A
twin chain
of Andean
peaks, the
Avenue of
Volcanoes,
cuts through
the centre
of Ecuador
from north
to south,
like the dislocated
spine of some
fossilized
creature,
each vertebra
a volcanic
peak. A series
of wide, intensely
cultivated,
densely populated
valleys lie
between the
parallel rows
of mountains.
These are
the food baskets
of Ecuador
that for thousands
of years have
produced grain,
fruit, vegetables
and dairy
products for
the high sierra.
As you pass
through the
fertile highland
basins you'll
see a panoramic
patchwork
of fields
planted with
all manner
of crops.
Stretching
across some
of these fields
are huge plastic
greenhouses
used for one
of the country's
fastest-growing
export businesses,
the cultivation
of flowers.
The Avenue
of Volcanoes
also cradles
the main thoroughfare
that runs
up and down
the spine
of the country.
For centuries
local Quichua
Indians
and other
indigenas
have
trudged this
route, or
ridden it
on mules and
donkeys, carrying
crops from
the fields,
and produce
to market.
So they do
today, many
still wearing
traditional
costumes of
hand woven
shawls and
wide-brimmed
hats, and
carrying huge
loads on their
backs. But
more often
these days,
they travel
in cars, trucks
or flashy,
honking, dangerously
speeding buses.
Today this
dusty, often
pot-holed,
sometimes
smooth road
that follows
the ancient
route, is
part of the
rather grandly
named Pan-American
Highway [theoretically
it's possible
to journey
through North
and Central
America and
down the South
American continent
without leaving
the highway].
Travelling
up and down
the Pan-American
Highway [known
as “the Pana”]
through the
Avenue of
Volcanoes,
is a pleasure
for any visitor
who spends
some time
in Ecuador.
To visit the
famous Indian
market at
Otavalo,
reputedly
the largest
in South America,
you pass north
from Quito
along the
Pana by car
or bus. To
get to the
popular spa
resort of
Banos
you'll travel
south through
Ambato.
If you want
to stay at
one of the
fine haciendas
of the
Sierra you
should take
the road south
or north.
To go in another
direction
would mean
hurtling down
the steep
slopes of
the Andes,
either towards
the upper
reaches of
the Amazon
basin to the
east, or to
the coastal
plain in the
west. The
Pana is indeed
Ecuador's
main transport
artery.
For many foreign
travellers
the most dramatic
and fascinating
features of
Ecuador are
its mystical,
majestic mountains.
Some 30 peaks
in the vicinity
of the Avenue
of Volcanoes,
some still
smouldering,
give the area
one of the
highest concentrations
of volcanoes
in the world.
Much of the
time these
peaks are
draped in
swirling clouds
and mists
because, it
is said, the
mountains
are shy and
modest. But
on a clear
day the views
over green
fields to
the snow-crowned
peaks are
spectacular.
At 6,310 m
[21,031 ft],
Chimborazo,
Ecuador's
tallest mountain,
presides over
the western
chain of mountains,
Cordillera
Occidental.
It was believed
to be the
tallest mountain
in the world
until Mt.
Everest was
surveyed in
the mid-19th
century. Indeed,
every Ecuadorean
schoolchild
knows that
Chimborazo,
which means
“mountain
of snow,”
is the world's
tallest mountain
if measured
from the centre
of the earth
— remember
the earth
bulges around
the equator!
The English
climber, Edward
Whymper first
climbed Chimborazo,
in 1880.
The tallest
peak of the
eastern, and
geologically
older chain,
Cordillera
Central, is
the stunning
and almost
perfectly
symmetrical
cone of Cotopaxi,
which means
“shining peak.”
At 5,897 m
[19,654 ft],
it is the
world's tallest
continuously
active volcano.
It has erupted
some 50 times
since 1738,
and scars
and lava flows
from past
volcanic activities
can be seen
in its vicinity.
The 1877 eruption
produced mudflows
which travelled
100 km
[62 miles].
In 1997 people
living near
Cotopaxi
reported that
the snow cap
was melting,
fearing that
the mountain
would erupt
again and
destroy their
homes and
farms.
The upper
part of Cotopaxi
is permanently
covered in
snow and often
hidden by
clouds that
at night are
sometimes
lit up by
fires in the
360m [1,200ft]
crater. The
base of the
volcano stands
in open mountain
grassland,
the paramo,
which is part
of the bleak,
yet beautiful
34,000-hectare
[84,150-acre]
Cotopaxi
National Park.
Only 50 km
[31 miles]
from Quito,
this is Ecuador's
most frequently
visited national
park. The
German scientist
and traveller
Wilhelm Reiss
first climbed
Cotopaxi
in 1872.
Last
updated 4th
July 2006
| |Article contributed by Dominic Hamilton||| |
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