AUGUST 20 - YANTZAZA TO LOJA

Loja will be a rest day which we are all looking forward to.  Some riders had taken the day off and had hired a taxi to take them to Loja yesterday evening.  It cost just $40 for 4 of them to taxi the 100 km distance.  We will probably do this when we get near Lima so we can have an extra day there.

By the way Ecuador uses the US dollar as its currency, so any prices I give you are US (not Can. pesos).  Gas is cheap here, $2 per Imperial gallon.

Today's run is 104 km, generally flat for 50 km, then a long uphill as we cross the mountains and exit the jungle.  Laura and I decide to go on the bus to the lunch stop and to bike up the pass from there.  I'm interested in the transition of the vegetation.

Before we leave, here is a picture from yesterday - one of the riders pitched his 
tent on the pedestal in the middle of the pond.  Quiet spot - bugs??








I tried to take a few photos from the bus.  Here's a nice house in Yantzaza - note the shuttered doors for shops below.  I don't know whether the shop owners live in the house, or rent the space.















Control tower at the local airport.  Is that spindly structure on the right the old tower?  They have one (poorly paved) runway here.









This (very bad) photo shows a tunnel into the mountain.  We were trying to decide if it was for a mine or a hydro project.











The valley below with a road up the other side and fog creeping up.










Setting up the lunch truck.  We help with the cleaning and setup before our bikes are unloaded.  With the weather apparently not improving and Laura still worried a bit about gastro she decided to stay on the bus.  So, off I go.









Pretty waterfall.  Lots of small streams coming out of the hillside.















It turns out the project I mentioned earlier was a hydro project.  Here's the other end.  The sign explained it had a dam here, a tunnel through the mountains, and penstocks / powerhouse at the other end.  There were large red signs at each site in Chinese; I assume that is where the financing is coming from.



Further along at (another) bad spot in the road.  The vegetation is almost looking sub alpine (about 2000 m elevation)










From yet further along.  The road below is where I cycled from a while ago (puff, puff).











It turned foggy, cold and windy at the summit, not worth a photo.  I put on another layer, my jacket and gloves.  Few photos of the ride down, as it was a little hairy.   I hit one pothole hard (no damage) and was subjected to wind gusts from various directions.  Here's one of my first views of Loja.




Safely in the hotel now, after navigating the streets.  Our laundry is done, junk is strewn everywhere in the room and we had a great dinner at a brew pub.  Good beer (I learned what a flight of beer is), nachos and quesadillas.
More tomorrow on our rest day.