cachiviro reymolacocha

Location :

• Blank

  23 April 2018

  If you're in the Otavalo area and you want a fantastic experience on Lake San Pablo while experiencing a taste of local culture, I'd come here. They offer very affordable boat rides around the southern half of the lake getting pretty close to the wild-growing reeds (which the locals use to make handicrafts items). By the boat ramp, they also have a simple, yet growing, walkway you can use to walk into the reeds - much of the walkway is actually built on floating 'bog' material; you won't get wet, but the walkway will move a little. There's a nice wooden observation deck built over the water too.
  
  Locals serve food and beverages in the brick stalls. One stall in particular (about 4-5 stalls from the lake end) serves a delicious fried pork plate called "Fritada" w/ corn, potatoes, and fried bread called "empanada". (I think, at the time of this writing, they were the only family selling this plate.) I highly recommend trying it. Delicious, cheap, and completely safe to eat. Also, in this stall, you might want to try some of their homemade blueberry wine (it's very low in alcohol if this is factor - it's practically kid-friendly) and it's smooth and delicious! They make it using hygienic methods and sell it by the bottle (a plastic, water-bottle size perfect for taking a few back:) Other stalls sell bottled water, sodas, etc. and other homemade food items. About 1-2hours here is plenty and it's one of the most convenient places to experience the lake. It's only a $4 (flat fee) taxi ride from Otavalo. Note: during the weekdays, there may not be many people manning the stalls and the boat rides may not be offered. Only on the weekends, during non-rainy days, can you be guaranteed to get the boat ride and have a big selection of food to choose from. All the money made here goes directly to local families in these local communities.
  
  Right next to the main highway, the Pan-American, and about 200yards from the road that goes down to the lake at Cachiviro, and on the same side of the Pan-American as the lake access road, there is a small white store that sells the local reed handicrafts for anyone interested. It's owned by the same family who makes the Fritada and Blueberry wine, so if you want to pick up some reed llamas, baskets, vases, etc, you should stop by. It's walkable from the lake (about 10min up a steep hill), or you can tell the taxi driver to stop on the way down, or the way up (he might charge an extra $1-2 for the stop if you stay for 5-10min). Incidentally, if you take a taxi from Otavalo and get off at the store (and then walk downhill to Cachiviro), the taxi will charge you a flat-fee of $3 (instead of $4 to go all the way to the lake).

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• Juan Carlos Minda

  01 August 2017

  Nos divertimos mucho en ese muelle, parecia terremoto

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