A visit to Banos - Tungurahua and Pailón Del Diablo (The Devil's Cauldron)

Banos is a small town south of Quito. It borders the Andean and the Amazonian regions within Ecuador. Nearby to this town is the peak of Tungarahua which is one of the angry volcanoes in Ecuador and keeps spewing smoke and fire every once in a while.

Banos in Spanish means bathroom and this place is called so because of the presence of Hot water springs in the town. The actual name is Banos de Agua Santa, mean bathroom of Holy Water.


On the way one cannot miss the angry Tungarahua. The story local goes that Cotopaxi is a male volcano and Tungurahua is a female. Once Tungurahua proposed to Cotopaxi and the proposal was rejected. From them on Tungurahua is angry and keeps spewing smoke and ash every once in a while.

The day we reached was one of those days when Tungurahua had decided to vent her anger. It was raining ash dust and the vehicles were caked with this fine dust. This dust is tricky and if one breathes too much of it, it can lead to respiratory problems.

Tungurahua in action

Tungurahua in action

T

Some flora on the way to Banos

The first stop was Pailón Del Diablo, the Devil's Cauldron. This is a waterfalls which falls from a height into a gorge. The name is apt for the waterfalls. The water falls with a great force and the water splashes in the gorge with great force.

The Waterfalls

The Swirling Waters in the Gorge

A panorama of Devil's Cauldron

There are three terraces that have been constructed in front of the waterfalls for people to watch the action. At the lowermost balcony one can hardly avoid getting wet. Also there is a tunnel that has been dug alongside the hill through which one can walk close to the top of the falls and here if one wishes one can have a nice drenching bath.
Some videos of the waterfalls.

A sign that greeted us as we entered the winding trail that leads to the Waterfalls read "Be prepared to see sights which will make you believe God exists".
And one does get this feeling as one walks along the trail leading to the Waterfalls.
Here are some sights that one comes across along the trail.

Peeled sweetlimes.

Peeled Sweet Limes, although they are more sour than sweet.

See how these sweet limes are peeled.

A tour bus that goes through the waterfalls route. All along the route one can see one waterfalls after another and it ends in the Devil's Cauldron.

A cartoon on a tour bus.

The Caption reads, "This is Life"

This was taken through the window of our bus and if you notice you can see the ash deposited on the glass from the rain water.

After the visit to the Devil's Cauldron we retired to our hotel called Vrindavan which is run by the ISKCON in Ecuador.