How did I become aware of the cave..... that is a really interesting question surrounded by a little woo woo...... this canyon is midway between the volcanoes of Imbabura
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imbabura_Volcano
and Cotacachi volcano
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotacachi_Volcano
and is about 1 1/2 miles from where I live. I have either mountain biked or hiked this valley extensively over the last 3 years that I have lived in this part of Northern Ecuadorian highlands. A number of years before Ecuador I lived in Mexico. Places in the Sierra Madre Sur, east of Acapulco are similar to this. When I lived there I would go into the mountains and explore peaks and caves, find ancient runes and cave paintings...or at least they appeared ancient to my untrained eye.... and go to places where I wondered if I was the only human that had ever been there....
So the shot of the canyon is from the opposite side of the river....the Cotacachi side of the river facing East or toward the Imbabura (cave) side. Notice the tops of the trees on the east side of the river are illuminated but the bottoms.... and the canyon wall is in shadow likewise the cave mouth......
In the afternoon with a western sun lighting the east wall of the canyon, light is constantly changing. BC or Before Cave I looked across the valley and thought there were just a group of trees growing over there , the tree tops formed the arch, trees clinging to an opportunistic location on that face.......
Until one day the light was just right, I looked across the valley after a day of hiking ( maybe something about my eyes or perspective changed....) and it was a "Holy Crap" moment. I recognized that it appeared to be a cave. Pulled out the camera screwed on the telephoto and took a dozen shots of it. Got back home PP'ed them and on my 24" monitor yes it sure looks like a cave.......
It looks like the cave is difficult to get to. Best way is rappel down from the top, explore and go out the same way you go in, but ascent. I no longer have the gear to do that and the opposite canyon wall..as is all of it, pretty crappy geology. So its somewhat of a given its difficult. The herdsmen who run cattle along the river have never noticed the cave either and none of them have ever tried going up the walls to explore. When asked about excavations in the canyon wall for any purpose all of them say no-not in their lifetimes.....These are people who have been in the canyon daily for 40+ years. So there is a chance its unexplored or very infrequently visited.....
What might be there?? What do I hope to find?? Part of the old fiber optic link between Teotihuacan in Mexico and Machu Picchu in Peru that connected the ancient but advanced civilizations in the distant past before the Younger Dryas? Or maybe a warp drive or a black hole or a portal.....or a mummy or a lost Inca treasure...... realistically it would be great to see ancient appearing inscriptions on the walls from possibly a tribe that may have peopled this valley when the volcanoes were still active....if I find human remains, (as I have in the past in remote places) out of respect I will touch nothing, pay my respects and quietly leave...... a treasure would be great but....just the idea of going there is enough. I also am making a trail in that is not evident because I dont want the place to be staled by being accessible and a place where someone that makes the effort finds old Twinkies wrappers and plastic bottles. Magic is (for me anyway) the existence of wild places not common place, not some location that is easy for day trippers , people who dont know exploration and solitude and quiet....who dont understand that effort is part of value in getting to a less traveled, less visited location..... not something easy and common now that seemingly all existence for most is living in a concrete box in a concrete jungle with human interaction and experience limited to cell phones and social media where everything is a selfie opp to get points to be an influencer, a post to garner likes in "lookie where I have been!"
I started exploring before cell phones and social media, driven to seek out solitude and nature. I continue today (I am 70) for the same reason....maybe what I find there if I am lucky enough to be able to get there.... and the fact that I am discrete with making a way in.....will be that with my care and respect....all of this will be repeated in 50 or 100 years by someone also looking for what these places hold.... and they will have a rewarding experience and treat it as I am treating it for someone else in another 50 or 100 years.......that would be more than enough.
