Trees and Trains

          While spending time in Ecuador we went on a trip to Cotopaxi, a volcano said to be the closest point on earth to the sun and a province of Ecuador’s namesake landmark. Driving into the national park, pine trees carpeted the area surrounding the road. It was strange to see trees from my home of snow and ice being planted in a land so far from home, while also being the land which my father would explore as a child. Moving up the road the landscape drastically changes to a much more arid environment as we reached around 13,000 feet. From that point we climbed around the preliminary trails leading to Cotopaxi, only to be thwarted by strong winds barraging us with ice.         As we descended from the base of Cotopaxi my family decided to make a pit stop at Lago de Limpiopungo to allow us to stretch our legs. While some stayed at the trail head I, underestimating the size of the trail circling the lake, impu...