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An Ecuadorean Adventure

By : gail malone
Trip Begins April 20, 2007
Trip Ends May 2, 2007



Want to go? Galapagos Legend: 7 Day Tour, Wildlife Odyssey

I went to: Galapagos, Ecuador, Bartolome, Santa Cruz Island, Fernandina, Isabela, Santiago, Bachas Beach, Amazon, Quito, Otavalo, Coca, Sacha Lodge, Casa Aliso, Amazonas - Ecuador
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April 20, 2007
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Casa Aliso, Quito

Casa Aliso, Quito

We began our Ecuadorean adventure with an uneventful flight from Atlanta into Quito, Ecuador's capital. Unlike US airports, with their vast windy expanses of asphalt, the airport in Quito sat in a basin at the foot of a circuit of high peaks, with development creeping up to within feet of its runways. No long commutes here.

The
surroundedis tucked in to three beautifully appointed beds at the Casa Aliso, a small but elegant guest house high on one of Quito's flanks.

April 21, 2007
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The Adventure Begins: Rio Napa to Sacha Lodge

Coca, Ecuador

We woke this morning to a delightful breakfast of strong coffee, improbably sweet local fruits and homemade pastries. Off to a fantastic start. We had just enough time to get our bearings in Quito

April 22, 2007
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Day 1, Sacha Lodge

Sacha Lodge, Amazonas - Ecuador

Where do you begin to describe a day in the Amazon Basin? We were woken at daybreak by the raucous chorale of the rainforest: the trill and caw of a thousand birds, the creek and chirp of the waking insect world, and the call-and-response of companion tribes of howler monkeys swaying through the high foliage. I've never woken to such a symphony.

By 6:30, after a light breakfast in the main lodge, we were hiking through dense tropical forest with our naturalist guide, Effie, and our local guide, Columbia. After a 45-minute trek, we arrived at Sacha's signature attraction, the Canopy Walk, a 960-foot long, 130-foot tall walkway suspended between three towers over the rainforest canopy.

April 23, 2007
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Day 2, Sacha Lodge

Sacha Lodge, Amazonas - Ecuador

Woke to pouring rain this morning, but since we were, after all, in the rain forest, not an unpleasant experience in the rainforest. Lingered over breakfast


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