Maquipucana cloud forest lodge, Ecuador
| country: | Ecuador |
| location: | Cloud forest |
| departures: | This trip can be tailormade at a time to suit you throughout the year and can be adapted to suit your interests, budget and requirements. |
| price: | From £351 (3 days) excluding flights. Price includes transfers to/from Quito, private room, all meals and an English speaking guide |
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the amazing things you'll be doing
Stay in the ecotourism centre of the Maquipucuna Reserve in the heart of the Ecuadorian cloud forest, only 50 miles from Quito.
The Maquipucuna Reserve has around 15,000 acres of primary and secondary forest and is located within the Choco Andean Bioregion, one of the world's top-five biodiversity hot spots. The Reserve incorporates habitats ranging from 4,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level. There at least three different zones can be found: pre-montane humid forest, low-montane humid forest and montane humid forest. Average annual temperature varies between 50º and 90º Fahrenheit and rainfall ranges between 1,500 to 3,000 mm per year, mainly December until April
Cloud forests are so named because their certain relative altitude allows them to catch - and create - clouds that humidify the forest. Constant moisture provides excellent conditions to epiphytes and many other plant species. Cloud forest is also an important source of fresh water and helps to prevent erosion.
Maquipicuna is home to a great variety of species, many of them endangered and/or endemic. There are around 2,000 plant species (more than 36 species of orchids), more than 349 bird species and more than 50 species of mammals. Residents include toucanets, spectacled bears, armadillos and it houses an active Cock-of-the-Rock Lek. More than 10% of the diversity registered in Ecuador has been registered in Maquipucuna by botanical experts.
Maquipicuna Foundation & accommodation: The Maquipicuna Foundation was established in 1988 as a nonprofit local organization, with the vision of working on biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of natural resources in Ecuador. The Foundation encourages and promotes the participation of local communities in its programs.
The Thomas H. Davis Ecotourism Centre is located in the reserve close to the Umacacha river. It is staffed by friendly people from the local communities, under the management of the Maquipucuna Foundation. It offers a complete service, utilizing the best of local and international recipes and ingredients. There is comfortable accommodation for up to 30 people (5 separate bedrooms with shared bathrooms, 3 suites with private bathrooms, and a family cabin with private bathrooms). All bathrooms have hot showers.
There is also a Research Station that provides basic laboratories and accommodation for 20 scientists, naturalists and volunteers and a Camping area for those who are looking for a deeper contact with nature.
Activities: Your guides will tailor your activities according to what you would like to do. Options include hiking, swimming in rivers and waterfall and mountain biking. Alternatively, there are archaeological site visits to Yumbo (pre-Inca) ruins, forest trails and bird watching. If you prefer you can visit sustainable development projects, talk to researchers – or just relax in the hammocks. Please see example itinerary below
The Maquipucuna Reserve has around 15,000 acres of primary and secondary forest and is located within the Choco Andean Bioregion, one of the world's top-five biodiversity hot spots. The Reserve incorporates habitats ranging from 4,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level. There at least three different zones can be found: pre-montane humid forest, low-montane humid forest and montane humid forest. Average annual temperature varies between 50º and 90º Fahrenheit and rainfall ranges between 1,500 to 3,000 mm per year, mainly December until April
Cloud forests are so named because their certain relative altitude allows them to catch - and create - clouds that humidify the forest. Constant moisture provides excellent conditions to epiphytes and many other plant species. Cloud forest is also an important source of fresh water and helps to prevent erosion.
Maquipicuna is home to a great variety of species, many of them endangered and/or endemic. There are around 2,000 plant species (more than 36 species of orchids), more than 349 bird species and more than 50 species of mammals. Residents include toucanets, spectacled bears, armadillos and it houses an active Cock-of-the-Rock Lek. More than 10% of the diversity registered in Ecuador has been registered in Maquipucuna by botanical experts.
Maquipicuna Foundation & accommodation: The Maquipicuna Foundation was established in 1988 as a nonprofit local organization, with the vision of working on biodiversity conservation and sustainable management of natural resources in Ecuador. The Foundation encourages and promotes the participation of local communities in its programs.
The Thomas H. Davis Ecotourism Centre is located in the reserve close to the Umacacha river. It is staffed by friendly people from the local communities, under the management of the Maquipucuna Foundation. It offers a complete service, utilizing the best of local and international recipes and ingredients. There is comfortable accommodation for up to 30 people (5 separate bedrooms with shared bathrooms, 3 suites with private bathrooms, and a family cabin with private bathrooms). All bathrooms have hot showers.
There is also a Research Station that provides basic laboratories and accommodation for 20 scientists, naturalists and volunteers and a Camping area for those who are looking for a deeper contact with nature.
Activities: Your guides will tailor your activities according to what you would like to do. Options include hiking, swimming in rivers and waterfall and mountain biking. Alternatively, there are archaeological site visits to Yumbo (pre-Inca) ruins, forest trails and bird watching. If you prefer you can visit sustainable development projects, talk to researchers – or just relax in the hammocks. Please see example itinerary below
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | In the morning, after a visit to the monument at the Equator and the Middle of the World museum, we make our way to the Maquipucuna Reserve, where we have lunch. In the afternoon we will walk in the cloud forest along a riverside trail spotting bird and animal life. Dinner. |
| Day 2: | Breakfast is followed by the "Bear Trail" walk with a picnic lunch - we would have to be lucky to see a spectacled bear, but you never know as this is their preferred habitat. In the afternoon we return to Casa Umachaca, where you will have the opportunity to bathe in a crystal clear river and relax. Dinner. |
| Day 3: | After breakfast we set off in a birdwatching trail. After lunch we visit the sugar cane mill, where you can try a glass of sweet guarapo and see how local people make aguardiente. Evening return to Quito. |
travellers' tales
The dugout canoe ride to the lodge was quite memorable. We saw abundant wildlife along the way including various birds, monkeys, and butterflies. (more)
how this holiday makes a difference
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The Maquipucuna Foundation was founded in 1988 as a nonprofit organisation dedicated to the conservation of the Ecuador's biodiversity and the sustainable use of natural resourses. The foundation promotes the participation of local communities in its programs, and 90% of what the traveller pays us goes to the foundation.
Objectives and activities include: Establishment and management of private and governmental nature reserves, scientific, social and archaological research to achieve ecological restoration and cultural preservation, implementiation of ecotourism programs for generating local economic opportunities, environmental education and training of rural communities to promote sustainable use of natural resources, development of community-based resource management programs, and promotion of inter-institutional cooperation.  Accommodation is provided in a small but modern lodge built in accordance with its natural surroundings. The open-air design allows intimate contact with nature and the sounds of the rushing Umachaca River. The lodge is staffed with guides and staff almost entirely from the local communities. Meals are prepared using local ingredients including fresh vegetables grown in the organic garden. Organic waste is fed to pigs or composted for use on the farm and inorganic waste is taken to Quito for treatment. The reserve also has a research station with facilities which may accommodate up to 18 researchers. Maquipucuna shelters 4% of bird species on the planet and is considered by scientists to be a "global priority zone" for bird life conservation. |
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