Ecuador

For some reason the name Cotopaxi has stuck with me since my high school geography classes. A mythical mountain the other side of the earth. And suddenly there it was in front of me!!

Cotopaxi

At 5897metres ( 19,347 ft) and only just south of the equator it has glaciers and permanent snowfields far down its slopes. The volcano is still active with the last eruption being about two years ago.

I had a fairly easy border crossing from Colombia into Ecuador and then a 5 hour ride south to the capital Quito. This country is so mountainous with such extreme changes in temperatures between the mountain passes and the river valleys it was difficult to ride with the right gear to ensure you either did not freeze or fry, all within a short period of time.

Quito, old town with the National Cathedral, Independence Plaza and Presidential Palace was very cool but apart fro that the city, to my thinking was not that exciting. 

National Cathedral

Independence Plaza

Old Town Quito

Of course I had to get the obligatory photo crossing the equator which is just a short distance north of Quito

A foot in the north and one in the south

I met up with my German friends, Dieter and Katarina who I first met onboard the Stahlratte crossing from Panama to Colombia and we decided to travel together down to Cotopaxi National  Park. We found a wonderful Hacienda by the name of El Porvenir which was very rustic looking but fabulous on the inside with such incredible old-world charm - big fireplaces and fantastic food. The first night I stayed in the “attic” which is a series of small rooms divided by thin mat walls. After a night sitting around the roaring fire with freezing temperatures outside at an altitude of 3500 meters and having eaten an incredible meal in the dining room I slept like a log.

Hacienda El Porvenir

It was a about 4 km to the entrance to the national park and we decided to walk along a road with gorgeous views of not only Cotopaxi but other lesser volcanos in the area. On the side of the road there were a few cows and as Dieter and I got near them one of the cows seemed to be taking undue interest in us. The rest of the herd completely ignored us. This old girl was obviously having a very bad day and decided to take out her frustrations on the two of us - she charged, with head down and sharp horns lowered she stopped no more that three feet from me. I took off my backpack and swung it at her right at the point where I thought she was going to hook me with those not very friendly horns. She missed me and then took off at a run to find her calf in the stream bed below us. - the real reason for her aggression. 

A friend I met on the way

And another

Old man of
 the mountain

Onwards east to Coca in the Amazonia region of Ecuador and the Napo river, a tributary of the Amazon. I have read that it is possible to catch a series of boats here and arrive in Iquitos Peru. If this works out it will not only save me a lot of riding south in Peru but will allow me to see a not well travelled part of the Amazon basin. If this works out I might be out of touch for the next few weeks