Rodeo with Las Chagras, Hacienda El Tambo, Ecuador

First rodeo...done!! Hardest thing: those damn cold showers (again!!)

Had an absolutely crazy three days...Monday-Wednesday!! On Monday (at the crack of dawn...no slacking at my end!) I head to a pre arranged meeting point in Quito and met up with Jean (really decent, English lass) and our guide, Patricio!! We were meant to take the main highway in Ecuador (the Panamericana) which runs the length of the country, but unfortunately due to (more!) strikes...this time by the bus drivers, they had blockaded all the roads outta Quito. So, we took the scenic route and head south out of the city!

After a couple of hours of driving, (at a max of about 20km/hr on bumpy, rocky roads...which is enough to drive anyone crazy!) we reached the Reserve of Pasachoa (Santa Rita) which is a protected area of Andean forest. We had a quick pitstop and met a few of the guys who work in the reserve and had a quick look in the information center they are building (all info regarding area, wildlife, conservation etc)...

Anyway, we carried on driving (those damn roads again!!) and after a further 45mins or so, got to a Hacienda by the name of El Porvenir (the future). Hacienda El Porvenir is situated in 5000 hectares of land, at the base of Rumiñahui Volcano...the scenery was absolutely incredible, we had clear blue skies, and were surrouded by volcanoes and rolling mountains on all sides!! It was starting to get a bit chilly as we head up to the Andean Highlands, and so we chilled for a little bit in El Porvenir (in front of a log fire...very cosy!!) Also, had an amazing cuppa which was made with cinnamon and citric juices...cant remember the name...but it was definitely a winner (and a Chagra speciality!!)

Unfortunately, the journey was not quite over, and after I (unsuccessfully) tried to kidnap a little puppy from the Hacienda, we carried on our way....we got to the Parque Nacional Cotapaxi, which is an absolutely massive national park (34,000 hectares) which surrounds the incredible, snow capped Cotapaxi Volcano (the highest active volcano in the world!!)

As we drove through the park, we saw alot of the Paramo (Andean grassland) which is home to the Andean Condor (didnt spot that!), endangered White Tailed Deer (nearly ran two of those over....at 10km/hr!! hehe), some of the last remaining Wild Horses in South America (the Panameros) and a whole host of other wildlife...unfortunately, I didnt actually see Cotapaxi...as the weather had clouded over considerably!!

Anyway, after a total journey time of about 5 and a half hours, we reached our destination....Hacienda El Tambo...was expecting a pretty plush place, (not sure where i got that idea from...) and arrived at a beautiful farm house...with great big windows (which ordinarily have a view of the East side of Cotopaxi) etc etc.... Didnt actually realise that the place had no heating, electricity or hot water...hmm....it takes the word ´rustic´ to a whole new level!!

El Tambo is set in a fantastic location....placed in 5000 hectares of land and surrounded by four volcanoes...Cotopaxi to the East, Quilidaña to the South, Sincholagua to the North and Rumiñahui in the distance to the North East!! So, had it not been cloudy and visibility at practically zero..im sure the views would have been incredible!! In addition to these volcanoes, there is also the rest of the moutainous Andean Highlands surrounding the valley in which we were based!!

After we got warmed up a little once they got the fire going, and had another cuppa of that tea!! ..its freezing in those highlands!! We had some lunch (Ecuadorians eat popcorn in their soup...its very strange!!), and then head out to the corrales (cattle pens) nearest the casa and watched some of the Chagras at work.

The idea of the ´rodeo´ is that it is an annual roudup of the cattle of the farm, at which point they are vaccinated, branded, separated, some are sold for bullfights, to other farms etc etc...these cattle are extremely wild (i thought that all cows were docile, milking types....hmmm) Anyway, so as you can imagine, it is pretty hard work rounding up the cattle and bringing them down from the moutains and into the pens...alot of the bulls charge and it all in all it is pretty tough work. The farm is split into 5-6 areas and in total there were about 900 cattle which had to be brought down over the 7 day period!!

Once inside the corrales, the cattle need to be separated and work on....which does entail lasso-ing them and generally wrestling them to the ground...it is so fascinating to watch...the technique of these Chagras is incredible!!

Actually just watching the Chagras is pretty cool too...all of them dressed in ponchos, chaps, and fedoras, their horses have got lassoes on the saddles and they all seem to have a dog by their side!!

So once they have pinned down a cow/bull/calf etc...they cut the ears (sign of the farm..was brutal at first, but I became accustombed to the savagery of it all pretty quickly!!), brand them with hot rods and vaccinate!! Then, when that group of cattle have been done, they are led back to the highlands. We sat and spectated from the walls of the corrales...was a bit scary at times, as these bulls charge and jump!!! Madness!!

Anyway, that was pretty much how the next day panned out as well...except that I was given a horse (named Mango) and a poncho, chaps and fedora of my own (yes, I looked ridiculous!!) and set out with the Chagras....seeing as my horse riding experience = 0, I opted out of going up to the moutains and rounding up the cattle as was advised by Jorge (the owner) that the cattle they were bringing down from an area called El Amie were especially crazy!!!
So we had a little horse ride (and canter!!!) around the valley, whilst we waited for them to bring the cattle down (on Tuesday) and then once again, sat back and watched the action....found myself in one of the corrales as they began to herd some cattle in...had to do a bit of wall jumping and hide behind these wooden fences (as the bulls charged!!) but it was all in the name of fun!!

On the Weds morning, we decided to head back a bit earlier and back to Santa Rita (Pasachoa Reserve) where we climbed through some of the mountains (its real tough work in such high altitude as the air is very thin and there is a real lack of oxygen...!) and then did a ´Canopy Tour´ there were 5 zip lines which crossed over the River Salto Canyon and above the forest....and each one was of a different length, height etc,. Was very fun...I even dared to do a ´stunt´ which entailed me flipping myself upside down as I zipped along....was really cool!!

Anyway, got back to Quito on Weds eve...and its Friday morning...havent really been up to much in the last few days....Spanish lessons, went to a bar with a few people I met etc....

I shall leave off here....i think I might be climbing Pichincha...(the active volcano just on the outskirts of Quito) on the w/e....will let you know how it goes, if I do!!