A quick lap around Quito, Ecuador - Page 3

GSL · 11-10-2012, 05:09 PM

Lots of vertical landscape again on day 2

And great mountain roads

Solitude

Don't get too close to that edge...

Some good eatin

And some outstanding paved twisties

We rode well into the dark (due to the flat tires) and still managed to get to our hotel in Mindo before the kitchen closed.

GSL · 11-10-2012, 06:00 PM

Day 1 and 2 were pretty spectacular, but the weather was overcast. On Day 3, the sun joined us

and there was much rejoicing!

That sunburn peeling on my head is from our walking tour of Quito on Day 1. ouch...

Mark - on an XL200

One of the advantages of going on a tour is that they know which garage door to go to for food. I never would have stopped into this place for lunch if I had been on my own

And it was fantastic!

GSL · 11-10-2012, 06:12 PM

Court said they are the only tour that goes through these little villages, so far off the beaten path. As a result, we attracted quite the crowd of kids while we stopped.

It always starts with one brave soul ("pssst, hey, go touch that bike" in Spanish, of course)

Then other kids start coming around to see the gringos who've come to town

Then, before you know it, every kid is town wants to play on the bikes and get their picture taken

And pose for the camera

GSL · 11-10-2012, 06:17 PM

Some of the kids even ran to get their bikes and cruise by a few times

Ladies ride side-saddle in Ecuador

GSL · 11-10-2012, 06:29 PM

After lunch, just lots of great scenery and riding, mostly above 12,000 feet.

Jazz hands!

Our descent down into Sigchos

Peaks above us towering at around 18,700 feet

GSL · 11-10-2012, 07:00 PM

Spent the night of Day 3 at a beautiful private resort on the outskirts of Sigchos

This is just one of the many buildings on the grounds. The entire upstairs is the honeymoon suite. Lower level has 6 large guest rooms.

The large wooden doors into the courtyard are carved to match the guest house, detailed all the way down to the tall cactus and the rail on the upper deck

GSL · 11-10-2012, 07:04 PM

You gotta love a hot tub big enough for 20-some people, and a table in the center to hold your drink

GSL · 11-11-2012, 09:18 AM

Day 4 from Sigchos to Salinas was, without a doubt, the most scenic!

First stop was at a school for making fine wood furniture. They would not allow us to take pictures inside, but outside was ok. And their St. Bernard just had puppies!

Court

Sylvain

Then it was back to the road

To a caldera lake called Quilotoa (you can just barely see the hiking trail going down on the right side wall)

Onward

Snow-capped peak in the background is about 20,500 feet

GSL · 11-11-2012, 09:23 AM

TheMuffinMan · 11-11-2012, 10:44 AM

This looks completely awesome!

neduro · 11-11-2012, 11:25 AM

bavarian · 11-11-2012, 11:45 AM

Hooked!

GSL · 11-11-2012, 11:57 AM

Day 4 was just outstanding riding! Lots of smiles and miles.

No matter how much I work out and diet, I will never be "smokin hot" until I am cremated...

Lunch in a small village. Here we are checking out the street market

Need a few chickens?

This was the parking lot for the locals at our lunch stop

After lunch was more miles of great scenery and riding.

We rolled up to the top of the pass over Salinas right at sunset

GSL · 11-11-2012, 12:22 PM

Once again, we rolled into town after dark. This time was on purpose, as Court and Sylvain had timed the ride for sunset on the top of the pass.

Salinas is named after its original industry, salt mining. (Wikipedia lists a different Salinas, Ecuador, which is a large, coastal city). The Salinas we went to had a population in the low 100's. Salt was very important in this area before refrigeration became available. Now, the town operates as a sort of co-op, with most of the entire community working the two new industries, cheese and chocolate.

View of town from our hotel room, the next morning. The white building in the far left center is the cheese factory, best known for its production of Gruyere (swiss) cheese, after a Swiss industrialist moved to town.

The riding and scenery on Day 5 did not suck

GSL · 11-11-2012, 12:35 PM

The route on Day 5 would take us down into the cloudforest where the temps and humidity got downright steamy.

And the vegetation changed accordingly

In Ecuador, and maybe the rest of South America, there's something about kids wanting to ride on the tops of the vehicles. I only caught this one shot, but on a previous day, we had seen an entire school bus full of kids, with about 15-20 more kids riding on top of the bus.

11-10-2012, 05:09 PM	#31
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Lots of vertical landscape again on day 2 And great mountain roads Solitude Don't get too close to that edge... Some good eatin And some outstanding paved twisties We rode well into the dark (due to the flat tires) and still managed to get to our hotel in Mindo before the kitchen closed. __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site GSL screwed with this post 11-10-2012 at 05:15 PM

11-10-2012, 06:00 PM	#32
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Day 1 and 2 were pretty spectacular, but the weather was overcast. On Day 3, the sun joined us and there was much rejoicing! That sunburn peeling on my head is from our walking tour of Quito on Day 1. ouch... Mark - on an XL200 One of the advantages of going on a tour is that they know which garage door to go to for food. I never would have stopped into this place for lunch if I had been on my own And it was fantastic! __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site GSL screwed with this post 11-11-2012 at 09:24 AM

11-10-2012, 06:12 PM	#33
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Court said they are the only tour that goes through these little villages, so far off the beaten path. As a result, we attracted quite the crowd of kids while we stopped. It always starts with one brave soul ("pssst, hey, go touch that bike" in Spanish, of course) Then other kids start coming around to see the gringos who've come to town Then, before you know it, every kid is town wants to play on the bikes and get their picture taken And pose for the camera __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-10-2012, 06:17 PM	#34
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Some of the kids even ran to get their bikes and cruise by a few times Ladies ride side-saddle in Ecuador __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-10-2012, 06:29 PM	#35
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	After lunch, just lots of great scenery and riding, mostly above 12,000 feet. Jazz hands! Our descent down into Sigchos Peaks above us towering at around 18,700 feet __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-10-2012, 07:00 PM	#36
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Spent the night of Day 3 at a beautiful private resort on the outskirts of Sigchos This is just one of the many buildings on the grounds. The entire upstairs is the honeymoon suite. Lower level has 6 large guest rooms. The large wooden doors into the courtyard are carved to match the guest house, detailed all the way down to the tall cactus and the rail on the upper deck __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-10-2012, 07:04 PM	#37
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	You gotta love a hot tub big enough for 20-some people, and a table in the center to hold your drink __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-11-2012, 09:18 AM	#38
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Day 4 from Sigchos to Salinas was, without a doubt, the most scenic! First stop was at a school for making fine wood furniture. They would not allow us to take pictures inside, but outside was ok. And their St. Bernard just had puppies! Court Sylvain Then it was back to the road To a caldera lake called Quilotoa (you can just barely see the hiking trail going down on the right side wall) Onward Snow-capped peak in the background is about 20,500 feet __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-11-2012, 09:23 AM	#39
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	__________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-11-2012, 10:44 AM	#40
TheMuffinMan Beastly Adventurer Joined: Mar 2010 Location: Denver, USA Oddometer: 3,827	This looks completely awesome! __________________ "Civilize the mind, but make savage the body." To the house of a friend the way is never long. "Show respect to all, but grovel to none." '12 690 Enduro // 690 Wiki

11-11-2012, 11:25 AM	#41
neduro Tuareg 2013 Joined: Jul 2003 Location: Colorado Springs, CO Oddometer: 11,356	__________________ For Sale: FJ60, or Defender 90, Doubletake Mirrors- Folding D/S mirror that is both useful and indestructible. Dual Sport Riding Techniques DVDs: Clear instructional DVDs to improve off-road skills.

11-11-2012, 11:45 AM	#42
bavarian bavarian Joined: Nov 2003 Location: Munich, Bavaria Oddometer: 1,741	Hooked! __________________ R 1100 GS K75C DR 350

11-11-2012, 11:57 AM	#43
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Day 4 was just outstanding riding! Lots of smiles and miles. No matter how much I work out and diet, I will never be "smokin hot" until I am cremated... Lunch in a small village. Here we are checking out the street market Need a few chickens? This was the parking lot for the locals at our lunch stop After lunch was more miles of great scenery and riding. We rolled up to the top of the pass over Salinas right at sunset __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

11-11-2012, 12:22 PM	#44
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	Once again, we rolled into town after dark. This time was on purpose, as Court and Sylvain had timed the ride for sunset on the top of the pass. Salinas is named after its original industry, salt mining. (Wikipedia lists a different Salinas, Ecuador, which is a large, coastal city). The Salinas we went to had a population in the low 100's. Salt was very important in this area before refrigeration became available. Now, the town operates as a sort of co-op, with most of the entire community working the two new industries, cheese and chocolate. View of town from our hotel room, the next morning. The white building in the far left center is the cheese factory, best known for its production of Gruyere (swiss) cheese, after a Swiss industrialist moved to town. The riding and scenery on Day 5 did not suck __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site GSL screwed with this post 11-11-2012 at 12:27 PM

11-11-2012, 12:35 PM	#45
GSL ^OP Team Big Wheel Joined: May 2002 Location: Fort Collins, CO Oddometer: 1,735	The route on Day 5 would take us down into the cloudforest where the temps and humidity got downright steamy. And the vegetation changed accordingly In Ecuador, and maybe the rest of South America, there's something about kids wanting to ride on the tops of the vehicles. I only caught this one shot, but on a previous day, we had seen an entire school bus full of kids, with about 15-20 more kids riding on top of the bus. __________________ IBA #10979 - Member COHVCO - Member CMTRA - Lifetime Member Blue Ribbon Coalition - Member NMOHVA - Member NCTR My picture site

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