This post contains the second portion of 169 photos telling the story of my almost-three weeks in the small mountain town of Baños, Ecuador.
For more information regarding my early time in Baños, please see part one of this photo post.
If you are an email subscriber, you will likely find part one further down in the same email (for whatever reason, when I post multiple posts in one day, the email distribution software always puts the newest post first).
As usual, the photos in this post are thumbnail images. Please click on any photo to enlarge it. The thumbnails leave much to be desired as far as colors and resolution – plus the thumbnails clip all of the edges. I use thumbnails for the post itself, because it gives people an opportunity to get a summary glimpse without downloading huge amounts of data for the high-res photos.
CLICK ON ANY PHOTO TO ENLARGE TO HIGH RESOLUTION
Jungle Tour
I tried to do a jungle tour on June 25, and I even made it onto a bus, but at only ten minutes outside of town, we got stuck in a huge line of traffic that was blocked by yet-another large mudslide. After waiting for nearly an hour, our bus turned around and took us back to town. The travel agency gave me a full refund, and I returned to my hostel to wait for better weather. Finally, on June 27, the rains began to let up. The agency assured me that the jungle would be hot and dry, and that as long as there were no mudslides, that we would be fine. To our dismay, we were again stopped by another mudslide … but this time, after a half hour wait, one lane was cleared and we were able to get through. Our only unknown factor was whether or not we would be able to get home later that same evening.
I did not start out very happy, and my face shows that mood. My travel agent had assured me that I would be part of a small personalized tour, with no more than four or five of us in a minivan. I ended up on this large crowded bus because the agency did a “bait-and-switch”, combining several last-minute tours together.
I eventually found my smile again, but the first hour or two were difficult as my mood just continued to flow…
A photo of the dam as we leave town … headed down the valley toward the Amazon jungle.
These early photos are in the same part of the road where I took the waterfall tour a few days earlier … only this time I can see out of the window.
There are several tunnels in places where the mountain might otherwise not allow traffic.
We had been having so much rain, and the ground was so saturated with water, that it was literally raining inside of this tunnel, with some small waterfall-like places.
Leaving one tunnel, with another coming up in the distance.
This is the place where we hit the mudslide area, and had to wait for more than a half hour. Many people from other cars were walking down to gather more information.
Our driver was nervous that if we were stopped for too long, that another mudslide might come down on top of us …
Finally, we move forward, and come to this muddy area. The mud had been cleared from the right lane.
It looks as if some very large boulders had come down with the big mud soup.
Looking up at the side of the hill from where the mud had flowed.
Another spot where the river was running across the road.
Still in the mountains, headed toward the jungle heat and sun.
Approaching lower elevations (we are still a couple thousand feet above sea level in this part of the jungle).
We stop at a view area above this river. The tour guide tells us we are beginning to enter the jungle climate. I can already feel the difference … and YIPPEE, the skies are warm and blue.
Our tour bus as seen from the view area.
A nearby towering tree (looking back toward the cloudy mountains).
Another view looking back toward the lower mountains.
Our first destination was a zoo, just outside of a large town. (I do not remember the name.)
This monkey was cute.
These guys look hungry.
A very large spotted kitty cat, resting in the shade on his back. (It was hard for me to see such majestic animals cooped up behind a fence.
I was still in a funky mood at this point, keeping to myself, and not really paying attention to the names of these jungle animals. This one seemed to really enjoy the mud.
As did this one…
This one almost looks like a porcupine to me… (except the rough fur is not as long as a porcupine spike).
These jungle pigs had a lot more mud to play in.
This animal reminds me of a huge rodent.
This is the sign at the entrance to the zoo …
Resuming our bus journey, deeper into the jungle.
Eventually, we arrive at a tiny indigenous village named Kotococha … or Cotococha. This is a very tiny place … one that is very authentic in every way, except that they have opened their village to tourists, in hopes to bring some money to the town.
We parked our bus and proceeded to walk across that large footbridge to the right.
A better view of the bridge. It bounced up and down a lot when people walked across.
These young boys were playing in the water as we crossed the bridge. They were still there when we left too …
Looking toward the village from the middle of the bridge.
A sign on the other side of the bridge … all in Spanish. It starts out by saying that before the roads were built, it took two days to reach this village via canoe …
This sign talks about medicinal plants in the area …
Even the tiniest of villages seem to always have a futbol (soccer) field. I cannot remember the exact population numbers, but it seems like this village has less than a hundred inhabitants.
This is the main tourist reception area. They have a large room where they share and give talks and sell trinkets to the tourists that come.
The whole building was lined with crafts like these. Each section has different colors of tags to indicate price and which village member made them. This allows them to credit the money back to the correct family.
Looking across the soccer field toward another structure with open-air tables inside.
They even have a tourist guest house … but I am not sure if it is used right now.
The far side of the soccer field.
And a couple of small school buildings for the children.
Most of the town’s residents were away today … there was some big political discussion going on in the larger town (near where the zoo was).
It looks as if this is their church or place of worship.
Another school building.
Once the brief introductions were made … I went outside to take photos, and then meditated … first here in the grass beside the bridge … and then later in the middle of the bridge.
I was fascinated by how these shrubs were growing on top of the thatch roof.
As I meditated in the middle of the bridge, I had fun watching these two boys still playing on the rocks in the river.
Looking upstream.
And then noticing some canoes just downstream, on the side near our bus.
When I saw that a young man was resting in one of the canoes, I began to wonder if these were the canoes that would take us on a short river run.
Looking back toward the village from the middle of the bridge.
And looking downstream at our next destination.
A closer view of the canoes. They are all homemade, appearing to be carved out of tree trunks.
looking across the river from just above the canoes. By now, I am meditating on this side of the river, waiting for the rest of the group to return.
Looking inside one of the canoes. it is all one solid piece (except for that board in the middle which is used for a seat).
Looking at the front of one of the canoes. You can see the wood grain as all being from a solid tree trunk.
A beautiful butterfly to keep me company.
Finally we all have life vests on and are spread out in the four separate canoes.
Me, all wrapped up in blue (but no longer feeling quite as blue).
My feet, straddling the low bench. They gave us rubber boots to wear. I was sad to later learn (after walking in the river) that one of my boots had a huge slash in it, letting the water gush in to saturate my socks.
The first two canoes are off …
It seems that I am in the final canoe … the third is preparing to shove off. The driver stands in the back, and pushes us off using a long stick.
Finally, this young boy gets us off the mud …
And we are off into the currents. The boat only sits about six inches above the water level.
The same boy who pushed us off the mud is now standing in back, using his stick to guide us out into open water.
I get a little twinge of anticipation as I realize we are heading for small rapids and shallow water. At times, we even scrape the bottom as water is splashing around us on all sides.
I even put my camera away during much of the ride because there is lots of water splashing around.
Gently gliding through a more calm and deeper area.
Looking back at the canoe behind us (we passed them) … they just finished a small stretch of rapids and are entering the calm area.
By now, our drivers are sitting down, using an oar to guide us.
Continuing forward in a calmer area.
You can barely see one canoe in front of us, on the left, near the far shore.
The current here is not super fast, but is clipping along at a steady pace that requires us to maintain good balance.
The boat in front of us, maneuvering in place to make a safe run at the next set of small rapids (you can see a tiny bit of the mild whitewater just beyond the canoe).
In this photo, the rapids are more visible. They could easily topple the boat if we don’t go through at the correct angle … or if we were to broadside into a shallow rock.
It is time to consider putting my camera away (back in a plastic bag) …
… but I decide to keep my camera out for the bumpy excitement. We hit bottom several times through this mild rapids … but get through with no major mishaps.
A view looking to the right.
These rapids would be nothing in a rubber raft with proper equipment … but seem quite exciting in this rickety old canoe.
I am glad our driver is familiar with where all the rocks and currents are. He skillfully moves back and forth across the river to find the safest routes.
The current here is quite strong.
Finally, our driver turns sharply and uses his stick to push us up to shore in a calm area.
Right about now, I realize that my boot is full of water.
We get our “ground feet” again and then walk up to a nearby house. It seems to be in the middle of nowhere … but is some type of guesthouse that is perfectly equipped to give us a yummy meal and a short rest.
Our large group enjoying this delicious meal.
A photo of my plate of food.
I only enjoyed five minutes on this hammock before they told us that it was time to leave.
Our next adventure is a hike in the jungle.
The trail was quite steep … passing through a well-traveled jungle (not traditional old growth).
We followed along the side of a small stream …
… and then more climbing.
Up and up … a small but steep hill.
Finally, when we reached the top, our guide found a tall rope swing … one that swung way out over the valley floor below. The rope is tied to the top of a very tall tree.
I was one of the first few to try it. It was a lot of fun.
If you focus on the middle (or click to enlarge the photo), you can see a man in blue hanging from the rope as he swings way out over the valley below. It wasn’t very scary for me … but gave me a good adrenaline rush. I was surprised when a few people didn’t want to try it.
Next, we hiked back down the hill, and then trekked another fifteen minutes to this waterfall and pond.
I came prepared, wearing my swimsuit under my clothes, fully expecting to jump in and enjoy the swim.
But when we got there, the sun was already behind the hilltop behind us, and it was getting quite cool … plus the water was very cold. I stripped down to my swim suit and waded out up to my lower hips, but decided not to go further. It was freezing, and I didn’t want to make the return trip in cold, wet clothes.
A few of our group (plus others that were already there) did swim for twenty minutes.
If we had some sun to sit in, I likely would have gone all the way in.
I don’t remember the story of this, but I think the guide told us that it was made in more modern times.
Looking back at the waterfall as we prepare to leave.
The stream (runoff from the pond) as we begin to hike.
The first bridge that we cross.
Looking back at the falls as others cross the bridge.
Another beautiful little bridge. Our walk back is along a different path.
The sun is preparing to set …
And the surrounding area remains just as beautiful.
The roots of these trees caught my fancy. They are amazing. (Click to enlarge.)
Part of the return trail.
And another unique footbridge taking us back to the entrance trail area.
As we again hit the road, the sun begins to say “good night”.
After an uneventful ride back up the canyon, into rainy Baños, I am tired and ready for a restful night of sleep in my noisy hostel.
Baños Wrap-Up
I thoroughly enjoyed my day in the jungles of Ecuador, and was quite excited about future possibilities of doing a paragliding tour, a zip-line tour, some river rafting, and possibly a volcano hike ….
But the weather … and then my process … did not cooperate. For most of the next twelve days, the rains continued, and I remained mostly in my room, either working on my blog or doing inner processing.
By early July, my time in this small town became a journey of intense emotional inner work. It turns out that the nice family-run hostel was one of the noisiest places in which I have ever stayed. I took advantage of that noise, allowing it to take me deeper and deeper into a lifelong journey with noise anxiety. I did not even realize that there was actually a condition with that name until I began to do some internet research. I discovered that my energy sensitivities had me matching nearly every single symptom.
Day after day, I surrendered to the noise, allowing it to have me – allowing it to trigger a sense of inner rage, continually processing through the reactions that came up inside. For several days, I was so deep in process that I ended up eating large commercial chocolate bars and potato chips for dinner. I didn’t even want to go outside if I didn’t have to.
As bizarre as it was, I am deeply grateful for the processing I went through during those difficult twelve days. I never did take any more tours. I really wanted to, but the weather just would not cooperate, and my in-room journey felt like the right thing for me to be doing.
Perhaps one day I will return to Baños with sunnier skies (inside and out) to continue the playground adventure in this little tourist town.
Copyright © 2015 by Brenda Larsen, All Rights Reserved