Quilotoa Lagoon
Hidden among the mountains is one of the most beautiful natural monuments in Ecuador located, the lagoon of Quilotoa. This particular area shows extraordinary features that can only be found here. Desert paramos, bizarre mountain shapes and desolates but color full villages complete this amazing landscape. These small Andean town is full with ancestral traditions preserved until the present days are surrounded by Andean forest and paramo, as announcing the presence of the volcano with its beautiful lagoon. A crater of 3 kilometers of diameter camouflaged among the thick fog contains to this natural attractiveness. Its greens waters and sheer walls let us see the rest of the last cataclysmic eruption and remind us that we are inside the crater of the second most active volcano in the western Andes. Occasional sulfur gas bubbles from the inside of the lake appear filling the air with a bizarre odor.
Cotopaxi National Park
From Quito you can reach the entrance of the Cotopaxi National Park in approximately one and a half hours. Upon arrival you can make a short visit to the museum and interpretation center which tells about the park, its nature, the wildlife and eruptions of the park’s centerpiece: the Cotopaxi volcano with an altitude of 5897 meters.
Continue into the park and stop at the Limpiopungo Lake at 3800 meters altitude. Here you can make an acclimatizing walk while observing semi-wild horses, a variety of ducks and hummingbirds and the Andean gull and lapwing. Drive up to the parking lot at 4600 meters. From here it is a 45-minute strenuous walk to the José Ribas refuge at 4800 meters altitude. On clear days you will have the most incredible views up here.
Once you have reached this altitude, go for a short break in the refuge before continuing to the nearby glacier. Enjoy the incredible picture opportunities and the spectacular scenery at walls of ice and deep crevasses.