(DH writes) We arrived in Papallacta after a long trip from the amazon - 1/2 hr paddle, 1/2 hr walk, 2 1/4 hr motorised launch up the Napa river (slower this time as we had to go upstream), flight to Quito from Coca. We then travelled the 70 odd km to Papallacta, along a road that appeared to be permanently under repair. Papallacta is 3250m above sea level and, so is higher than Quito. This town is famous for its hot springs. The town is fairly uninspiring, but the scenery is dramatic - it is situated in the Andean cloud forest.
After spending the first afternoon paddling around in some of the hot springs, we set off this morning for a walk into the cloud forest and the Cayambe - Coca national park. The gate was locked ,but we found a way round!
We had a great walk - it stayed dry (a real bonus here) and we could see the mountain tops drifting in and out of the cloud - quite a topographical change from the flat rainforest. We saw at least 4 species of hummingbird, and a lot of waterfalls. The path was quite dodgy in places! The difference between here and the rainforest is astounding. There is no noise (very few insects), the vegetation is lower, the leaves are smaller, and it is cold!
And even some wild lupins, much to Lyra's delight.
In the afternoon we played around in the thermal pools. I think 1/2 an hour in the water would be plenty, Lucas says about 7 hrs would be enough! Pools ranged from freezing to 43 degrees.
We even had a pool outside the cabin
Even the toilet seat had a go (with Lyra practising her modelling technique)
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