We decided to hike the loop clockwise, which was less uphill. Doing the route this way round meant we got the prized view right at the start - the Quilotoa lake. We hiked round half of the perimeter of the 3km wide crater lake, with awesome views of it from all angles, the water changing from shades of deep turquoise to green every time we looked. We were very lucky with the weather, and after some horrendous storms in Quito, and forecast storms around Quilotoa, we had a clear day, with blue skies and a bit of a breeze. 

The route was still quite up and down, and the downs were arguably harder than the ups as they were near vertical drops with only sand beneath your feet. At one point after a difficult descent, we met a stubborn donkey, "hee-hawing" loudly and blocking the path. We tried to approach him but he looked like he wanted to bite or kick us so we kept our distance until eventually a small boy who mustn't have been more than 5 years old appeared and held his donkey back to let us past! 

The first day was an undulating 13km with spectacular views over several valleys. We reached a lovely lodge for the night in Chugchillan where we relaxed with a sauna, a glass of red wine by the fire, and a family-style dinner where we met fellow hikers. 

The second day was another 13km again with amazing weather. We spent the night at the rather luxurious "Llullu Llama" hotel in Isinlivi, where we enjoyed another spa, complete with a sauna and jacuzzi, copious amounts of red wine, and an amazing home-baked chicken pie! We also caught up with a friend we'd met in the hostel in Quito, Scottish Ian, who was doing the loop in the opposite direction. 

Our trusty walking boots were locked inside a broken Pedro at the mechanic, so we were forced to do the hike in trainers - big mistake! By day 3, the pain in Em's feet, squashed inside the most mediocre of indoor gym trainers was unbearable. We had heard you can skip hiking on the final day by catching a lift on the back of a milk truck (exactly how it sounds). After a bit of confusion about whether we'd missed it, a truck full of milk turned up in town and we jumped on the back. We were squashed in with huge urns of milk, but it was open-topped and we had lovely views of the valley. Along the way, the truck would stop at tiny family farms where traditionally clothed women were waiting with a small jug, and some milk (which had probably been in a cow minutes before) was poured from the big urn. We witnessed one exchange where a woman swapped 2 litres of milk for $1 and a small bottle of soda the driver seemed happy to accept. 

However, a few minutes later, when climbing up a particularly gnarly hill, a tyre burst. At this point, we decided we'd saved our feet enough and decided to walk to last 8km to the end of the trail as we had time. 

We arrived in the rather drab town of Sigchos with a little too much time on our hands, but eventually we could catch a bus direct back to Quito and once again check into the trusty Secret Garden hostel, where unfortunately Em succumbed to a terrible illness we suspect was covid, caught from all the minging people on the bus.