Landscape and structure merge at the Pamba Bike Sanctuary
Pamba Bike Refuge by URLO Studio is located in Ascázubi, Ecuadorat the base of the Pambamarca hill within the landscape of the Pamba Bike Park. It was developed as a refuge and rest area for cycliststhe project responds to the climatic conditions of the Andes, while creating a direct relationship with the surrounding terrain, vegetation and panoramic view. The bike park is part of a larger rural property that has undergone extensive reforestation in recent decades, creating a landscape of wooded paths and open clearings. In this context, the project refers to the historical context of the area, where ancestral pucarás, or fortified settlements, remain visible on the hillside. The architectural intervention is conceived as an extension of the ground, integrating the site through material selection, low horizontal mass and open spatial organization.
The design is structured around two pigmented concrete volumes placed under a light laminated timber roof. Emerging from ground level, the concrete elements define the shelter’s primary enclosed functions while enhancing a visual relationship with the earthly landscape. A volume houses the reception area and storewhile the other contains the restaurant kitchen and service areas. Above these compact volumes, a wooden roof spans the common areas. Consisting of six laminated timber galleries, the structure extends outwards through deep front and rear overhangs that blur the boundaries between indoor and outdoor conditions. Below the roof, dining and lounging spaces are organized through built-in planters that define zones of occupancy while maintaining continuous visual connections with the surrounding landscape.
all images from I Studio
The Pamba Bike Refuge balances openness, refuge and landscape
A toughened glass placed along the front facade provides protection from wind and rain without interrupting the view towards the bike paths, the forest and the distant horizon. The project balances enclosure and openness through controlled transparency, filtered daylight and shaded exterior spaces designed for year-round use. Materially, the shelter combines colored concrete, timber, glass and vegetation to create continuity with the Andean environment. The concrete surfaces adopt earthy tones that connect the architecture to the surrounding terrain and terrain, while the timber ceiling introduces warmth and rhythmic structural repetition throughout the interior.
Landscape design further strengthens the relationship between architecture and location. Native species, including myrtle, white straw and cattail trees, define the transition from the exterior pathways into the building. Inside, ferns, philodendrons and yellow lilies soften the concrete surfaces and introduce layers of texture and color to the communal areas. Through limited mass, exposed structure and material continuity, the Pamba Bike Refuge by URLO Studio it organizes the shelter, traffic and landscape in a single architectural framework linked to the climatic and topographical conditions of the Andes.
volumes of colored concrete rise directly from the ground
the lodge is located at the base of Pambamarca Hill in Ecuador
the architecture follows the contours of the Andean site
