El Cajas National Park

Today we boarded the bus and headed to El Cajas National Park for a 3.5 hour hike. The hike was absolutely stunning. It is so hard to describe and hard to tell from the pictures, but this park felt like another planet. The plants and trees all seemed like something out of a fantasy movie (the forest specifically reminded me of the forbidden forest in Harry Potter). We hike up and around gorgeous mountains and lakes at an altitude of 3800m. While still tiring, this altitude felt much more manageable than Cotopaxi (4800m), which had me gasping for air every 5 steps! It was so cool to be able to hike in this national park without a guide or anything. Apart from a few other hikers we passed, it felt like we had the whole area to ourselves. What a cool experience and another epic day.

This has been our last day in Ecuador. We have tickets for an overnight bus tonight that will bring us into Peru... It will be a very long travel day but we have gone to the local candy store to buy some snacks to help us through it 😂. I am excited to continue our adventures in Peru; however, I am very sad to be leaving Ecuador. This country has surprised me in so many ways and surpassed all my expectations. We have met the loveliest and most helpful people here and have been treated to incredible food and culture. The national parks and hikes have taken my breath away! The vastness of this landscape and the preserved beauty is something to behold. So many amazing memories and bucket list items checked off in Ecuador and I know there will be many more exciting things around the corner. For now, so long Ecuador and thank you for being amazing (we will be back 😁).Read more