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D14 MINDO Mindo is a small and pleasant village located on the western side of Pichincha mountain at around 1600m altitude and two and half hours by car from Quito. It is one of the best places in Ecuador to experience a tropical cloudforest area with its many diverse plants and animals. Apart from hiking through a cloudforest, we get to know a butterfly breeding farm and a private orchid garden. 8.00 a.m.: We leave in the morning and drive northwest passing the Equator Line Monument and Pululahua crater. From then on the road drops rapidly from 3000m to 1800m and we arrive in two hours at the junction, which leads down to Mindo. 10.30 a.m.: We start our hike outside of the village and walk along a dirt road through semi-open forest area. The open area gives us an excellent opportunity to see many kinds of birds, like toucans and quetzals and we also get to know its rich flora with different species of orchids, bromeliads, heliconias and many more. 1 p.m.: Before we head back to the town, we visit a butterfly breeding farm, where we learn all about the different stages of this beautiful creatures, from egg to larvae to pupae and adult. In a screened and confined flying area we are able to observe and admire 25 different species of butterflies. 2.30 p.m.: Afterwards we stop in Mindo for some late lunch and stop at a private orchid garden in town, where hundreds of the local species are on display. The owner will lead us on a tour and explain to us the characteristics of those beautiful flowers. 4.p.m.: We drive back to Quito with a short stop at the viewing spot of Pululahua Crater, where you can observe this immense volcanic crater and arrive in Quito at 7pm.
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