Mindo

We thought that we had seen the last of the cloud forest, but we were wrong! Mindo, three hours out of Quito, is a tranquil town surrounded by vibrant, lush cloud forest. We took a trip on a very basic cable-car and hiked to see countless amazing waterfalls. We were joined on our hike by two very friendly dogs, who fetched sticks and lapped up attention all day long.

The amazingly energetic black labrador, who ran twice the distance that we walked because he was always chasing a stick! Somehow, in this huge forest, he was able to find the exact same stick that you had thrown!

Spotty dog who lapped up the attention, and was always scouting the trail ahead.

Quito

Quito, the capital city of Ecuador, is a huge sprawling urban jungle surrounding the colonial "old town". Every way you turn in the old town there is spectacular colonial architecture, as well as political rallies and heaps of police.

La Basilica was the most impressive church we have seen so far on our travels ... magnificent.

Otavalo

After more than a month in Colombia we crossed the border into Ecuador.  Otavalo is a logical stop over with world renowned art and craft markets, great hikes through the northern Andes and vibrant indigenous culture.

Colored chickens?!?

The 14km walk around Cuicocha Lake (a volcanic lake) was our first glimpse at Andean heathland. 

A big bonus on the hike was the indigenous blueberry fruiting and ripe, providing well needed sustenance along the way!

On a hilltop overlooking the town of Otavalo we made a visit to Parque Condor - a zoo of birds of prey.  We were able to see several species that are difficult if not impossible to see in the wild...such as the Harpy Eagle (the world largest eagle species).

And the amazing Condor!

This male Bald Eagle was the star of the flight demonstration with his amazing aerial acrobatics.