El Cajas was declared a national recreation area in 1977 and a national park in 1996, "El Cajas" (Boxes) covers an area of 29,000 hectares (72,000 acres) of mountainous terrain between 9,700-13,500 ft. The park is situated on the western cordillera at the continental divide, about 30 KM west of Cuenca. A once glaciated region ( U shaped valleys and rigid peaks) over 400 lakes and lagoons formed after the last ice age, around 12,000 years ago.
Today, the park is littered with these pasternoster lake, all inerconnected by visible and subterranean rivers and waterfalls. High altitude and moisture are the dominant climatic variable in El Cajas, forming two interesting ecosystems: Montaine cloud forest and Andean paramo, or shrubby high altitude grassland.
Our tour guide showing us one of the plants~
More contemporary Cajas popular history dates to 1989 when the upper-middle class teenage girl claimed to have been visited by the Virgin Mary while campling in the park. Monthly pilgrimages to the sanctuary are still made by people from all over the Ecuador and from all different backgrounds. In the last decade the young girl's story has been discredited by the Ecuadorian media, which reflects popular discourse on the topic today. Nevertheless the site is still of religious and spirtitual importance for many Cuencanos. 
Cajas is also unquie in that it is run by the ETAPA, the local municipality of Cuenca. It is the only park in Euador to be run at the local level (though still funded nationally), and many of the employees of the park have a long family history with the area. This was done in part because Cajas provides most of Cuenca's drinking water (+60%), which is managed by ETAPA. It's elevation and climate means it can get very cold, especially at night. Heavy fog can reduce visibility to just a few feet, making a knowledge of the area and a compass very important.
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