Central & South Coast - Adventure Guide to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands - page 287

Machalilla National Park
This park offers great exploratory hiking options, including hiking
through tropical dry forest that directly accesses beautiful and rela-
tively remote beaches around Los Frailes. Other options include hik-
ing up toward higher elevation habitats and a local cloud forest while
visiting the community of San Sebastián . Arrangements can be
made at Alandaluz Ecolodge (see pages 293, 296), Puerto López or in-
quire at the national park headquarters. See Eco-Travel section, page
292, for more details. Bosque Marino, in Puerto López near the
main bus terminal, has good bilingual guides for hiking and birding
trips through the park. Also in town, on Córdova, is Sercapez ,

5-
604-173, offering great camping and hiking excursions through the
park, to archeological sites, as well as to San Sebastián. They also of-
fer water-based excursions similar to those described below.

On Horseback
In Puerto López, Machalilla Tours, 5-604-154,

Malecón and Julio Zuleta, offers day excursions by horse-
back inMachalillaNational Park. Farther north, in Bahía
de Caráquez, horseback riding treks that support commu-
nity ecotourism efforts can be taken with Guayacamayo-Bahía
Tours , Av. Bolívar 902 and Arenas,

/fax 5-691-
280, [e-mail] or [e-mail].

5-691-107/412,

On Water
Surfing

Just south of Puerto López and Machalilla National Park
is one of the best-known surf spots in Ecuador.
Montañita has itself become a destination in a part of the
country not typically on the gringo route. Montañita is fre-
quented by locals during the hot vacation months of late December to
April, as well as being the backpacker's beach of choice throughout
much of the year. This is an area that caters well to the foreign trav-
eler, with a relaxed atmosphere, good waves and a nice stretch of
beach. You can rent surfboards and take surfing lessons through
Randy Hood and Casa del Sol (see page 297), among others.

About 10 miles north of Bahía de Caráquez and San Vicente is the
small fishing village of Canoa . Here you can find less-crowded
beaches and great surf from around December through April. After
May, the fog rolls in, with cooler temperatures, stronger breezes and
a rougher ocean. There are fewer gringos than in Montañita, so you