Ecuador: Mud, Coffee and Biodiversity

A lot can happen in two months…or not as the case may be.

Despite a concerted effort to make it over the Ecuadorian border in time for Christmas, the intense riding of previous weeks takes a different pace as New Year comes and goes. Flo patiently waits for a delivery from France whilst I hop back to Lima for a week, and emails bounce back and forth between Cass and I trying to arrange a suitable meeting point in his Trans Ecuadorian exploits.

Mud and change. For dirt road afficiandos, southern Ecuador comes as a bit of a disappointment. The Ecuadorian government’s widescale efforts to improve the roads have largely been succesful and we follow a series of improving roads from well groomed ripio eventually leading to the dreaded asphalt.

Mud

Lowland Ecuador’s muggy day time temperatures, and a salsa soundtrack bring a welcome change to the high Andean villages of previous months.

Street Art

Breakfast comes as a welcome change too. Fresh Ecuadorian Coffee and Tamales complete with leaf wrapper

Breakfast

After Peru’s moody monochromatic landscapes, flourishes of colour begin to catch the eye.

Flowers

Ecuador. Coast, Mountains and Jungle. Many people proudly tell me the country boasts the most biodiversity per square kilometer of any country in the world.

Podocarpus

Hanging out in Loja for New Year, we take a dirt road side trip in to the Podocarpus National Park.

Podocarpus

A dense sub temperate forest, declared a mega diverse zone the meeting point of the Northern Andes, Southern Andes, Amazonian and Pacific ecosystems.

Podocarpus

Amidst the hanging cloud and drizzle, grasses and ridgelines stand prominently. Just over the hill, Ecuador’s Amazon basin.

Podocarpus

Riding north to Cuenca we ride late in to the evening, high above the clouds as darkness falls we eventually crash on a restaurant floor for the evening.

Hills

Before arriving in the city of Cuenca the following day.

Spires

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its Spanish Colonial architecture.

Archway

Fine colonial detail is found everywhere amongst the city’s streets.

Cuenca Architecture

The Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, knew a thing or two about the joys of bicycle travel with his Ode to the Bicycle.

Pablo Neruda

Amor.

Street Art

Produce of Ecuador. Chocolate. 63% cocoa comes as something of a treat.

Chocolate

Bialetti time.

Coffee

Espresso.

Coffee

More Cathedral Spires.

Spires

German Influences.

German

B.G Sojos

Architecture

After all this talk of bio diversity, coffee, chocolate, and architecture. You might be forgiven for thinking I have lost my enthusiasm for cycling.

Trans Ecuador

A motley crew. A harsh taster of the delights of Trans Ecuador and a beautiful vein of Ecuadorian dirt to follow soon.

2 Comments

  1. Tom
    12/02/2015

    Nice to see you made it to Ecuador! I hope you were able to skip Guayaquil. Banos is a must visit! And I feel you made it this far…. Might as well take your bike over to the Galapagos!

    Reply
    • Mike
      12/02/2015

      Ah if only time and budget allowed me to make it to the Galapagos this trip.

      Still I hope to make it some day Tom!

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