Last weekend I decided to go to Mindo. A little, calm village in the cloud forest and about 70 km western from Quito. It is especially known for its unique bird world, like hummingbirds, toucans, parrots and the famous cock of the rock. As well you can do there a lot of other things, for example a hike to one of the many waterfalls.
How to get to Mindo
At the bus terminal “Ofelia” in Quito you can catch a bus and the drive takes then just about two hours.
Arrived in Mindo we first searched for an accommodation. There is a big variety in all price ranges and soon we found a cheap and lovely hostel for us. Afterwards we went for a walk and have looked at all the nice cafés and little tiendas de artesanía (art market) where you can find beautiful jewelry which is all self-produced.
The waterfalls
The next morning we went to the waterfalls early. The entrance costed three dollars and first you have to walk about 40 minutes through the cloud forest, a wonderful hike with an awesome panorama. The water was really cold, but also a great refreshment for all of us after this exhausted walk. There was also a slide, which went from the rocket directly into the water that was great! After that we enjoyed the sun at one of the many rocks right to the water.
Canopy
Then we decided to do Canopy – we wanted more adventure! That is a zip-line which goes over the valley of the cloud forest and is so much fun. We got a helmet and gloves from the guides and then it started – you just “fly” over this beautiful landscape, it was so awesome! I recommend this to everyone who searches for adrenalin and adventure. You can also choose between two options, the short tour with three zip-lines or the longer one with 13 zip-lines, so if you are still unsure and want to try it just once then even the short trip it is worth.
For me, Mindo was definitely worth the trip. It offers so many different things from adventure like Canopy to something quite like bird watching – there is something to do for everyone.
