Ecuador Volcanoes Expedition Dispatch
November 20, 2015 – Our First Three Days in Ecuador
Our expedition is officially arriving tomorrow, November 21st but Margaret, from Australia, decided to arrive a few days earlier and do some sightseeing and acclimatization hikes.
Margaret standing on the middle of the world
Margaret and Ted by the Middle of the World Monument
City of Quito
Margaret at the Quito old town
Iglesia de la Compañia de Jesus
Margaret at the Mindo-Nambillo Ecological Reserve
Let’s try some local fruit smoothies
Our next stop was a Butterfly farm where there is 3,200 species of butterflies, many of these species are endangered.
If you rub some fruit on your finger and hold it out to a butterfly, they will come right onto your hand
Beautiful interesting trees at the Mindo-Nambillo Ecological Reserve
Margaret going out for dinner with Osvaldo and Sergio who has just arrived from Bolivia and Joaquin, our great Ecuadorian guide
Quito by night
Acclimatization hike at volcano Guagua Pichincha
Left: Volcano Guagua Pichincha has a sign for no trespassing and attempt to approach the crater; Righ: Margaret and Ted
Margaret and Osvaldo
We made it to around 4,650m; we turned around 300m from the final summit because a hail storm started that singles the start of an electrical storm. Great acclimatization day!