One of the highlights of visiting Ecuador is trekking the Quilatoa Loop – about 25 miles in 3 days of steep terrain at high altitude (9300 ft) through pastures, canyons, and small towns with hostels. We love hiking, but after reading countless harrowing trip reports and being aware of the limitations of traveling with a toddler, we didn’t expect to finish the loop.
Upon arriving in Ecuador, 3 year old Alice surprised us by embracing hiking and regularly walking 5 miles at a stretch. This allowed us to reconsider the option, but we knew we couldn’t carry bags and her halfway and do it all in 3 days. Fortunately, contrary to every blog we read, you CAN take as long as you want. We ended up spending 6 nights in 2 towns – Isinlivi and Chugchilan. Both have super reasonable (~$35 for a couple) hostels with green space, hammocks, wood stoves, private rooms, hot water, and filling included-in-the-price dinners and breakfasts. Plus you can get a big beer for $2. If you don’t want to rest on days “off”, they also have multiple day hike options. Hiking through the paramo to the cloud forest above Chugchilan was our favorite.
The leg from Chugchilan to Quilatoa is a brutal 3,000 foot ascent in often sandy terrain at over 10,000 feet in elevation. We did not do this. Instead we boarded the $1 bus from Chugchilan to Quilatoa and walked down. Our original plan was to break up the hike at the little known Hostal Rosita halfway up. The allure of not carrying our bags and staying another night at the lovely Hostel El Vaquero changed our minds. Since the loop is usually not crowded, it’s easy to extend your stay if you find a place you like. You can also do the hike in the reverse direction, but you’d better be well acclimated. We saw some painful examples of altitude sickness.
We had a great time traveling at our own pace and not following an itinerary. We finished with neither blisters nor altitude sickness. We recommend you also take your time.
Leave a Reply