Our journey through Ecuador began with an incredibly straightforward border crossing: exit stamp in Colombia, across the bridge into Ecuador, entry stamp… et voilà. There were no questions, and nobody seemed interested in our luggage. We had actually expected more checks, since Ecuador is currently under a state of emergency to combat criminal groups. Under these circumstances, we would have thought at least a glance into our bags would have been appropriate😉, but instead, after ten minutes, we were already pedaling up to the Ecuadorian border town of Tulcán.

The town’s main attraction is its cemetery, featuring massive figures carved from cypress trees and long burial walls. Visiting it was a great start to our stay in the country. Looking back, the route for the first day’s stage was also a good choice. It took us up into the impressive páramo landscape of the Reserva Ecológica el Ángel. The first half of the climb went smoothly on a good gravel road. During our lunch break, David optimistically remarked that we’d easily cover the remaining 400 meters of elevation gain and 15 kilometers in two hours. After all, the weather was sunny, and a local had assured us that the route was in excellent condition.

Immediately after lunch, the path became narrower and rockier. The views of the tropical tundra, however, were so fascinating that even I remained in high spirits. This changed as the path became increasingly muddy and the puddles could no longer be avoided. At first, we still tried to keep our feet dry and clean, which quickly proved futile. So we shifted our priorities and from then on tried not to get the bikes and bags stuck in the mud while we were up to our calves in it. Ugh!

As darkness fell, we reached our destination for the day, the Refugio, utterly exhausted. I was glad that David had ridden ahead a bit and met the friendly ranger. As soon as I arrived, he immediately showed us our sleeping spot, a shelter in the hut that’s made available to cyclists. What a luxury! The mud on our bikes, shoes, and feet didn’t bother the ranger at all; we were allowed to come in with all our gear… “Tranquilo! Don’t worry about it and get some rest.” So, we cooked our dinner in the wind shelter, rolled out our sleeping mats on the floor, and fell asleep contentedly. We were so glad we’d chosen this strenuous but beautiful route! That’s how close the highs and lows are in bicycle touring.

In the morning, we spent the first hour cleaning the worst of the dirt out of our sleeping area and off our bikes. Then we rumbled down the cobblestone road through the cold fog towards the village of El Ángel. Starting at 3’700 meters above sea level with a temperature of 5°C, we reached the Pan-American Highway at 1’500 meters above sea level by noon, where it was 32°C. It was a good thing we had to climb back up to a pleasant 2’200 m above sea level to get to Ibarra. As we pedaled up the last few gently winding switchbacks, a rock broke loose from the steep embankment and – Doing! – hit David’s rear wheel rim right on the spot. Damn! That deep scratch on the braking surface was really the last thing we needed!

Once we arrived in Ibarra, we took a moment to collect our thoughts and figure out how to deal with the damage. Luckily, we had planned to stay with our wonderful Warmshowers host Elaine and her mother. The two of them welcomed us warmly into their beautiful old townhouse, and they kindly let us stay an extra day to find a solution for the rim problem.

However, we didn’t start the day by checking out bike shops; instead, we accompanied Elaine to her work. Sixteen years ago, she founded the nonprofit organization Crecer in Ibarra, which provides free occupational therapy services to children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities (view their website). Elaine receives no compensation for her tremendous dedication, she lives off her savings from the U.S. and works because it brings joy to her and her clients. We were deeply impressed by Elaine’s commitment; it immediately took our minds off our troubles and put the “seriousness” of our bike problem into perspective.

In fact, the problem didn’t seem nearly as serious as we had initially feared. A friend who works at DT Swiss immediately checked with the official service center and was advised to simply “sand it and continue riding.” So we didn’t go to the local bike mechanic looking for some kind of quick fix, but merely for some sandpaper😊. And just like that, we were ready to ride again. Thank you so much for your help, Pierrick!

Nevertheless, we wanted to replace the damaged rim as quickly as possible and tried to track down a DT Swiss replacement rim in a last-minute rush. This is not so easy in Ecuador, however, because the product isn’t available here, and shipping it from abroad is complicated not only by customs regulations but also by the fact that there is no longer a postal service in Ecuador! So our solution was a bit more complicated. A few weeks earlier, through a Facebook group, we had found a kind woman who would bring a replacement for David’s heavily worn rear derailleur from Europe to Ecuador. Our mail carrier was on vacation in England when we approached her with our new request. “Do you have any room left in your suitcase for a rim🫣?” To our great relief, her answer was yes, though she couldn’t guarantee that the rim wouldn’t bend in her soft bag. No worries! So we looked for a European mail-order company that had our (discontinued) rim in stock. We found one, ordered immediately, and are now hoping everything works out 🙏🏻!
After all that excitement, we enjoyed cooking a tasty dinner for everyone in our hostess’s kitchen before saying goodbye to Elaine and leaving Ibarra the next morning.

After a stop at a textile factory museum and a visit to the craft market in Otavalo, we headed toward the Cayambe volcano, which looked stunning in the evening light. In the town of the same name, we spent a restful night in the fire department’s gym. Soon after leaving Cayambe the next day and heading south, we had a lengthy photo shoot scheduled to mark our crossing of the equator. And instead of cycling to Quito in a single day’s stage, we decided to take another detour…

This led us along a mostly paved road through farmland and into small villages with indigenous populations. At the market square in Cangahua, we once again chatted with the very curious women in their pretty traditional costumes and hats. They wanted to know where we were from and where we were going, what kinds of vegetables grow in Europe, and what happens to the trash. With their openness and contagious warmth, you simply have to love the people of Ecuador!

By evening, we had cycled over a 3’950-meter-high pass and immediately descended another 700 meters in elevation to the end of the road in Oyacachi. There, we first obtained the permit to cross the Cayambe-Coco National Park and then treated ourselves to a visit to the local hot springs in the cold, foggy weather. The next morning, we climbed back up (the same way) to the entrance of the national park and immersed ourselves in its misty landscape. Everything went smoothly until the steep climbs began. Pushing through the drizzle with no visibility, my mood quickly soured. When, after one of the countless hilltops, I saw the long, far too steep final climb ahead of me, all I could do was to cry. How on earth was I supposed to manage that? With David’s help❤️! Whenever he pushed his bike ahead, he’d rush back to help me. Somehow, this pointless ordeal came to an end, and after a long descent, by the time we were sipping our second hot latte in Papallacta, I could only feel it in my legs. Did I mention how close the highs and lows sometimes are when cycling?

After crossing our first 4’000-meter pass, where we had to bundle up in the light rain, we continued on to Quito. We spent two days in Ecuador’s capital, strolling through the colonial alleys of the old town, following the Swiss national ice hockey team in the World Cup final, and chatting with other guests at the hotel.

Like all cyclists do, we followed the not-so-bad cobblestone road on our way to Cotopaxi National Park. We had little hope that the eponymous volcano would emerge from the clouds and reveal itself to us. So our joy was all the greater when it appeared in all its majesty in the late afternoon and we rolled toward it in the beautiful evening light. Even in the morning, it was briefly visible before the mountain once again shrouded itself in the usual thick clouds. That didn’t matter to us now, because we were turning our backs on it anyway and heading toward the Quilotoa loop.

This route took us along a quiet paved road for two days, winding through many elevation gains to Quilotoa Crater Lake. After another incredibly steep final climb, we reached the viewpoint at the crater’s edge and enjoyed the view down into the pretty volcanic lake.

For us, however, the unexpected highlight of the round trip followed later on. We were fascinated by the barren highlands with fields terraced all the way up the steepest mountain slopes. After countless photo stops, we reached the E30 highway and followed it down to the Pan-American Highway. My legs were tired, but David pushed us the last 40 kilometers against the wind to Ambato. We planned to stay at Casa Ciclista and take a rest day. Unfortunately, we went to the supermarket first and then found ourselves standing in front of closed doors with our groceries. If only we had registered earlier! Getting annoyed didn’t help, so we booked the cheapest accommodation in the city center and pedaled there in the dark. At first glance, our place looked like a run-down cheap hotel with strange hosts. After a long day in the saddle, we really didn’t have the energy for that, but oh well… At least we could cook dinner, take a shower, and sleep in a clean bed.

Today, in daylight, everything looked much friendlier! We’re staying with Jonathan and his mother Silvia in a very central yet quiet location. Our lovely hosts go out of their way to make sure we’re comfortable, cleaning several times a day and giving us tips on local food and excursions. Although Ambato isn’t particularly exciting or worth seeing, we’ve decided to take a few days’ break here, wait for better weather, and recharge our batteries. Because the next volcano is already waiting for us…

By the way: To mark the end of our trip through North America, we’ve updated our top 10 list. It wasn’t exactly an easy task, as we saw and experienced so many amazing things during our four years on the road!