HIKE, BIKE, RIDE, AND RAFT- 5 DAY TOUR

Ecuador is a country whose geography can be best summed up by the phrase de todo un poco — “a little bit of everything.” Snowcapped volcanoes straddle the equator; steep mountainsides and lush emerald valleys are a patchwork of corn, potatoes, and other crops developed by pre-Colombian peoples; rain forests and their close cousins, cloud forests, harbour a multitude of bird and plant life.

In 1998, when the famed Raid Gauloises endurance race was held in Ecuador, the physical challenges of this geography proved equal to its beauty, and some participants described the competition as their toughest race ever. Despite the difficulties, we recognized a good idea—albeit in need of our special touches. Therefore, we begin our Ecuadorian adventure in the Andean highlands, from where we'll make our way by foot, horseback, mountain bike, and raft to the tropical lowlands.

Itinerary

DAY 1 - Fly to Ecuador
Leave your hometown and fly to Quito, Ecuador. Upon arrival in the late afternoon or evening, you’ll be met by a Travel Ecuador representative and transferred to your hotel.

DAY 2- Hiking from Pesillo to Zuleta
After breakfast we'll leave Quito and head northeast to Pesillo, a small village about three hours away from the capital. From Pesillo we'll hike along an old hacienda trail that once linked some eight haciendas. Our hike will take approximately three hours, and we'll stop for a picnic lunch along the way high up in the Andean grasslands (altitude approx. 9,800ft). We’ll arrive at Zuleta in the afternoon, a 4,000-acre hacienda that dates back to the 1600s and is one of the few large working farms left in Ecuador. The farming operations include numerous vegetable crops, a eucalyptus farm (the wood is used for fax paper), and a herd of dairy cattle (don't miss out on trying the superb mature cheeses). The early evening is free to relax and enjoy the exquisite peace and beauty of the hacienda.
B,L,D…Hacienda Zuleta

DAY 3 -Horseback Riding and Hiking at Zuleta
In the morning we'll enjoy a traditional hacienda breakfast and afterwards a traditional hacienda activity—horseback riding. Zuleta’s horses, or Zuleteños, are a special breed of Andalucian. Our path takes us up to the ridge behind the main hacienda house, and from here we can see much of the hacienda, nestled in a lush, fertile valley. Volcano Cayambe provides a dramatic backdrop, and we may also see the peaks of Imbabura, Cotacachi, and Fuya-Fuya. On our return, we will stop at the artesanal cheese factory to sample Zuleta's mature cheeses. The varieties include several jack cheeses, danbo, and Angochuagua (named after a nearby village). In Ecuador, most cheese is queso fresco—fresh cheese—but Zuleta’s varieties are becoming more popular. Save room for lunch, though, because the hacienda’s own fresh grilled trout is on the menu, along with homegrown vegetables and some Andean specialities such as llapingachos (potato cakes), and torta de arroz (an amazing rice dish). In the afternoon we'll also visit the Zuleta embroidery workshop run by local indigenous women and founded by the late President Galo Plaza Lasso and his wife, whose descendants still own Zuleta.
B,L,D…Hacienda Zuleta

DAY 4 - Mountain Biking to Bellavista Cloud Forest
We'll leave Zuleta and make our way to one of the world’s most biologically diverse areas, the Choco bioregion, which follows the western cordillera of the Andes from the high peaks to where the mountains, now mere rolling hills, sink into the Pacific on the northwestern coast of Ecuador. We will drive for about two and a half hours, then for the remainder of the journey head off on mountain bikes until reaching Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve, in the heart of Choco. The mainly downhill ride from Nono to Bellavista is not technical, and we’ll take a break from our bikes to enjoy another picnic lunch en route. Bellavista lies in the cloud forest, which means the precipitation here is almost that of the rain forest, but because of the altitude (5,000 to 7,000 feet) some of that moisture comes in the form of a nearly constant cloud cover and cool mist (average temperature is 65 degrees). When we arrive at Bellavista in the afternoon we can begin exploring the network of trails, or relax in the domed lodge and count the different varieties of hummingbirds. The forest surrounding Bellavista has the greatest diversity of epiphytes (plants that grow on other plants and take nutrients from the air) in the world, including a profusion of bromeliads, orchids, mosses and more.

DAY 5 - Rafting the Río Blanco
In the morning, early risers can take a birding hike around Bellavista (the species list here includes more than 300 birds). After breakfast, we drive from Bellavista to Los Bancos, where we begin our rafting trip down the Upper Río Blanco River. Rafting through the valleys and canyons at the lower end of the scenic Mindo Cloud Forest Reserve, we'll cover some 20 miles on this trip. The river begins with tight and steep Class III rapids and, as the Blanco meets the Mulaute, finishes with enormous waves and hydraulics. We stop at one of our favorite beaches along the way to have a riverside lunch. In the afternoon, we'll head back to Quito (three hour drive).
B,L,D…Swissôtel

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