Ecuador and Galapagos Expedition Dispatch
October 6, 2017 – Guinea Pig Lake Hike
Today we had an early breakfast and then went off on our first hike. We started at 9:30 am and we finished at 2:10pm, less than 5 hours.
The goal was to hike around Cuicocha Lake (Guinea Pig Lake), at the foot of Cotacachi Volcano, a caldera created by a volcano eruption 3,100 years ago.
The elevation is 10,650ft/3,246m and the weather was a mix of cloudy and clear throughout the day.
The wildflowers and vegetation in this area are amazing and quite unique. The team really enjoyed seeing how different the plants are and were amazed by the way that the flowers can survive in such harsh conditions.
The lake’s name comes from Kichwa indigenous language and means "Lago del Cuye" or Guinea Pig Lake in English. The guinea pig plays a big part on the daily life of the locals; they reproduce fast and they make a high protein meal for the populations living in high altitude.
Team photo by the Guinea Pig Lake
Map of our hiking trail
It was completely cloudy when we arrived but it cleared as soon as we began our hike
Sue Macdonald on the trail around Guinea Pig Lake
Chuck Tattrie on the trail
Leah Brulotte
Tina Wei enjoying the hike
Great times hiking around Guinea Pig Lake
Changing views around the lake; we hiked to a maximum elevation of 10,650ft/3,246m. The view of the lake changed as we walked around.
Kodak times!
Leah Brulotte hiking at Guinea Pig Lake
Joaquin described unique plant life of the lake as we hiked
Beautiful wildlife around the lake
We finished our first hike
Guinea Pig Lake - We hiked all the way around the lake