The Turungahua is a 16,480 feet high active volcano covered on the top with ice and
snow. Just recently, major eruptions have been recorded – with lava flow, ash
emissions and explosions sounding like cannon-shots. The detonations even
shattered some windows in Baños.
The best place to observe the volcano is the Casa del Árbol, a tree house 7,800 feet
above sea level. To get to this place, we took a taxi and went through beautiful
nature.
Waterfall at the foot of the Turungahua volcano
Unfortunately, the volcano was totally covered by clouds. However, the tree house
was great and the swing even more.
Flying into the sky
The path downhill brought us through lush vegetation
The walk to the Pailon del Diabolo , a spectacular waterfall, was of a different
quality than all the other hikes we made. The pathway was well taken care of and
proverbs, mounted on wooden boards about the path, were reminding the visitor
to appreciate nature.
To be your own master, learn to appreciate the silence of nature
Steep steps down to the devil’s cauldron
In the evening, Turungahua became active again. It was spitting smoke and fire into
the sky. First, we saw the smoke as a cloud behind a hill in front of our hotel.
We drove up to a viewpoint opposite the Turungahua to finally see the volcano. We
were impressed by it’s power and gracefulness. In the east, the full moon was rising.
The lights in the valley looked like little jewels, so clear. Slowly, clouds came in and
in not so long time, the whole mountain disappeared again.
– Text and pictures contributed by Garyo –
This is the last of her Ecuador travelogue series. We again appreciate her
contribution after her previous Manaslu and Tsum Valley series with many
beautiful pictures. The last series was expanded and published in a beautiful
book with more memories and pictures.
