Once again, life is getting in the way of my wanderings, so this week I’ve decided instead to wander down memory lane. Today I’m remembering a 2015 trip that Mark and I took to Ecuador to visit my father and step-mother. We met up with them in Mindo (a couple of hours by car to the northwest of Quito), and stayed in a 
wonderful place just outside of town, the Yellow House Lodge. Situated in a valley surrounded by the Andes mountains and mile upon mile of cloud forest, Mindo is not only breathtakingly beautiful, it’s also well known worldwide as one of the best places, anywhere, for birding (with over 500 species of birds) – especially if you enjoy hummingbirds! While there we also saw toucans, macaws, motmots, vultures, warblers… too many species to list here. We stayed for a couple of days and did do some exploring, but two days wasn’t nearly enough time!
We had a hearty, unique, and delicious breakfast before our hike (they make their own jams using wonderful local fruits that we never see here in the US). The meal was served on the covered deck of the main house, overlooking the valley. Along the length of the deck, hanging from the eaves, were about a dozen hummingbird feeders. I lost track of how many species we spotted, but 
it was around 14 or 15, I believe. In the bushes below the deck we were able to spot numerous hummers at rest, as well as the distinctive Bananaquits, with their white eyebrow and bright yellow breast, which also shared the same feeders.
Because the variety of hummingbird species were so numerous, so spectacular, and so unusual to us northerners, I’m including a few photos here for your viewing pleasure (from top to bottom: Andean Emerald, White-necked Jacobin, and although not yet positively ID’d, the last could be a Western Emerald): 
The walk I’m recalling today was directly up the mountainside from our B&B. Wandering up the steep track, we encountered vistas, plants, birds, and other animals which of course were completely new to us. I wouldn’t have been surprised if our eyes looked like saucers in our faces, we were so determined not to miss anything! We spotted wild cuy (guinea pigs), which are eaten in
Ecuador and other South American countries (we didn’t try any). I also nearly stepped on the little fuzzy tarantula pictured here, but saw him just in time to step aside.
The entire walk was lush, as you would expect in a cloud forest, and the dense foliage masked most of the bird and animal life we could hear all around us. Although a small portion of the Yellow House Lodge’s lands are used for cattle grazing, the owners are very conscious of their impact on the environment. If I’m remembering correctly, they owned well over 400 acres, and nearly all of it has been kept (and is intended to stay) wild.
Occasionally we were given a fleeting glimpse, beyond the heavy curtains of greenery, of the valley stretching away below us. It was a spectacular walk, and I recall it so vividly…the warmth of the day, the views all around us, the tree roots crossing the path as we were climbing, the many unusual flowers and other plants waving at us as we passed by. And the sounds…oh the sounds! I will never forget the riot of wild voices surrounding us that day! As I said, two days was not enough time, not nearly enough time, to spend in such a rich and varied landscape. One day we will go back! Well, I will go back – Mark isn’t as fond of travel as I am, so I might have to find a friend to accompany me!
Later that trip I also wandered along the beaches of the Pacific ocean, then travelled on to the Galapagos Islands…but those are stories for another day. So, on that lovely and evocative note, I’ll say chao! Until next time.