From Hostel Kundur we head south past Pasto towards the border. If at all possible the scenery got even more spectacular. Rather than green rolling mountains the landscape became dry and earthy, and even more dramatic. We hugged the side of the mountains, with steep cliff-face on one side and a huge ravine to the other. The bends were so tight that if we looked back we could see where we had been fifteen minutes before, and as we looked ahead could see where we would be in another fifteen. It didn't take us long to get to the border, a couple of hours or so, and we stopped on the way at a very strange cathedral perched in a ravine!
We sailed through Colombian immigration in record time. Within half an hour we had exited Colombia and been stamped into Ecuador, but then got held up for an hour waiting for our import permit. We knew it was too good to be true! But nonetheless it had still been a much quicker and easier crossing than almost all previous borders. Within moments of entering Ecuador we were blown away. Ahead of us the landscape opened up into the most incredible vista, lush fields on our peripheries and a huge valley ahead, encircled by a huge mountain range. Our route took us to the edge of a plateau, where we then started snaking down the huge empty road, round the side of the mountain into the valley. Being late afternoon, the light was just right and I was once again filled with absolute euphoria thinking about just how lucky we were to be doing this.
An hour and a half from the border we had ridden along the valley floor (still at about 2500m altitude) into Otavalo, famous for its Saturday markets which sadly we wouldn't experience as we were arriving on Sunday!
We were staying at Hosteria Rose Cottage, a place I have known about for the last nine years. It belongs to the family of my good friend Rita who I went to school with, and many years ago I heard all about it from her. I never thought I'd be in Ecuador and actually have the chance to visit.
I couldn't be more happy that we did. Rose Cottage is one of the most special, most wonderfully located places that we have stayed so far in our trip. Heading slightly up into the hills from Otavalo, we arrived as the sun was basking the 360 views in golden afternoon light. You could see the whole of Otavalo, a huge expanse of countryside and the spectacular Volcan Imbabura, crystal clear, from the hostel’s hilltop position. We stayed for three nights in the cosy dorm, being fed hearty fresh food and hanging out with the resident horse, donkey and llama, who we became very fond of. We loved just relaxing there, taking in the view from the hammocks, playing table tennis in the shadow of the volcano and drinking tea on the verandah, overlooking the hills scattered with cows and local farmers. It was magical.
We walked through the countryside into the town, where I invested in an alpaca wool jumper and scarf, which I am yet to take off. We also rode up to 3800m to Lake Mojanda, which took our breath away both metaphorically and physically! But mainly we soaked up the clean, fresh air and felt ourselves rejuvenated by the beauty of it all. From Otavalo we head south towards Cotapaxi National Park. We thought it couldn't get any better, but it turns out that Ecuador is packed full of some of the most stunning places I've ever seen. Coming off the main road we had a further 30km on a bumpy track into the deep countryside towards our next hostel - Secret Garden Cotapaxi - where we were staying in a hobbit hole in the side of the hill!
This place has got it so right. Set on the side of a hill overlooking fields of cattle and wild horses, with a volcano on each side. Pasachoa behind us, Cotapaxi straight ahead, and two others to the east and west the names of which have escaped me.
All meals were included and they were generous and delicious. All guests sat together and swapped stories, giving way to a wonderful family atmosphere. Activities were also included – we climbed to the refuge on Cotapaxi, which at 4800m in dense cloud and sideways rain was certainly a challenge!
We also mountain-biked in the national park, and climbed to the summit of Pasochoa all within the cost of our stay. There was a ‘chillout net’ where you could lie snuggled up in rugs under the watchful eye of Cotopaxi, reading your book in the fresh air. There was a Jacuzzi to ease sore limbs after a hard day's hike, and comfy sofas in front of the fire. Add in unlimited free tea and coffee all day and we were in absolute heaven.
By night the stars were some of the most vivid we’ve seen so far (bar being out in the middle of the ocean on our sail to Colombia) and the moon shone so bright there were no need for torches to find the way back to our hobbit hole.
After four days I was a little sad to be leaving this little paradise in the Ecuadorian countryside, but we still had half the country to cross, and with our slowly dwindling budget in mind we needed to get a move on.
