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El Cajas National Park,
El Cajas

Personal travel impressions in stories and pictures from El Cajas National Park, El Cajas, Ecuador. Click on the pictures to enlarge, send as a free e-card, or download for personal use. You can locate El Cajas National Park and navigate the world using Google Earth

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S 2° 45.969
W 79° 13.130

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Ecuador

El Cajas National Park

Picture of El Cajas National Park (Ecuador): Mountain trail leading through the straw grass of a valley in El CajasSo it was that we took a right turn, and started following an easily recognizable trail that was going up. Ahead of us, we spotted one person, apparently carrying a heavy load. The name El Cajas probably comes from Quechua, meaning Port to Snowy Mountains, and although the high-altitude mountains do not normally get snow, they of course are the mountains to cross to reach the Andes. For now, the trail ahead seemed to be leading us straight into the clouds. Along the way, we picked up many small plastic wrappers of candy; we now finally entered remote territory and could not hear the traffic on the highway anymore. One lagoon seemed even more beautiful than the other, while the trail continued to climb until we reached the highest point at around 4150m. A small chat with the local carrying a heavy load of clothes to a mountain village still three hours away made us realize that for some, this very trail was their link to the outside world. We had a short break at the turnoff, and to our joy, we saw the clouds lifting, allowing for some sunshine to give a totally new look of the El Cajas scenery. Patches of bright sunlight were falling on the grassy mountain slopes, giving it a yellowish glow, and making the lagoons reflect the bright light. From here, it was mostly downhill, and hiking was sheer pleasure. Sticking to a developing tradition, I dipped into one of the lagoons; the water was cold, but drying in the humid, cold air with wind - the sun had disappeared now - proved colder. We walked through a landscape of puya bromeliads, straw grass, waterfalls coming down steep rocky slopes, surrounded by what seemed an endless chain of mountains. Fantastic scenery that was to accompany us to the very end of the hike, when we suddenly hit the highway to Cuenca again. The day was drawing to an end, and it proved very easy to hitch a ride back to the old colonial city.

Visited: December 2011

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More pictures of El Cajas National Park:

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

See pictures of and read about El Cajas National Park Ecuador

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brown Central&South America clouds Ecuador El Cajas El Cajas National Park grey lake mountain cliffs rock water waterfall white yellow blue black green fog flower detail