TRAIL RIDE
4 days | 3 nights

ALL YEAR ROUND

ALL INCLUSIVE

CHILD FRIENDLY

Overview

Ride from Pululahua crater to the springs of the Yumbo culture.

Robust and amiable mountain horses will take you through the stunning landscape of this ancient volcanic crater with its constantly changing scenarios and huge biodiversity. 6km diameter make it the biggest volcanic crater on the American continent, and it is also one of only two inhabited craters worldwide. Riding time on the first day about 4 hours, on the second day about 5 hours. Optional photo stop at the Equator Monument Mitad del Mundo on return.

These eXperience will take you from areas of traditional Andean agriculture to lush tropical vegetation, passing by eroded volcanic avalanches blooming with wild orchids, sugar cane fields, remote mountain villages, exotic flower crops, deep canyons and cloud forests. You will also observe prehistoric ruins and interesting geological formations along your way. You get a good impression of the present and past of the country life in Ecuador, of its geology and botany. But most of all you'll discover the pleasure to explore healthy nature on horseback!

You will pass your nights in two different locations. The first night you will stay on a cozy, peaceful B&B in the mystical surroundings of the crater.walls. The last 2 nights you will stay at a cottage camp in the mountain village of Yungilla, where your hosts will be waiting for you with a homemade meal.

The landscape is as diverse, breathtaking and dramatic, as only described in the scenarios of Tolkien’s novel "Lord of the Rings“. Though it was filmed on the southern island of New Zealand, the story plays in middle-earth and our riders consistently seem to discover the landscapes of the book during this eXperience. Sometimes lovely and pictorial as in the Shire, sometimes mystical and mysterious as in Fagorn Forest, sometimes luminous and moving as in Rivendell, but also as cliffy, scant and eldritch as Moria. Therefore, they all are to be found with us: the Hobbits and Magicians, the Elves and Fairies, the Lords of Gondor and the Folk of Riders, the Dwarfs and Gnomes. They live in the names of ranch's 27 horses whose characters are as different as the heroes of the story. Passionately, your hosts will always do the very best to choose the suitable horse for each guest.

The last two days you will learn and eXperience about Ecuador's culture, history, traditions, fauna and flora and are reserved for hiking and local tours.

The perfect symbiosis between riding and hiking, man and nature!

Itinerary

Day 1
Transport from Quito to the farm inside the crater and National Reserve Pululahua. While riding around the volcanic cone, covered with cloud forest, you witness volcanic history and nature, interesting geological formations, mineral avalanches blooming with wild orchids and traditional Andean agriculture. Accommodation in a cozy, peaceful B&B in the mystical surrounding of the crater walls.

Day 2
Forests of bamboo are marking your way, while you start climbing gently but continually in order to leave the crater to the west. On your way, you'll pass over narrow mountain ridges with spectacular views. In the remoteness, you only come across a few small farmhouses, where the highland farmers scratch a meagre income from the steep, infertile land beside the forest. The higher you climb, the more you overlook the cloud-forest covered mountains and valleys you leave behind. Your cottage camp and a hot evening meal await you in the mountain village of Yungilla.

Day 3
This section of the trip is not suited for horses anymore, so you enjoy a day out hiking, giving you the chance to have a closer and more detailed look on the surroundings and nature in the land of the Tucan. In companionship of a local guide explaining about plants, wildlife and sustainable agriculture, you hike along hidden trails between highland and thick jungle, narrow hollow earth tunnels, to the edge of the Maquipucunanature reserve. Return to Yunguilla in the afternoon. In the village, you can learn about cheese-production and organic fruit farming.

Day 4
You change your means of transport again and keep on travelling by car. This time, the road leads to the ceremonial baths of the Yumbo culture in Tulipe. You learn about pre- colombine history in Ecuador, then stop by at Heike's exotic bird garden, a German expert in hummingbirds, and enjoy moments of peace and wonder on her wooden terrace. Heike and her husband Pedro have been dedicated to forest protection for decades. Return to Quito in the evening.

Additional information

We recommend to arrive Ecuador the day before you start your journey. To help you with that we can book a first extra night in Quito for only 200 Euro

Transfers included | Airport Gateway UIO

Additional beverages not included

Local Tours included

Bookable with a minimum of two persons. If you would like to make a single person booking (dates under availability) contact us for more information 

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Ride, Hike & eXplore

QUANTITY