One Action-Packed Week in Baños

Set in a picture-perfect landscape of lush mountains streaked with waterfalls just three and a half hours from Quito, lies the small yet bustling town of Baños. Known for hot springs and adventure activities, Baños is on most travelers’ itineraries. 

In fact, nearly all the friends we made at our hostel in Quito were heading there as well, so we all arranged to stay in the same place. We ended up spending the entire week together and became like a little “family”.

Our group from all over the world: Ireland, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada and America.

During our week in Baños, our days were packed with adrenaline-pumping activities.

Casa del Arbol

I saw pictures of this dreamlike swing months before our trip (likely on Pinterest), and put it on my “must do” list while in South America.

To get there, one must follow a path at the edge of town up a mountain, and at the top stands the famed swing. Our attempt to take a shortcut led us onto someone’s farm. A little girl approached us and told us we had made it to the Casa de Arbol. She led us on a trail and picked us apples and flowers, and caught us a guinea pig from her shed.

I was a bit skeptical, but she assured us she was taking us to the swing. After following her around for ten minutes, she finally brought us to a makeshift ladder against a tree with a rotting platform at the top, and told us to climb it.

I'm pretty sure those boards could not support a human...

No thank you, little girl.

We did finally make it to the real Casa Del Arbol and got a chance to swing at the edge of the world and took pictures to document our experience.

We obviously had to take a jumping picture.

Hot Springs

The local people in Baños unwind after a long day by taking a soak in the town’s famous hot springs. We joined the locals in this ritual on two occasions during our stay in Baños. The strange thing about these hot springs is that everyone is required to wear a shower cap. Interesting…

Oh, and while waiting in line to enter the hot springs, we saw a volcano erupt. Apparently this is a common occurrence, as the locals didn't seem too surprised by the smoke billowing up from Tungurahua.

Puenting

Also known as “swing jumping”, this activity involved jumping off a bridge into a gorge 100 meters below, much like bungee jumping. The main difference between the two activities is that when puenting, you swing back and forth rather than bouncing up and down.

Standing at the edge of the bridge and looking down into the rushing river below was absolutely petrifying. It took everything in me to jump. Leaping, then plummeting into the gorge was the most incredibly terrifying and exhilarating feelings I have ever experienced.

Whitewater rafting

This was our second whitewater rafting experience, and though a bit tamer than the rapids in Costa Rica, we had a blast!

Routa de las Cascadas

One activity that everyone seems to do while in Baños is this 18 kilometer bike ride past seven waterfalls.

At one waterfall, we were able to take a cable car across the gorge for a better view.

Our "taxi" back to town

Canyoning

We went canyoning in Costa Rica a few years ago and liked it so much that we went again in Baños. Rappelling down waterfalls in the jungle never gets old!

Oh, and then we ate Cuy (Guinea Pig)

Very bony (and hairy... ewww), but surprisingly tasty!

Quito

After several days spent in buses and nights stayed in sketchy motels, we were more than excited to arrive in Quito.

We took a walking tour of Quito and were able to explore the old town as well as many important buildings and plazas. One highlight of the tour was stopping in a Shaman’s office. We got to sip Chicha, a fermented drink made from yucca roots with supposed healing powers. It tasted… a bit like yeast mixed with white wine. Not terrible, but I probably wouldn't make a habit of drinking the stuff.

About to drink the Chicha

Artifacts in the Shaman's office

I can't get enough of the exotic juices in South America!

View from our hostel

During one of our days in Quito, we took the Teleferico (cable car) up the mountain with our Dutch friends to get a view of… the clouds. Eventually the thick clouds parted a bit and we were able to see the city below. At 4,100 meters above sea level, breathing was difficult making our hike incredibly hard. We had to stop every few minutes to catch our breath, but eventually made it to a beautiful lookout point which kind of made up for the grueling hike.

We made it!