Kapawi, Pastaza River Yachana, Napo River

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ECUADOR
Ecuador may not be on your must-see list – yet. There is
so much to see and do in this fascinating place.
Tony Karacsonyi shares his recent travels with us.
I M AG E S To n y K a r a c s o n y i
TONY KARACSONYI
E
cuador is like a pocket travel guide, offering travellers orchids,
mist forest and hummingbird viewing, horse riding, mountain
biking, white water rafting and volcano climbing. Most
importantly, it’s a gateway to the Amazon, brimming with exotic
flora and fauna, and to the Galapagos.
From the capital Quito, short flights carry you over the Andes and into
the Amazon headwaters, where first-class eco lodges show you around.
I had the fortune to visit recently and would like to share some of the
highlights with you.
Yachana, Napo River
Soon after arriving by motorised canoe at
Yachana Lodge, Juan Kunchikuy, our nature
guide, led us on a jungle trail. His ability to
find rainforest creatures was uncanny. We
were treated to poison arrow frogs, birds,
fungi, sleeping bats, forest dragon lizards,
and even a troupe of capuchin monkeys.
Brugmansia
growing along the
Pastaza River.
Most afternoons
bring heavy rain to
the Amazon.
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The Garden Guru Magazine / Issue No.53 / Summer 2014
The most common poison
arrow frog is maroon on top with
bright blue on the sides and legs.
Local Indians use the toxin of these
frogs to coat their blowpipe darts
when hunting monkeys.
A Quichua healer performed a
spiritual cleansing ceremony for
us, which involved blowing smoke
and thrashing us with leaves. We
felt incredibly light and refreshed
afterward. Juan told us intimate stories
of his life as a shamen, and how he
hunts monkeys with his brothers using
blowpipes when he goes home to his
village near the Peruvian border. Being
conservation minded, he reminds his
brothers to take one, not three.
Yachana Lodge uses students
from their Hotel School to serve in the
kitchen and dining room. This makes
for a lovely community atmosphere.
The word Yachana means ‘a place of
learning’ in Quichua.
Yachana Gourmet buys cacao from
local farmers to make exotic chocolate
for the lodge. A Yachana twist is
served with every meal, as well as
homemade chocolate spreads and
jams, made from local cacao and fruit.
On sunset, the views down river
are stunning, the golden Napo River
snaking its way to the Amazon River.
Kapawi, Pastaza River
Flying 240km from Quito to Kapawari,
we were met by friendly Achuar
Indians at the Kapawi EcoLodge and
Reserve. For eight days we hiked in
the jungle with nature guides, caught
piranha and drank chicha (manioc
beer) with the Achuar. We also
learned about shamanism, all while
enjoying the comforts and great food
of the lodge.
The upper Pastaza River is famous
for the Shuar Indians, who shrunk the
heads of their enemies, the Achuar, for
thousands of years. The Shuar believed
that humans had three souls, one of
which, called the muisak, is charged
with avenging the victim’s death. The
only way to pacify the enraged soul
was to shrink the head.
The Shuar transformed their fresh
swag of trophies into grapefruit-sized,
shrunken heads called tzantza, later
worn around the warrior’s neck at the
celebratory feast.
Shuar and Achuar Indians who
drink ayahuasca or stramoniums
say they can communicate with
their ancestors and with the forest –
including animals such as the jaguar
and anaconda. It helps them foresee
the future and to make decisions. Even
normal dreams are interpreted literally.
Both Achuar and Shuar cultivate
hallucinogenic plants that can produce
several days of intense hallucinations,
helping them contact the arutamancestral spirits.
On the Ishpingo River near the
Peruvian border we spotted pink
dolphins, sloth, saddle-backed
tamarin, dusky titi monkey and the
hanging nests of oropendola birds. >>
The Garden Guru Magazine / Issue No. 53 / Summer 2014
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We went swimming in the river with
our nature guide Felipe, but I could not
help thinking about black caiman and
piranha. Felipe didn’t swim too far, and our
Achuar Indian guide didn’t swim at all (he
was more concerned about anacondas).
The lodge’s chef gave us some beef steak
for bait - very apt.
Kapawi arranged for the guests to visit
an Achuar village, where we were given a
bowl of chicha. You must accept, as refusal
is offensive to them, but the important
thing is to have a taste. It tastes like a
barley brew.
Village women chew the manioc root,
which is then spat back into the bowl to
help fermentation.
Catholic and Evangelical missionaries
first established peaceful contact with the
Achuar in 1968 -1970, converting them to
Christianity. The missionaries encouraged
them to live in villages, which in more
recent years has helped them fight against
oil companies that are polluting their
rainforest and rivers.
At night, we went spot-lighting in the
forest, which croaks, hums and buzzes
with frogs, salamanders and wandering
spiders. Kapawi has 20 double cabins,
each with a private bath and balcony.
There is no piped hot water but guests
enjoy solar bags.
T RIP
IN F O R M AT IO N
HOW TO GET THERE;
Fly via Santiago to Quito with LAN. From Quito
you can fly to Kapawi EcoLodge and Reserve
(which has a tiny soil airstrip). For Yachana Lodge
and Napo Wildlife Centre, fly to Coca, from where
you take a 2.5 hour motorised canoe ride, it is
very enjoyable.
B
E
WHERE TO EAT;
In Quito, the Mi Viejo Arrabal, an Argentine steak
house, has affordable main courses, and Mama
Clorinda serves delicious Ecuadorian food. Quito
cafes have cheap working lunches, which include
a small steak, vegetables, two fruit juices and a
pear half in syrup – well worth trying. Quito can
be dangerous at night, so catch a taxi back to
your hotel.
C
D
Napo Wildlife Center,
Napo River
A
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WHERE TO STAY;
Napo Wildlife Center; napowildlifecenter.com
Yachana Lodge; yachana.com
Kapawi Ecolodge & Reserve; kapawi.com
Hacienda El Porvenir; tierradelvolcan.com
In Quito, stay at the five-star Mecure Alameda
Hotel or the Hostal De La Rabida, a first-class
charming hotel at under $60 per night.
At the Napo Wildlife Center we
went spot-lighting at night with
our nature guide, Jorge Fabre.
Dozens of caiman eyes shone in
our light, together with hundreds
of glowing fireflies. It was like a
fairyland of whimsical lights.
Napo Wildlife Center is rich
in primates like red howler,
squirrel monkey, white-fronted
capuchin, pygmy marmoset,
white-bellied spider monkey,
saddleback tamarin and goldenmantled tamarin. We saw a troupe
of golden-mantled tamarins,
and watched intently as pygmy
marmosets sucked sap from
riverside trees.
The Garden Guru Magazine / Issue No.53 / Summer 2014
Tours From Quito
Soft adventures in Ecuador include
trekking, mountain biking and horse
riding near Cotopaxi Volcano and
Rumiñahui Volcano.
Hacienda El Porvenir, near
Rumiñahui Volcano, offers homecooked meals, open fireplaces and
fresh trout caught near the hacienda.
A working farm, the hacienda is
surrounded by four volcanoes:
Rumiñahui, 4,712m; Pasochoa, 4,200m;
Sincholagua, 4,893m; and Quilindaña,
4,878m. Cotopaxi, at 5,897m, is in the
middle.
There is a zip-lining tour, named
El Canon Del Salto Canopy Tour, which
involves riding across a canyon on
seven different cables. It is heart-in-
F
your-mouth adventure, but good fun.
Day tours from Quito can be
arranged with small tour companies.
Tour guide, Pablo Montalvo, suggested
some exciting day trips. For example,
go to Quilotoa Volcano, four hours
from Quito, ride a mule to the volcano,
then swim in the green crater lake. At
the Zumbahua Market each Saturday,
indigenous Indians transport their
goods to market using lama.
Gua Gua Pichicha is an active
volcano with a crater lake, while
Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve
and Lodge is famous for orchids
and hummingbirds. You can stop at
Pululahua Volcano crater to watch the
locals farming.
Cuyabeno National Park is a river
and wetland reserve; an excellent place
to see pink dolphins, manatees and
piranha. Quito tour companies offer four
day/three night stays at Tapir Lodge.
A. A Quichua healer gave us a spiritual cleansing. B.
Felipe takes a dip in the Pastaza River. C. Poison arrow
frogs on the forest floor. D. The jungle comes alive at
night with tree frogs. E. Achuar fisherman hunt for giant
catfish. F. Achuar children playing on the Pastaza River.
G. Nature guides examine a snake at Kapawi Lodge.
Travellers can organise tours to
scenic tourist places like Mindo, Mitad
del Mundo, Otalvo, Papallacta, Cotopaxi,
Quilotoa, Banos, Riobamba, Ingapirca and
Cuenca. Tena is famous for kayaking and
river rafting. On a fine day, you can see the
3,732m cone of Volcan Sumaco rising from
the steamy jungle.
Old Quito is well worth visiting, with El
Panecillo, the Basilica, Independence Square,
church and museum.
Ecuador is a place where you can
fully immerse yourself in the Amazonian
rainforest and its exotic wildlife. It’s also the
stepping stone for the Galapagos Islands, but
that is a whole new story.
TOUR OPERATORS
Tropic, Journeys in Nature; tropiceco.com
Climbing Tours for trekking/jungle tours;
climbingtour.com
There are tour offices in Quito from where you
can book tours to places like Tapir Lodge.
G
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