Ecuador: The Highlands

Ecuador: The Highlands 8 Days

From $3198 USD

Trip URL: www.adventurelink.com/

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Overview

Highlights

Duration: 8 Days
Comfort: 66.6666666666667%
Language: English
Rating: 80.0%
Trip ID: 87661
Start Location: La Magdalena, Ecuador
End Location: Huamboya, Ecuador

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Primary Activities: Walking Tour
Other Activities: historic, Local Markets, History Tour, Local Culture
Activity Level: Intermediate

In Ecuador’s Highlands you’ll walk the Hacienda Trail, a scenic path running between the luxurious accommodations in which you’ll stay. With snow-clad summits and massive volcanic peaks as a backdrop, your days will be filled with unexpected moments. Stroll through picturesque Andean villages, meet welcoming residents, and linger at their frequent festivals. Savor the picnic of a lifetime on the 12,000-foot rim of Cubilche Volcano, or investigate the 1,200-year-old Caranqui Mounds and stop at a condor restoration project.

Go from hummingbird-stitched cloudforests to the wildflower paradise of Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve and Laguna de Cuicocha’s volcanic crater lake. Visit the sprawling market at Otavalo before relaxing at your historic hacienda and digging into a gourmet feast of Ecuadorian specialties. Cap your experience with a visit to a local school, a ride on a gentle Zuleteño horse, and an afternoon in historic Quito, a bustling city of museums, galleries, boutiques, and engrossing stories your guide will gladly share with you.

Itinerary

DAY 1 Transfer from Quito to Pesillo. Pesillo to Zuleta

Following breakfast at your hotel in Quito, you meet your guides and travel companions for the week. Located in a high Andean valley at 9,350 feet, Quito is surrounded by 16,000-foot volcanoes. Quito was the northern capital of the Incan empire, and now, a fascinating blend of ancient and modern—it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site due to its Spanish colonial architecture.

After a brief orientation meeting, you board your private coach to drive north to the small village of Pesillo, your lunch spot, and the starting point of the Hacienda Trail, the route linking eight historic haciendas. Today’s section is a moderate four- to five-hour walk through high Andean grasslands at an elevation of about 9,800 feet. The final destination is the Hacienda Zuleta, your home for two nights. Situated in a wide fertile valley in the Andes, the hacienda is a 4,000-acre diversified working farm with organic vegetable and grain cultivation, a dairy and cheese-making operation, horse stables, tree nursery, and trout hatchery. The adobe hacienda is steeped in history, originally built in 1691, and furnished in Spanish colonial style; it is now owned and operated by the family of a former president of Ecuador. Upon settling into your comfortable room warmed by an individual fireplace and decorated with antiques, you may wish to explore the extensive grounds, gardens, and stables.

In addition to producing agricultural products, the hacienda’s owners are also committed to preserving the natural and human culture of this corner of Ecuador, with a condor rehabilitation project and embroidery workshop. The condor project is dedicated to increasing the population of the endangered Andean condor, while the embroidery project preserves the local art and tradition of hand embroidery.

You are soon ready to make your way to the hacienda’s dining room where you feast on farm-fresh bounty presented in flavorful Ecuadorian style. The menu may include a traditional Ecuadorian potato soup with avocados and queso fresco (a soft cheese), followed by trout grilled with flavorful herbs.

Lodging: Hacienda Zuleta
Description: Steeped in rich history, guest rooms at this hacienda are individually decorated with fireplaces, antiques and hand-embroidered linens.

DAY 2 Zuleta to Cubilche Volcano; 10 miles, moderate to challenging (2,425-ft elevation gain and lo

You awake overlooking the hacienda’s garden to a breakfast table laden with home-baked goods from the kitchen and milk fresh from the dairy. Enjoy farm-fresh eggs to order or French toast with seasonal fruit. On the agenda is a full day of walking departing from the hacienda to the summit of Cubilche, a young volcano at an elevation of 12,585 feet. The walking time to the top is about three to four hours, where you are rewarded with stunning views of the nearby Cayambe Volcano and surrounding valleys. The highest elevation of the walk is 10,700 feet. The Cubilche Volcano has three craters, one of which forms a small lake. A picnic lunch is unpacked overlooking the lush green mixed forest and fields of the high Andean valleys. Refueled and rested, you return to the hacienda with time to relax before gathering this evening.

An alternative walk today leads you along the valley floor to the Hacienda’s Condor Project. Along your walk you will pass some of the 130 Caranqui Mounds which can be found on the property. The Caranqui people were an agrarian-based culture and the original inhabitants of Zuleta from 800 AD until the arrival of the Incas in the late 1400s. Structures including temples and food storage sheds were constructed on top of the earth mounds to protect the buildings from the humidity of the ground. You may also choose to spend your day on horseback. Famous for their horses and riding program, the Hacienda Zuleta offers the unique opportunity to experience a Zuleteño horse. This blend of Spanish-Andalusian, Thoroughbred, and Quarter Horse combines to create a gentle and noble horse–ideal for riders of all abilities.

Dinner this evening may feature artichoke soup and a chicken-and-rice casserole created from a special family recipe. To finish off the evening you may enjoy a coffee with passionfruit pie.

Lodging: Hacienda Zuleta
Description: Steeped in rich history, guest rooms at this hacienda are individually decorated with fireplaces, antiques and hand-embroidered linens.

DAY 3 Zuleta to San Pablo del Lago; 11 miles, moderate (1,250-ft elevation gain and 1,575-ft elevat

Soon after breakfast, you depart Zuleta for the next hacienda on the itinerary, the Hacienda Cusin. The route traverses the undulating pastoral Zuleta Valley to arrive at San Pablo Lake, following country lanes lined with eucalyptus trees and bordered by fields of potato, corn, alfalfa, and wheat, where local farmers might be working with a traditional oxen-pulled plow. A picnic lunch is spread out in a picturesque spot overlooking the Imbabura Volcano. Following lunch, the trail leads you to the small village of Angla and a stop en route at the primary school. Country Walkers has joined our local partners in Ecuador to support this school. With the belief that education is inherent to improving life in communities like Angla, a commitment has been made to this school of 100 children to improve the infrastructure and academics. Your visit will be interactive and will provide a glimpse into the rural life of school children in Ecuador. This stop marks the halfway point to your final destination for the day and a ride is offered if you are interested, allowing a more leisurely afternoon at your next hacienda.

If you choose to continue on, by late afternoon you arrive at the Hacienda Cusin, another gracious historic property located at 8,500 feet and surrounded by seven acres of manicured gardens adorned with fountains. This restored 17th-century estate lies in a broad valley in the shadow of 15,000-foot Imbabura Mountain and the Cotacachi Volcano. Your spacious room, with its antiques, traditional fabrics, and individual fireplace is a comfortable haven after the long walk. Before dinner there is time to stroll the hacienda’s magnificent gardens; where, thanks to its volcanic soils and avid gardeners, you will find a riot of flowers blooming at different times depending on the season—bougainvillea, foxglove, calla lilies, and jasmine among others are a fragrant backdrop to dozens of bird species. For dinner, the hacienda’s chefs create dishes using fresh vegetables from its gardens, meat from nearby farms, or fresh fish brought in from the Pacific; a homemade blueberry pie completes the meal.

Lodging: Hacienda Cusin
Description: A restored 17th-century Andean estate, Hacienda Cusin has snow-capped mountain views reflected in a serene lake. Guest rooms and cottages are tastefully decorated and are connected by cobblestone paths and perennial gardens.

DAY 4 San Pablo del Lago to Pinsaquí

Awakening to a breakfast including freshly squeezed juice, baked goods, and preserves, you depart Cusin and set out on the hacienda trail for your next destination. Today’s route goes through the foothills of Imbabura Mountain, which is actually an active volcano known as Imbabura Urcu, and you are accompanied throughout by magnificent views of San Pablo Lake and valley as well as Fuya Fuya Mountain and extinct Cotacachi. A gradual ascent through cultivated fields of corn, wheat, and potatoes, also traverses acres of lupines (in bloom depending on the season). After several miles of steady walking and a break for a picnic lunch, a sustained descent from the plateau goes through the small villages of Agato and Peguche, eventually reaching your destination, the Hacienda Pinsaquí. Alternatively, you may opt to embark on the coach following lunch for the transfer down to the hotel to allow yourself more time to relax and enjoy the accommodations.

Originally constructed in 1790, this lovingly-restored colonial home once hosted General Simón Bolívar, who spent nights here on his way back and forth to Bogotá. In fact, an important treaty between Colombia and Ecuador was signed under its roof. In addition, the Hacienda Pinsaquí was the site of a textile workshop, employing nearly one thousand local weavers and spinners, producing the region’s famous textiles and weavings, destined for the Otavalo market and beyond. Located north of Otavalo, the hacienda boasts spectacular views of the Imbabura Volcano, 200-year old gardens, stables, a historic chapel, a grand fireplace in the library, and beautifully restored rooms. After exploring the grounds and sinking into your room, you proceed to dinner in the elegant dining room.

Lodging: Hacienda Pinsaquí
Description: Located in the heart of Ecuador's lake district, Hacienda Pinsaquí is rich with centuries of history. The suites have fireplaces, sheepskin rugs, traditional art, and views overlooking the lovely gardens behind the hacienda.

DAY 5 Cuicocha Lake; 6 miles, easy to moderate (460-ft elevation gain and 900-ft elevation loss); O

A full day of walking lies ahead. You immerse yourself in Ecuador’s natural habitats and culture. After breakfast, you drive to nearby Cotacachi-Cayapas Ecological Reserve for a four-hour walk at Laguna de Cuicocha, a collapsed volcanic crater, now a deep, steep-sided lake, situated at 10,200 feet on the lower southern flanks of Cotacachi Volcano. The reserve is part of a system of protected lands from the spine of the Sierra mountain range to the western edge of the coastal rainforest, encompassing many of the Ecuadorian ecosystems including high Andean and tropical forest. You follow a narrow path along the rim of the crater, which offers marvelous views of the striking blue lake, with the snowy peaks of Cayambe, Imbabura, and Cotopaxi in the distance. Among the many flowers growing by the path are several species of orchids, passionflowers, and Puya, a native plant with bright green flowers. Giant hummingbirds visit the wild lupines, and condors can often be seen flying above. At the walk’s conclusion, a stop is made at the picturesque colonial town of Cotacachi—the leather capital of Ecuador—where there is time to browse its streets and shops.

En route to the hacienda, the next stop is Otavalo and its traditional Andean market, where indigenous people come from the surrounding communities to barter or sell their handicrafts and products. Colorful collections of weavings, pottery, paintings, woolen goods, fruit, vegetables, and beans are laid out in hundreds of stalls. In addition to being skilled textile weavers, Otavaleños are also renowned for their musical talents and instruments, each uniquely crafted in a way that is characteristic of the region.

A festive dinner this evening is accompanied by tales of the hacienda trail and toasts to the journey thus far.

Lodging: Hacienda Pinsaquí
Description: Located in the heart of Ecuador's lake district, Hacienda Pinsaquí is rich with centuries of history. The suites have fireplaces, sheepskin rugs, traditional art, and views overlooking the lovely gardens behind the hacienda.

DAY 6 Pinsaquí to Quito; Cushnirumi Cloudforest; 5 miles (1,540-ft elevation gain and 2,525-ft elev

The day’s final destination is Quito; however, the walk en route takes place on the flanks of Cushnirumi Volcano, located on the slope of the larger Mojanda Volcano, where you spend the day in the cloudforest ecosystem. Low-level clouds rise from the coast, where, when encountering the high-altitude forest, they bring mist to enrich a rare evergreen mountain forest, unique to tropical areas nourished by the constant moisture. Incredibly rich in biodiversity, the forest is particularly known for its hummingbird population, among which is the highly endangered black-breasted puffleg flitting among ferns, orchids, and seemingly sky-high trees. The walk transitions from cultivated fields of corn and beans into the cloudforest. After reaching the highest point at 10,400 feet, you are welcomed to an authentic picnic lunch prepared with care. Following lunch you board the coach and follow a road that winds down to the Pataqui Valley, where the locals have been growing tree tomatoes, avocado, and corn for generations, and concludes at the “wild-west” town of San Jose de Minas.

The drive continues three hours south to Quito, where you check into a beautifully restored boutique hotel in the heart of Quito’s historic central district. Well situated for walking, there might be time to visit its churches, monasteries, and shops, or simply relax before dinner.

Lodging: Hotel Patio Andaluz
Description: Situated in the heart of the old historic center of Quito and surrounded by churches, museums, and national monuments; Hotel Patio Andaluz is an elegant boutique hotel.

DAY 7 Pichincha Volcano; 4 miles; Quito city tour

After breakfast in your Quito hotel, you drive approximately 6 miles west to Pichincha Volcano—overlooking the city and the “Avenue of the Volcanoes.” Pichincha is made up of two cones, Guagua and Rucu Pichincha, at 15,670 feet and 15,180 feet, respectively. Guagua, meaning “baby” in the Quechua language, is higher than its neighbor and currently active; it covered the Ecuadorian capital with ash in 1999. Rucu, meaning “old,” is slightly lower and closer to Quito and is inactive. This morning you climb aboard the teleferico (aerial tramway) for the eight-minute ride up the flanks of Rucu Pichincha. From the tramway terminus, a two-hour walk leads from Cruz Loma through Andean Paramo and offers panoramic views of the city and fertile valleys below. Descending by tramway, you proceed to colonial Quito for lunch.

The afternoon is devoted to exploring the city of Quito on foot—visiting its historic center packed with colonial cathedrals and monasteries, and delving into its rich history with your local guide. The first stop is the main square, Plaza de la Independencia, ringed by the Presidential Palace, the Municipal Building, the Archbishop’s Palace, and the Cathedral. Next, you move on to the “Street of the Seven Crosses,” appropriately named for the seven colonial churches, including the church of La Compañía de Jesús built by the Jesuits as a replica of a church in Rome. Continuing on foot to the Plaza San Francisco, which in pre-Inca days was the main tianguez (market) in the Americas, you find a church and monastery dedicated to San Francisco, the latter being the largest colonial building on the American continents. Concluding the group exploration of the center, you have time this afternoon to linger in museums or browse in boutiques and galleries before returning to your hotel. Tonight’s farewell dinner is in one of Quito’s finest restaurants in an historic 19th-century setting. Over creative cuisine, you toast a week of walking in some of South America’s most diverse and magnificent scenery.

Lodging: Hotel Patio Andaluz
Description: Situated in the heart of the old historic center of Quito and surrounded by churches, museums, and national monuments; Hotel Patio Andaluz is an elegant boutique hotel.

DAY 8 Transfer to airport for departure

The tour concludes after breakfast at the hotel, and individual transfers are provided to the airport according to your flight schedule. If you are joining our Galápagos Land-Based Tour, you will be met at the hotel and transferred to the domestic airport for your flight.

Nuts & Bolts

Trip Includes

Two expert, local guides (for groups of 8 or more), with you 24/7
All meals; local wine or beer included with dinners
All accommodations (with private baths) while on tour
Transportation from the meeting to the departure point
Entrance fees and special events as noted in the itinerary
Basic travel insurance coverage (see Travel Insurance section that follows)
The exclusive ease of a mobile phone rental with our Cellhire partnership. Receive preferred calling rates, free phone rental, and complimentary shipping of mobile phones
The unbeatable and cumulative experience of the Country Walkers staff

Trip Excludes

Trip ID#: 87661

CANCELLATIONS: 20% cancellation fee applied if cancelled 60 days prior to departure. Cancellations within 60 days are 100% non-cancelable

Operator

For the specifics on this tour operator, please contact AdventureLink directly.

Reviews (3)

- C. Brown, Illinois

Walking through the countryside of a foreign land puts you smack dab into a country's culture at a pace where you can smell the dirt, hear people's laughter, taste their history, and feel their reality. The walks are tough but the luxury that follows creates a perfect blend of experiences.
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- J. Kahler, Hawaii

Andres was one of the nicest and most knowledgeable guides I have ever had (35+ tours outside of USA). He knew birds, mammals, amphibians, history, and he took individual interest in each person on tour. One of the best parts of the trip was eating local food and talking to so many people as we walked.
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- J. & D. Olen, Wisconsin

Unlike many trips that are great, tons of fun, and very enjoyable...this one seems to leave me with a greater appreciation of life in general...with each footstep we encountered new vistas—the crater lake of a volcano, the hush of the cloud forest, a bustling town market, the fields tended by families working together.
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