Tag Archives: cable car

La Paz, Bolivia

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September 25, 2018 – October 6, 2018

We decided that we would camp at the secure parking area at the La Paz International Airport, which is technically in the city of El Alto, adjacent to, but high above La Paz.  It was not a beautiful spot to camp, there was nowhere really to sit outside, but we had 24 hour security, 24 hour toilet access, and it was nice to be able to sit in the terminal with wifi access and drink a $5 coffee while listening to America’s greatest hits of the eighties….felt like a little piece of home.

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Kuelap, the Most Important Ruins You’ve Maybe Never Heard of…..

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August 12, 2018 – August 15, 2018

The Chachapoyas (Cloud People) began building the fortified city of Kuelap in the 6th century AD, 600 to 900 years before Machu Picchu.  The walls surround an area of 584 metres by 110 metres, and reach heights of up to 20 metres.  Inside are the ruins of circular homesteads and temples.  The setting for this is the top of a remote mountain, 3,100 metres above sea level (about 700 metres higher than Machu Picchu), in northern Peru, providing incredible views of the surrounding valleys.  So why have you maybe never heard of Kuelap?  Well, until recently it was very difficult to get to, but a recent investment in a cable car has opened up the site, which some claim to be as important as the more famous Machu Picchu.

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Mindo

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July 17, 2018 – July 19, 2018

Mindo is 2.5 hours from Quito but a world away in terms of the environment.  In 268 kilometres of winding road we dropped about 1,500 metres in elevation.  Gone were the volcano peaks and bare mountains, replaced by lush tropical forest and gorges.  Gone were the high rises, traffic and urban dwellers, replaced by palms trees, people on horseback and children playing in the stream while their mothers hand washed clothes and lay them on the rocks to dry.

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