Ecuador: it’s been an experience. Not always a good one, but this moment of silence at Laguna Quilotoa was a high point in more ways than one.
A Moment of Silence
18 Thursday Jan 2018
Posted in Ecuador, Travel - General
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One Foot Out the Door
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Wow, what a photo! That shimmering water. I’d love a sweater in that color. Sorry to hear that it has been a challenge. When you travel so much, that inevitably happens. Makes you appreciate the ones that flow.
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Photo courtesy of my sister, who was first to find that sublime edge. I’ve been thinking similar thoughts about tougher trips; not every foray can meet expectations, even when the traveler is always trying to put the most positive spin possible on everything!
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Worth a moment or maybe a year, Lexi. Beautiful. –Curt
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Thanks, Curt. Ecuador has had a number of spectacular natural sights, and when the weather gods have let us see them, we have been impressed!
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Lovely to share this highlight with you Lexie. A beautiful moment indeed 😍
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You challenged me to find some bright spots, and this might have been the brightest!
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Beautiful! Peaceful!
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Thanks – it was a really great part of our hike that day!
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What a glorious sight. Your mention of weather reminds me of my disappointment in Arkansas, when nearly zero-visibility fog kept me from seeing the Ouachita mountains for nearly the entire four days I was based in Mena. It takes discipline to keep looking, but invariably something unexpected will help to make up for any disappoinments.
The color of the water here is glorious: such a nice complement to the cliff you’re sitting on .
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It was a particularly welcome sight for us because we, too, had been enshrouded in fog (and rain and snow and hail and clouds and …) for days on end. There have been brief moments of light on our trip, and we have perhaps enjoyed them that much more for their contrast with the majority of our time!
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Love the photo and caption. Beautiful reflection, colors, clouds contrasting with dark mountains, composition. Feeling the height and silence.
Peta
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Thanks, Peta. We had hoped to see Quilotoa reflecting a clear blue sky, but just the parting of clouds was a gift, and in a way, I think the variegated color might be even prettier. (Always looking for the silver lining …!)
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I’m currently in Queenstown NZ and had the same experience. Wanted sun but happy with no rain after getting hammered by rain on a high pass during a hike. Silver linings as you say….
Nice pic btw!
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Such an amazing photo. It almost looks like that water is a mirror. So smooth. Sometimes travels won’t be all that cracked up to be – it’s so unpredictable and you just never know. But most of the time there will be something to like about a travel trip, and this looks like it for you as you said 🙂
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So true, Mabel, and this small moment of quiet and light and peacefulness made up for an awful lot of really crummy weather in the preceding days!
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Reaaaally nice pic. As an Ecuadorian myself I know exactly what you mean 😉
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Thanks! Your home country is a beautiful place – I just wish we’d had the ability to see more of it! In seven days, we never got one full glimpse of Cotopaxi – such a disappointment. But we also had a few moments of brilliance, like this one at Quilotoa.
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He aaaaalways hides it’s crazy 😀 But yeah even I would like to see more hehe
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Lexi this is such a beautiful photo! Love the reflection! How are you doing? Any upcoming adventures? Are you happy in Texas?
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Thanks, Nicole! This was such a gift to us after many days of really nasty weather and a complete lack of nice views of this pretty country. After this adventure, I’m not sure what’s next although I think my son and I will be in Italy this spring/summer. We LOVE Houston; it’s like we’ve been there forever now – all settled in with friends and activities, etc. Thanks for asking! Hope all is well with you – your CA trip looked great!
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I can’t wait to hear more about Equador Lexi. I still haven’t been there. As for Houston, that is awesome! I’m so glad you love it! It is soooo important. I’m so bored with Minneapolis yet we are here for now given my husbands job. So I travel to get a break! Not that it is bad, but I’ve been here too long.
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That’s how Chicago had gotten for us. We loved it there, but after 26 years, it was time to make a move. Getting warmer didn’t hurt!
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Great shot, Lexie. Here I was settling in for an entertaining read… I’ll have to be patient for the (written) story later. I hope you had some positive experiences on your Ecuador trip! The memories are sometimes better than the real deal, especially when you have picked up your routine at home again and reminisce on past adventures.
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My husband sent me a message asking where the rest of the post was! Haha. I am still in Ecuador and I rarely post while traveling, but this little moment so perfectly matched the Weekly Photo Challenge that I just had to pop it on here quickly! We are already reminiscing a bit more positively about our time here as we get set to leave. It’s been less than ideal, but there have still been some great times to savor.
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That’s the spirit! Enjoy your last days in Ecuador and the bitter sweetness of it all. Xx
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I was thinking the same thing! Can’t wait to read more about your trip and very curious about how long it took you to get up there!
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We chose to be driven to the rim of Quilotoa and then walked the whole way back to our lodging (about 5-6 hours) – down the volcano, down further into a canyon, and then back up into our little town. We were lucky to have good weather at the rim for a short time, but then it deteriorated (again!) on the hike back.
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Glad you had a high point 🙂 🙂
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Thanks, Jo. It was a different high point than the one we were expecting elsewhere, but life throws curveballs and we have to handle them! This one was a goodie, and we savored it all the more after our bad luck in other places during this trip.
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Silence and peace. Nice photo!
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Thanks! My sister and I each took a few moments to just sit there and savor the view and the utter silence atop this volcanic crater.It made up for a lot of other crummy days!
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Pingback: WPC: Silence | Lillie-Put
After what you said about the weather in Ecuador, I did check the weather forecast myself and I must admit it didn’t look very promising. However, it’s great that a day with fair weather finally came so you could go to Quilotoa. That reflection, what a beautiful sight it must have been!
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Believe it or not, that forecast looks MUCH better than it did for us! I see little half-suns in there now. The whole week we were there showed rain showers and storm symbols, and that’s just what we got. 😦 We got an hour of fair weather at Quilotoa, but then we hiked back in the rain. I’ll take the small blessings; at least we saw the laguna and a slight sun reflection for those few minutes.
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Bad weather over there? Hey, at least you won’t get sunburned! (trying to get a positive spin on things, but I suspect without much success). Love that caldera…
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Terrible weather. We really kept our spirits up as well as we could and hiked in awful conditions all week. The funny thing is you’re so close to the sun at the equator that even in an hour of filtered sun you get a bit burned!
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A moment captured for eternity🙂 So beautiful!!
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Thanks! It was a top moment during our trip. I can’t take credit for the photo since I’m in it, but I agree that’s it’s a beautiful scene!
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Love the reflection of the sky in the lake. Beautiful photo!
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Frustrated as we were at the lack of sun during our trip, on this morning the mix of clouds and the bit of blue sky quite possibly made that reflection a little more interesting!
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You said it well! Loved your entry to this week’s challenge! 🙂
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Thanks – I rarely post while traveling, but that one fit quite well!
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Gorgeous photo! 🙂
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Thanks, Shelley – I can only take credit for sitting there and being quiet within that beautiful scenery!
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Spectacular view, and I think it looks even more dramatic with the ominous-looking clouds and that little ray of sun shining on you.
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I agree. As I’ve commented to a few others, the clouds are no fun in person, but they make for much more dramatic and often better photos!
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Knowing how your week played out this photos is extra special. A moment in time without rain and a beautiful image. Hoping you are well and no ill effects of the wet and cold journey.
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Thanks, Sue – no ill effects; in fact, I had so many warm and supportive comments after the ill-fated hiking attempts that I’m almost glad … well, no, scratch that! … I still would have preferred beautiful trekking weather. But in hindsight nothing looks quite as bad! 🙂 And this moment pictured here was perhaps even more of a highlight than it would have been otherwise.
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