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| Cajas |
After my day of rest I was feeling a bit better. I was now able to eat bread and tea so I was making some improvements. We took advantage of my improved condition and headed to Caja for the day. Cajas is a national park that we were told we had to visit. After an hour and a half bus ride we were at Cajas. We talked to the park rangers and they gave us a map and showed us the different routes we could hike through the park. We decided on a 5 hour hike that would take us through a good portion of the park but still get us back in time for the last bus back to town, which left at 6pm.
We headed out for the trail. We had bundled up with long johns, scarves, hats, and hoods up. There was a misty fog over everything. Not only did the fog keep you cold and damp, but it also impaired our vision. The rangers told us not to leave too late for the hike, because it was not uncommon for the fog to settle in really low and thick and for people to lose the trail and get lost and die. I thought that was a bit extreme but apparently it has happened quite a few times. Enough said … we headed out straight away.
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| Low Clouds over Cajas |
The hike was beautiful. Around every turn was another amazing view. We saw rivers, cascades, lagoons, birds, foxes, llama, and lots of flowers. I could have easily spent a week hiking in Cajas, except for the cold. I’ll have to come back in the summer months. We crossed little streams, hopping from one slippery rock to the next and I was just bidding my time before I slipped in and got wet. It wasn’t the rivers that got me in the end it was the swamp. I would have taken the river over the swamp in a heartbeat. Unfortunately when we were there it had been raining and everything was very muddy. Most of the hike this had just meant a little mud on the trail, but we came to a low spot where the water had accumulated and it was a mess of deep black mud. We started picking our way through, going from fallen limb to rock and using the nearby branches for balance. I guess I got too confident and ended up misstepping almost at the end and dunked my foot, mid calf high, into the mud. At this point I was starting to feel pretty weak again and add to it a nasty muddy squishy foot. It made for a long rest of the hike. Luckily we were almost done by then.
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| Laura making a goofy pose |
We arrived back at the main gate, Laura in the lead and me staggering in behind. I’m sure the park ranger was laughing inside. We had plenty of time to spare before the last bus. We got cleaned up a bit then headed for the bus stop at the top of the hill. We had half an hour before our bus. We sat and waited in the cold trying to shield ourselves from the wind in the little bus stop. Finally we see the bus rounding the corner and heading our way. We waved for the bus to stop, so happy to be finally out of the cold and on our way back to Cuenca. We were both shocked, however, when the bus went flying past us. Let me just remind you that this was the last bus into town until tomorrow. We both didn’t know what to say. We kept reassuring ourselves that there had to be another bus coming. At this point two women and a small boy walk up from the park. They sit next to us in the bus stop and begin to wait. This is a reassuring sign and we are now convinced that there will be another bus. We wait and wait and then a truck comes around the corner and the ladies get up and flag it down. They start heading to the front of the truck then ask us if we want to come as well. Dumbfounded we didn’t know what to do. We asked them if there would be any more busses and they said no. We then quickly accepted the ride, but the front of the truck was full. We were then lead to the back of the truck, which looked like could be housing livestock. We held our breath as the driver opened the back doors. What a relief when the back turned out to be empty. It had held livestock at some point though, evident because of the wood chips covering the floor and the poop everywhere.
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| Scary but pretty plant |
We found a somewhat clean spot and got comfortable for the long ride. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a photo and I was just reaching into my bag to pull out my camera when the truck stopped. It was much too soon to be in Cuenca yet, and we heard a lot of voices. Then we hear the back doors opening. When we look out there is a crowd of about ten Ecuadorian men, who look just as shocked to see us as we are to see them. They proceed to get in and fill the back of the truck. Laura and I were a bit nervous at this point. I had all sorts of scenarios playing out in my head. They all huddled around and started talking to us. Turns out they were really nice guys. They were working on the construction of the highway. We talked for the rest of the ride sharing information about each other’s country and culture. It turned out to be a great little adventure… and we saved on the bus fare.
Christina
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| Lagoon overgrown with reeds |
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