Cotacachi is known for it's leather works and the streets are filled with shops selling everything from belts to jackets to boots, purses and vests. And if you can't find what you want, they will custom make it for you.

The weather has been fantastic, high 50's to low 70, with scattered clouds. We start the day with a light jacket and by late morning are down to our t-shirts until late afternoon when it cools off. Pace of life is very relaxed and no one seems to be in hurry. We have met several expats here who have made us feel welcome and are very willing to share information about the surrounding area. We met a couple today who moved here from NY 2 years ago, both high powered business people about our age. They gave us a tour of their home, adjacent 5 star resort and the development they are living in (gated community). They had heard from another fellow we had met that we were visiting and wanted to meet us and show us around. We have found the expat community to be very open and welcoming, I think they just enjoy seeing new faces and exchanging life stories.

The next post will be about the hike we took yesterday and photos of the awesome scenery.

Chow!

Peguche Village & Surroundings

Typical street in the village, la Cascada de la Peguche, Pam with weaver outside her house and village woman drying corn and beans from her garden. They do this right out on the sidewalk or street.
Hasta Manana!!

Faces of Peguche

A bashful little girl on her way home from school. Pam and her new friends, notice they are all eating popsicles. Weaver working on an ancient Inca loom. Peguche women weaving and Peguche cuties walking home from school.
As you can see the people are very striking, the children are so beautiful and happy.

Our walk to Peguche

Peguche is an Indian weaving village about 2 miles from Otavalo. These shots were taken along the way. Sketchy scafolding, call OSHA, this guy is out on a limb with no safety harness. Probably several hundred pounds of concrete in the trough he's working out of. City street sweepers and a typical village home.

Otavalo Food Market

Needless to say, we didn't buy any "fresh" meat that day!! Bulk spices, "fresh" chickens, "aged" meat, street vendor roasting plantains & fruit display.

Sights of Otavalo

Here are some photos taken while cruising around Otavalo town.
Notice the Hummingbird light post with the cathedral in the background. One whole street has different stained glass figures mounted above each light post.
The photo of the woman with the baby on her back is a very common sight. She is an Indegenas Indian dressed in the tradition garb.