Our trek to the Iyarina Lodge was nothing short of a good time! Our last morning in Otevalo started the same with bread, coffee, juice, and eggs for breakfast. We said goodbye to our wonderful hosts and began our long day of travel on the bus. The first stop of the day was at the middle of the earth: Mitad del Mundo. We got to examine how the sun reaches different regions of the world differently during solstices and equinoxes. We had a fun time being on the equator line and playing around being in both hemispheres at once!
After our dance on the equator, we continued our trek on the bus. Our next stop was near Lima Pishanga where we took a quick hiking break! It was rough at first adjusting to the altitude that high up but it was worth it for the incredible views of the mountain landscape.
The next stop, our most exciting of the day, was the hot springs! At the hot springs, they have both hot and cold pools that have great heath benefits and are super relaxing after a few long days of traveling and exploring! We put out stuff away in the lockers and ventured to see each of the pools they had. I ended up doing a few cold and hot plunges with some of group, which felt amazing! After some time in the springs, we headed to lunch at the restaurant on the property. I had chicken, rice, salad, and lentils; another amazing meal in Ecuador! After lunch, we continued on our way to the lodge.
After a quick nap on the bus, I woke up when we arrived at the gas station nearby the place we’re heading. I got a small snack to hold me over till dinner and then chilled. Our last stop before the lodge was the cloud forest, but we just stopped quickly since it was too dark to hike it.
We made it to the lodge at around 8:00 PM and were greeted by Tod, the owner. We took a long trek with all our luggage in the dark to our cabins for our stay; we were introduced quickly to the wildlife we’d see here including tarantulas, bugs, and more! After getting settled, we headed to head dinner at the main lodge. We had these delicious steak tacos which were the perfect meal to end our long days of traveling. We ended the night around the campfire before heading off to bed.
Our first morning at the lodge started at 7:30 AM. We got up and changed and headed off to breakfast. We seem to start our days here with the same things: coffee, eggs, bread, fruit, and juice. Everything is so fresh though so you can’t complain! Following breakfast, Tod presented the history of the lodge and the culture that surrounds it. It was interesting to hear his father’s purpose for starting the lodge.
After the presentation, we headed off down the path to begin our pot making! We learned that they take the clay from the most of the river and say a prayer as they do it because they are taking from the earth. They when make 3 equal coils of clay and a small circular bottom piece and layer the clay to make a pot. Miriam was showing us how to pinch it to close any gaps and helped us make animals to sit on the bottom of our pots. With my extra clay, I got to make some smaller cups for my family!
After getting messy with clay, we washed up and headed to lunch. Following lunch, Skip gave us a formal lecture on the biology and process of making chocolate, along with a business perspective to analyze chocolate making with. After his lecture, we walked down to the beach to skip rocks and explore some more. After a few minutes, it started to downpour so we ran back to our cabins for a quick siesta.
Before dinner, we got to explore Tod’s cacao farm further up the road from lodge. We were able to try the raw cacao and eat the outside white part of the bean. We also got to help harvest it, which is when you cut open the pods and scoop the seeds out. We ended our excursion with very sticky cacao hands!
We came back from cacao harvesting and went to dinner. Before heading back to the cabins for the night, Skip and Rick showed us a cool spot down the road where we got to hang out and play pool.
Breakfast the next morning was the same per usual. Right after, we got our hand at actually making chocolate from start to finish! We got to roast the cacao, peel the shells, form a paste, boil it with sugar and leaves, and then taste it! It was super interesting to get a hands on approach to making chocolate as it gives you a better idea about the overall process we don’t normally experience.
After chocolate making, we got dressed and ready for our river hike! I left my phone back in my room and put my boots on for this trek through the Canuayacu River. When we got there, we walked through the forest with our guide Eddie and made it to the stream. Most of the time, he used a machete to cut through low hanging branches or plants; we were basically making a trail as we went. Certain parts in the water were low and at our feet, others were up to heads and we had to swim. It’s was thrilling and challenging to navigate the rough terrain and it was well worth it! At the end of the hike, there was a water fall we got to jump off of into the water which was my favorite part!
We got back to the lodge and changed quickly before heading to lunch. We had some salad and tomato and cheese bread. After lunch, we had a chocolate tasting with Kallari, another local Ecuadorian chocolate brand. At this tasting, we got to compare their products with her products on the market to show the difference in quality and taste. We tried milk chocolate , dark chocolate, and cocoa powder. At the end, we got to shop their products and i bought some vanilla power they make to bake with it at home!
After the tasting, we had some free time to hang out. Kayhaan and I headed to the hammocks to chill and listen to music. I ended up finishing the book I was reading just before we headed to dinner!
Because of some power outages, dinner took a bit longer than normal, but it gave us some time to decompress from the long day and talk about what to expect tomorrow when we head to visit the Waoroni tribe. We ate soup and steak kabobs for dinner which were so so good!
I ended my night with packing my bags, calling my parents and sister, and getting ready for the next few days with the Waoroni!