Adventure Tourism Ecuador

Recently I’ve started contributing to the English newspaper here in Ecuador, The Ecuador Reporter.  I wrote an article for the July addition about Canoa.  Click on the link below to go to the article.

Canoa Article Ecuador Reporter

www.ecuadorreporteronline.com

Anybody that has ever had the privilege of taking a night hike in the jungle knows just how exhilarating and creepy it can be. Most of the animals in the rainforest are nocturnal, so everything comes alive at night.  The Surf Shak crew made it up to Reserve Lalo Loor to see nature up close and personal.  After eating an amazing meal prepared by our chef Sr. Bigote we waited for the sun to go down to start our trek.  Everybody equipped with head lights and flash lights we set out into the jungle, in the dark.  

We saw snakes, lizards, frogs, butterflies, beetles and a bunch of other creepy crawlers.  As Maija and I were walking along, she heard a rustling in the leaves.  What we found was straight out of a scary movie.  It was a purple tarantula, bigger than my entire hand.  We didn’t notice at first but upon closer inspection the monster had a frog in the grip of his huge fangs.  This was definitely the  highlight of the evening, and I highly recommend visiting this special place.

 Stop by the Surf Shak to book your trip to the Bosque Seco Lalo Loor. 

Click on the pictures from Alex Johnson below to get a closer look.

We’ve lost a great volunteer, friend, dude down here at the Surf Shak… Diego.  He left yesterday on a journey home to the great state of Ohio, ouch.  He worked with us bar tending at the Shak, pouring great drinks and playing the The Grateful Dead, a lot.  At the Surf Shak we are internationally recognized with training some of the most talented people on the planet.  After he put his Surf Shak credentials on his resume he was accepted into grad school to further his education, and had to end the big adventure.  Before he left he was able to sit down and write a little something describing Canoa.  Good luck Diego, you hippy.

Canoa Surf

Diego de Ohio, July 5, 2009

         Learn to Surf. Buenas olas, surf everyday, talk surf, surf friends, surf mags, surfing dreams, surf memories, surf wounds,  surf life, surf addiction, Surf Shak.  Canoa is a place for surfing people, and the non surfing people that come to party with surfers because we’re so much fun.  Surfing at sunrise, surfing at sunset.  Laying in a hammock between sessions, watching waves, getting pumped for another session.  Get your own waves in the morning while the rest nurse hangovers.  Live in the ocean.  Live on the beach. 

         Canoa is a place to relax and have fun.  If you don’t like fun don’t come.  When the waves are low, things can get slow.  You may have to pass the time with Frisbee on the beach, extended hammock sessions, checking out caves, drinking in the daytime, tequila breakfast, volleyball, read a book, capoeira fighting on the beach, get creative.  The days are full of sun and plenty of gringas in bikinis.

         The air is full of noise, except for the precious moments when the power is out.  The competing tiki beach bars pumping out salsa, reggaeton, ecua-pop.  It blends at times into a pleasant mix, and more often a tragic plague of ear rubbish.  Loud, but mostly on the weekends.  Weekdays can be much more tranquilo.  But there’s still the guy riding a tricycle down the road shouting “queso queso, queso” or “camarones, camarones, camarones,” or “tomates, papas, sandia, huevos, y zanahorias.”  One of the best sounds you’ll hear is the magical licks of Jerry on a live Fire on the Mountain, available only at the Surf Shak and only when there’s a good Ohio guy behind the bar.

         At night Canoa can be whatever you want it to.  You want a bonfire; gather some wood and the people will come with guitars, drums, and plenty of cana manabita. You want to meet a bunch of travelers and have 2-4-1 cocteles and listen to rock, reggae, and if you’re lucky the Dead, then Surf Shak is the place.  Bartenders in boardshorts, no shoes, no shirts, no problem.  But be careful, because you’ll probably end up wearing a funny hat and doing a bunch of stupid shit that you’ll laugh about in the morning.  Or even with an egg on your head.  But you’re sure to meet good folk, people that have traveled, lived, loved, experienced, and came through it all with a blessed passion for life and fun. 

         You could also find yourself dancing the night away at a beach bar, or drinking shots of Una de la Gran Bestia at a bar made out of a boat.  The night life is fun and exciting, and you never know what to expect.  There’s always the chance of a late night naked swim, just remember where you left your clothes, and hide them too.  Just don’t stay out too late, or you’ll be among the majority of the fools missing out on the beautiful mornings of offshore winds, glassy waters, and empty waves.

         Food is also a Canoa pleasure.  Everyday you get to choose between a dozen places all offering soup, seafood, and fresh juice for 2 bucks.  You can get a damn good pizza when the mood strikes, or some cow intestines on the street if you’re feeling adventurous (and like having diarrhea). Batidos are a pleasure, fresh fruit and milk blended to perfection.  Chocolate bananas if you can find them. 

         Canoa is a paradise.  It has yet to be trashed like montanita.  Let’s keep it that way.  Come with a good vibe and look for fun and surf and sun.  God damn I’ll miss this place.

Maija couldn't help herself

We have added a new tour to the Canoa Thrills repertoire, a fishing booze cruise to the private beach of Cabo Pasado, north of Canoa.  We started our journey on a sunny beautiful Canoa day at around noon.  With the crew of 10 assembled we pushed off on our pangas.  In route to the beach we stopped and swam with a huge ball of schooling fish, it was incredible.  From a distance the fish looked like a giant rock in the water, but as we approached the “giant rock” was moving around.  There were millions of little 2 inch, red fish.  After a little dip in the Pacific we continued along the rugged coastline in search of a place to drop the nets in the water, for a little sea cuisine.  

The darker color in the water is the enormous school of fish

800 meters of fishing net

With the nets in the water we pulled up to the beach for some relaxation, swimming, snorkeling, and some frisbee.  I attempted to teach some of the locals how to play frisbee golf, but in the end they were teaching me how to play.  It’s so annoying introducing a new game, and getting whooped on every time.  I’ll be practicing more.   

With a couple hours of suntanning and beach combing past we decided to go out and see what the nets had to offer.  We took bets as to how many fish we snared, with the numbers ranging from zero to five.  We put out 800 meters of netting in what looked like a promising spot, after 30 minutes of retrieving the net, we didn’t even catch a piece of trash floating in the water.  Nothing, nada, zilch, zero.  I guess that’s why they call it fishin’ and not catchin’.  Luckily there were some better fisherman than ourselves in the area, we made an offer to buy some fish off of them.  They refused to take the money and loaded us up with at least 10 huge fish.  

There was a great cheer from the crowd when we returned and they saw all the fish we “caught”.  We decided to leave out the smaller details and took all of the credit for the harvest.

 ”We were just showing the other boat how many fish we had caught.”  I said.  When asked what we were talking to the other boats about.  Being a very avid fisherman nobody disagreed with me and we proceeded to make a fire on the beach and clean the fish.  

With a feast of fresh fish cooked over an open fire the crew was ready to watch an incredible sunset over the ocean.  We loaded back up in the boats and headed back to Canoa with full bellies of fresh fish and cerveza.  

What an amazing adventure.  

Perfect timing

A little shade under the tree

That is the definition of fresh

Katie's last day in paradise

Lucky they were there.

Working on his sea legs

Happy and Handsome

Glowing blond locks

Working on the tan

Stop by the Surf Shak to book The Booze Cruise to Cabo Pasado, or contact us through email.  info@canoathrills.com

Click on the link below for more information about Spanish Classes in Canoa!

spanish-school