Live the Anzu Adventure to the Amazon

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In the Ecuadorian Amazon Rainforest Region, a 30Km (18 miles) river called Anzu goes through the predominantly green landscapes of the provinces of Napo and Pastaza. Anzu has different water currents great for practicing extreme sports such as rafting and kayaking but, if you are a like the kind of person who prefer to stay on land, you will find several touristic attractions that can’t be left unvisited.

The first adventure is right at the river’s source and is called "the Anzu Cave", a cave made of several smaller caves which have little holes leading to chambers. On the most inner chambers, stalactites and stalagmites of various sizes and shapes can be observed.

Going forward on the river’s course, you can also visit the nearby communities, which are essential to understanding the whole environment. Apart from discovering impressive cultures, you will be able to live these people’s harmonious way of life. Activities like hunting, identifying medicinal plants, participating in the local rituals and celebrations, and being hosted by a family or staying in a private house are part of the Anzu experience.

The trip continues with the Hola Vida Reserve, a place 220 hectares wide where you can see different bird and insect species and old giant trees. An activity that you can’t miss here is taking a bath in the Escondida waterfall whose cold waters are believed to have energetic powers.

Finally, you will approach the end of the Anzu River. Walking a nearby path, you will get to the mouth of another majestic river: the Napo River, located right at the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon, which marks the beginning of a new adventure.

Photo: larry&flo

Five New Volcanoes Discovered in Ecuador

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It was difficult for researchers to believe that finding one day some little fragments of volcanic glass –obsidian– would consequently be one of the greatest geological discoveries in Ecuador, something that would reaffirm to the world the reason why this land is known as the “Volcanic Land”. Two American volcano experts, Minard Hall and Patricia Mothes, have announced this way the discovery of five new volcanoes found inside the Ecuadorian Amazon.

Located inside the province of Napo, 75km (46mi) away from Quito, the recently discovered volcanoes have a height range that goes from 2800 to 3700m (9186 to 12139 feet). They got named “El Dorado”, “Domos de Huevo de Chivo”, “Lava Baeza”, “Centro Cosanga” and “Centro Pamayacu”, and this last one is believed to be potentially active. The age of the volcanoes is estimated to be around 2 000 and 20 000 years old.

The amazing expedition inspired the volcanoes’ discoverers so much that they don’t rule out the possibility of the existence of more volcanoes, which might be located close to the Cordillera Real Andina (Royal Andean Mountain Range). More than 50 volcanoes have been identified in Ecuador at present, and 20 of them are considered active by the Global Volcanism Program. Many of them can be visited through the touristic corridor known as the “Volcanoes Avenue”.

The recent discovery has been proudly announced to the rest of the world. Due to their understanding of the cosmos, Ecuadorians feel admiration and respect for these impressive giants, and they are often considered to be the guardians and protectors of their territory.

Swim and Slide Through the Cracks of the Millenary Jumandy Caves

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It is hard to believe that inside a touristic resort with pools, sport fields and lodges you would find a naturally formed mysterious place which you can only discover if you venture inside it in the Indiana Jones style, entering an underground world full of adventure and history, swimming in lakes and sliding through cracks, in an absolute darkness.

This place can be found in Ecuador, and it is known as the Jumandy Caves. The caves are located in the province of Napo, 5km (3mi) away from the village of Archidona. They are hidden among an exuberant nature resulting almost imperceptible, something which has made them preserve their mystery the way they have done it for many years throughout history. They were once used by the indigenous chief called Jumandy (which means wise man in Quechua), who protected his tribe from the Spanish invaders by hiding inside them, where they could not be found. Besides being a protection and a refuge for our people, these caves have also been a witness of our Earth’s natural evolution.

The inside of the caves is completely dark, so using a waterproof flashlight is absolutely necessary. If you look at the cave’s ceiling, you can observe the millenary stalactite formations, which are pointy mineral cones produced by the constant dropping of water from the surface; consequently, you can also observe the stalagmites on the ground, resulting from the accumulation of the fallen minerals of the ceiling. Together, stalactites and stalagmites can form big columns of unique and impressive shapes.

The adventure intensifies when you find the underground lakes. The only way to go across them is by swimming with the flashlight held high. Further on, you also get to know some natives that represent the past societies that lived inside the caves for protection. From time to time, you slide through water currents to descend, getting muddy at some places and washed up in others, so this scientifically amazing tour is also lots of fun. The tour’s length varies depending on your choice, the shortest being 45 minutes and the longest being from 7 to 8 hours, depending on the group’s pace and the challenges found on the way. The tours are always guided by a local.

At the end of the tour, perhaps the first thing you will remark is the beautiful sky full of stars. You may decide to camp there and stay over for one night to continue this adventure full of respect for the Amazonian nature, so you come out having known it from the subsoil to the sky.

Photo: catavergara

Mandango: Find out about the Treasure that no one Dares to Search For

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The legend says that in ancient times, when the Incan Empire was destroyed, the emperor held hostage in prison told the Spanish Francisco Pizarro that he would be given a room filled with gold in exchange of his life. Without any doubts and giving into his greed, Pizzarro accepted, and the Emperor kept his words.

Pizarro, looking at the astonishing room that had more gold, silver and precious stones that he would ever imagine, was so amazed and fulfilled with greed that he decided to take over the whole empire. The emperor Atahualpa became aware of Pizarro’s plan, and gave orders to his second in charge to have the treasure translated to Vilcabamba.

The land of Vilcabamba, which means “Sacred Valley” in Quechua, is a synonym for mystery. It is a place where people do not grow old; home of stone gods in charge of protecting the sacred and destroying anyone who tries to desecrate it.

If you travel to this land located in the South of Ecuador, at the province of Loja, you will see one of these gods that inhabitants call by the name of “El Mandango” (Lying God): a great hill that looks like a giant cathedral considered a sacred place. It is said that this protecting god was chosen by Atahualpa to guard the Incan treasure for the eternity. The treasure is known to be existent, but no one has found it.  There is a legend with unknown origins that tells the exact place where it is located, but it also courses whoever dares to look for it.

Knowing this story, it is impossible not to think that maybe their proximity to the gods has made these people of the valley have the world’s longest life expectancy. They live an average of 100 years doing nothing but living their lives normally and drinking from the water that comes down from the stone gods. Looking at these people, a question arises in the mind: are all the stories about the stone gods only a legend or is it really a true story that continues to be reflected into the Vilcabamba landscape and its centenary inhabitants?

Visitors can enjoy these beautiful sacred lands with landscapes that make you fall in love and climb to the Mandango’s peak. At the end of the day, you will have found an exceptional treasure: the Incan god’s wisdom to appreciate and respect the earth in which we live.


Photo: slipszenko

Huaorani and Achuar: Ethnic Groups from the Ecuadorian Amazon

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When thinking about the Spanish conquerors’ arrival to the Kingdom of Quito, Ecuador, it is impossible not to imagine how astonished would they have felt by looking at the various social settlements and realizing how different could their culture and customs be, regardless of being separated by very short distances.

This diversity is still found today in Ecuador, a multiethnic and thus multicultural nation that is nowadays home to fourteen ethnic groups, living in more than sixteen communities. Among these indigenous groups we can find the Huaorani and the Achuar, both communities that have stood out as nature’s guardians.

The Huaorani have a population of 4.000 people, located inside the Ecuadorian Amazon basin, in the provinces of Orellana, Pastaza and Napo, which comprised in a 6,125km² (3805sq.mi) area considered by the Ecuador government, since 1990, an untouchable indigenous reserve, thanks to its support and conservation of ethnical customs and beliefs policy. Their reserve overlaps with the Yasuní National Park, one of the most biologically diverse places on Earth, something that provides them some measure of environmental protection and, at the same time, makes them its primary defenders, given their belief of respecting everything that exists.

The Huaorani people are known for taking the decision to live in complete isolation, away from the contemporary world. The forest is their home, and they consider the outside world to be unsafe. Among their beliefs is found that of afterlife. According to them, a person who dies walks a trail to the next life guarded by large python. Those who cannot escape the snake fail to enter the spirits’ domain and return to Earth to become animals. Another Huaorani belief is that deer’s eyes are similar to those of humans, and therefore they shall not hunt and eat them.