Vilcabamba: Last stop in Ecuador

We were lucky enough to spend a few nights in the hippie town of Vilcabamba, about a 7 hour bus ride south of Cuenca. Vilcabamba is known for its beautiful mountain scenery, really old people and laid-back, hippie vibe.

We stayed at Izhcayluma, a hostel about 2km south of Vilcabamba, up in the hills overlooking the town. It is German owned and operated, which means the hot water works and the internet is fast. We paid US$12 for a dorm room...a little steep for Ecuador, but it included a delicious buffet breakfast (buffet means it is breakfast and extras are taken in doggie bags for lunch). The food for breakfast was amazing, and ranged from homemade nutty bread, homemade jam, homemade granola, homemade yogurt and fresh fruits and fruit juices. You could also have eggs or crepes made for you fresh off the grill. Izhcayluma was spread out over the hillside, with private bungalows and dorms connected by cobblestone paths. It had a main restaurant/sitting area that was open and overlooked the valley that Vilcabamba is nestled in. There was also a pool, massage hut, TV lounge and bar area with ping pong, pool and a bonfire pit! Basically, everything we needed to be happy for weeks.

Our only truely full day in Vilcabamba (we stayed two nights at Izhcayluma) was absolutely amazing. We woke up to our delicious buffet breakfast, and after stuffing ourselves adequately, we set out on the Izhcayluma Loop. Izhcayluma had mapped out 6 or so trails in the surrounding area, marked with different colors of spray paint, and they happily provided topographical maps and written instructions for these hikes of varying difficulty. The Izhcayluma Loop was about a 5 hour hike and got us up high on ridgelines that overlooked all of the surrounding valleys. The views were spectacular from the ridge, with textured, green mountains above and below us. It was shades of green, sweeping from the valley floors to the tops of the highest mountains disappearing into the clouds. We took way too many pictures, and they probably wont even do it justice.

We completed the hike early afternoon and went to the well-known Juice Factory. Pretty sure this place is owned by white people, but it serves delicious, fresh juices, smoothies and snacks. Justine (our friend from Cali) and I had a chocolate smoothie with fresh cocoa, bananas, strawberries, almond milk and naturally sweetened with cane juice. Jon had a mountain berry smoothie with all the dark reds and blues from berries in the hillsides. The gluten free peanut butter cookies and veggie samosas were also tasty snacks. It was a little taste of Bellingham in this remote corner of Ecuador.

The last thing of importance to note about our stay at Izhcayluma are the massages. Jon and I each treated ourself to 75 minute full body massages...for only $22! We know we would pay about 4 times that much in the States, and this massage was even better than ones I have had back home. We felt like such fancy backpackers.

Anyway, if you are thinking of retiring in Ecuador and like your peace and quiet, along with amazing scenery and hiking, Vilcabamba has quite an America influence. We talked to many now ¨locals¨ from the States that have been happily living in Vilcabamba for years trying to soak up some of that ¨longevity¨ that seems to fill the valley. Beware though, all of them look as if they were plucked right off the streets from Bellingham...so men need to have long hair and women should wear flowly dresses and not shave.

Lush hills in the Vilcabamba region.

Thanks Justine.