<p> <img style="border: 1px solid #000000; margin: 5px; width: 200px; float: right" src="images/zoom/Olmedo/North_Coast_Ecuador.jpg" alt="Olmedo photo" title="Olmedo Photo" width="200" /> Olmedo seems to be a long way from the normal tourist route in Ecuador but is a very accessible and welcoming village of sandy streets, raised planked wonky walkways and stilted wooden huts. ... http://www.volunteeringecuador.info Sun, 12 Oct 2008 04:17:24 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 <p> <img style="border: 1px solid #000000; margin: 5px; width: 200px; float: right" src="images/zoom/Olmedo/North_Coast_Ecuador.jpg" alt="Olmedo photo" title="Olmedo Photo" width="200" /> Olmedo seems to be a long way from the normal tourist route in Ecuador but is a very accessible and welcoming village of sandy streets, raised planked wonky walkways and stilted wooden huts. It also is a perfect place to visit the local mangroves which, like so many areas of natural beauty and importance, are being sacrificed for large scale industry, in this case shrimp farms. By visiting this area you can become part of the solution.<br /> <br /> Visiting Olmedo is a chance to see a very different slice of Ecuadorian life. With a strong African/Ecuadorian mix here it feels as if you could be in a different country and even more so the more of this area you explore. Olmedo is a perfect stop before exploring further up the Cayapas/Santiago Rivers. </p> <p> As in Estero de Platano, join local families in digging in the soft sand for shell fish amongst the roots of the mangroves. At low tide you can explore the vast stretch of beach for hours. Walking to the south west you will find what can only be described as a mangrove graveyard where trees and their exposed roots, have slowly collapsed and decay on meeting the sea water. </p>