Why this ride
A mountain loop with linked bends, elevation change and broad landscape variety. It links naturally to Quilotoa caldera.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Quilotoa Loop
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 126 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 01
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Editorial context
Coordinates are curated start-via-end route seeds. They are not a surveyed centreline or navigation geometry. Run road snapping, topology checks, access checks and a live-status review before publication.
Access context
Do not auto-publish. Snap to a routable road network, verify current closures, legal motorcycle access, surface, permits, border controls and local safety information.
Seasonal context
Jun-Sep
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Latacunga
Latacunga lies at about 2,750 metres in the high Andean valley that the explorer Alexander von Humboldt called the Avenue of the Volcanoes, and the name is hardly an exaggeration. On a clear morning the snowy cone of Cotopaxi, nearly 5,900 metres high, hangs above the plain to the east, with Iliniza and other peaks to the west. The town has a slightly worn, dignified look, with many buildings made from pale volcanic stone and plazas shaded by old trees.
Read the complete Latacunga write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Latacunga sits at 0 km, early in the day. Next is Quilotoa.
2. Quilotoa
Quilotoa is a hole in the Andes, and what a hole. The caldera is about three kilometres across, with steep walls dropping hundreds of metres to a lake the colour of jade, and the rim sits at roughly 3,900 metres above sea level, high enough that the air thins and the wind cuts. The volcano collapsed in a huge eruption several hundred years ago, throwing ash across the region, and the crater filled with water over time. It is a spectacle that photographs poorly and stuns in person, since the colour of the lake shifts with the light from turquoise to deep green to an almost metallic blue.
Read the complete Quilotoa write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Quilotoa comes up 33 km in. Next is Latacunga.
3. Latacunga
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Latacunga write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
126 km in you reach Latacunga.
Recorded source links
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Quilotoa Loop from Latacunga · 205 km
- Ecuador Avenue of the Volcanoes: Quito to Latacunga · 136 km
- Quito to Cotopaxi · 77 km