Cycling northward from Cuenca, we entered Ecuador’s “Land of Eternal Spring”, surrounded by lush, green mountains. Dodging daily rainstorms, we encountered a series of low-key mountain towns home to hillside sanctuaries, vast valleys of farmland, and plenty of feisty dogs. After a snapped shifter cable forced a bike-repair layover, we cycled into the famous “Avenue of the Volcanoes”, where snow-capped peaks occasionally appeared through the mist, on our final run to Quito.

After a surprisingly quiet border crossing, we left Peru and rolled into Ecuador on our bicycles. From there we pedaled back into the Andes mountains. Hugging the walls of deep valleys high above rushing rivers, we dodged the rubble of dozens of landslides where unstable slopes had slumped into the roadway. Every few miles brought a new climate zone, from steamy, banana lowlands, to cocoa plantations that serve the world’s fines chocolatiers. Finally we reached the Ecuadorian highlands, just in time to celebrate Holy Week along Cuenca’s cobblestone streets.