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Day Trips

D11  PICHINCHA





On this day trip we get to know Guagua Pichincha, the active volcano near Quito. This gives people a great opportunity to experience and see
a volcanic crater close up without much effort as the road leads almost right up to the crater rim at 4600m. Apart from the volcano, the area offers a beautiful paramo ecosystem with many high Andean plants and flowers and occassional animals.




6.00 a.m.:     We leave Quito that early and head south to Lloa, a small agricultural village SW of the city. On the way there we have already great views to the snow-covered volcanoes Cotopaxi, Antisana and Cayambe, which are located opposite in the Eastern Cordillera. Reaching Lloa we start driving up on a secondary dirt road to the refuge which is located at 4600m. First the road leads through agricultural land which at around 4000m turn into paramo.



8.00 a.m.:    We hike then up the 100m to the crater rim, from where we have a good view into the volcano. The crater lies 500m deep and has a diameter of 1 km.  On the bottom huge lava domes are forming and fumaroles escape through vents, their size depending on the current volcanic activity.



10.00 a.m.:     After that spectacle we head back to the refuge for some refreshments and we begin then our downhill hike through the paramo. On this 1 hour descent we can admire many wild flowers and high alpine shrubs and bushes like the famous Chuquiragua or Flor de los Andes. After reaching the jeep we head back to Quito with some stops along the way to admire some more of the rich flora, the area offers



12.00pm.:     We stop at Panecillo, the hill in the middle of the capital, from where you can see the city stretching along the valley. After some explanations of the history, we return to the northern part of Quito.
 


 

For pictures of this active volcano, click to mountain.pichincha of our Ecuador-Images.net.

PICTURES



D1  Colonial Quito


D2  Mitad del Mundo


D3  Cochasqui


D4  Otavalo


D5  Pahuma


D6  Papallacta


D7  Pujili





Day Trips



D8  Saquisali


D9  Toaza - Blanco


D10  Guayllabamba


D11  Pichincha


D12  Pasochoa


D13  Cotopaxi


D14  Mindo




PICTURES

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