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NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



by travelers. It is not so good a road 

 in seasons of heavy rainfall; hence the 

 Guaillabamba-Cayambe route, which 

 stays at lower elevations and on sandier 

 soil, is preferred during such periods. 

 By either route it is a two-day ride from 

 Quito to Ibarra. If the Pomasqui- 

 Malchingui route is chosen, travelers 

 leave Quito early in the morning, reach 

 Pomasqui, which overlooks the Guail- 

 labamba Canyon, in two and a half 

 hours, descend to the Guaillabamba 

 River which is crossed at an elevation of 

 6000 ft., and then climb by a tortuous, 

 rocky trail to Malchingui (9600 ft.) 

 which is reached by dark. Here the 

 night may be passed, though the accom- 

 modations are poor. Leaving early 

 the following morning, the Paramo de 

 Mojanda is crossed in the forenoon and 

 Otavalo is reached in time for lunch. 

 Three hours more over good road past 

 the foot of the Volcano Imbabura, 

 brings one to Ibarra. 



If the Cayambe route is chosen, 

 travelers leave Quito early in the morn- 

 ing, pass Carapungo, a small town over- 

 looking the Guaillabamba Canyon, and 

 descend to the river which is crossed 

 before noon. After a gradual ascent 

 the village of Guaillabamba (7200 ft.) 

 is reached. This lies on a mesa 1000 ft. 

 above the river and is notorious for 

 malarial fevers. Ecuadorians usually 

 shrink from the idea of spending the 

 night there, due to the danger of con- 

 tracting malaria. Continuing by a 

 good trail, Cayambe (9450 ft.) is reached 

 by nightfall. There is an inn, though 

 accommodations are not good. Leaving 

 early the next morning, Ibarra (7500 ft.) 

 is reached by two or three in the after- 

 noon. Here there are two or three small 

 hotels. 



Leaving Ibarra for the north, the trail 

 passes over the shoulder of Yura-cruz 

 Mountain and descends into the arid 

 valley of the Rio Chota, which stream 

 it crosses at a village of the same name 

 (5000 ft.). There is then a long ascent 

 past the village of Mira through a 

 region of barley and wheat cultivation 

 to the town of El Angel (10,000 ft.) 



where a stop is usually made for the 

 night. The second day takes one over 

 an interesting paramo region to the town 

 of Tulcan on the Colombian frontier. 



The journey from Tulcan to Pasto 

 requires another two days. The time 

 consumed in actual travel from Quito 

 to Pasto is therefore six days. Ecua- 

 dorians with good riding animals some- 

 times do it in five, but the traveler 

 dependent on hired animals can expect 

 to make little speed. 



From Pasto it is feasible to continue 

 northward through Popayan to Cali, 

 chief city of the magnificent Cauca Val- 

 ley in western Colombia. It is six or 

 seven days' travel from Pasto to Po- 

 payan and two more from Popayan to 

 Cali. From the latter town there is a 

 good railway to the port of Buenaven- 

 tura, whence steamers sail fortnightly 

 for Panama and Guayaquil, and there 

 is an overland route to Bogota by the 

 Quindio Pass. 



EQUIPMENT 



The naturalist contemplating work in 

 Ecuador will require besides his col- 

 lecting apparatus the following articles : 



Saddle, bridle, and saddle blanket. 

 While the question of a saddle is largely 

 a matter of individual preference, the 

 eleven-inch McClellan will be found one 

 of the most satisfactory obtainable, if 

 not the best of all, for work of the type 

 to be done in Ecuador. A small size is 

 necessary, since the animals obtained in 

 tropical America are rarely as large as 

 North American horses. The bridle 

 should be of small size and provided with 

 a curb bit. For use under the saddle, 

 the best possible thing is a full size 

 O. D. army blanket, which can be folded 

 twice, giving four thicknesses of 

 material. 



For the lowlands, khaki clothes are 

 suitable. Heavy shoes and leather 

 puttees are desirable for the highlands 

 as well. In the latter region a warm 

 riding suit of wool should be provided. 

 Commodious saddlebags are essential, 

 as also an aneroid barometer with scale 

 reading to 16,000 ft. or better still 20,000 



