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Been a while since Gemma´s last posting about our jungle trip, been to lots of places and done a heap of stuff since then, so only going to attempt a summary here.I´m now up in Huaraz, Peru, tucked beneath the snowy peaks of the Cordillera Blancas, north and inland from Lima a few hundred kms.Here minus my amigas, with Gemma having jetted back to NZ and the real world, Guinny lying on a beach further north and Jess, who hadn´t even made it to South America when we last posted, exploring down in Cusco and towards Bolivia.
Cusco and Inca Ruins
After returning from the jungle dirty, tired but very happy to have done it we had a couple of days in Cusco taking it easy.Spent a day exploring some of the Incan ruins that dot the landscape around the city. Not being someone who gets too excited about ruins and such things, I surprised myself by actually really enjoying the wandering around the intact stone walls and seeing the amazing workmanship that´s managed to survive hundreds of years and the arrival of the Spanish.We hired a guide at the main site, Sacsayhuaman (pronounced "sexy woman"), who was able to explain what we were looking at and point out things we never would have otherwise noticed like depictions of snakes, llamas and alpacas in the stonework. Learnt my lesson from Tiwanaku, back in Bolivia, about needing to get a guide for visiting archaeological sites. The stonework was incredibly well done with each enormous block carved to fit exactly with its neighbours. Keen to get our moneys worth out of our Inca ruins tickets, we visited half a dozen sites seeing everything from temples to fortresses to bathing complexes. Definitely got our dose of ruins that day but great to see them and image how everything between Quito in the north and present day Santiago, Chile, was once ruled by the Inca from here.
Arequipa and Colca Canyon
After another day unwinding we hopped on a night bus bound for Arequipa, Peru´s second biggest city, south and towards the coast from Cusco. We´re getting pretty good at these night buses, but this one was not the greatest in South America. Found myself sitting next to a Peruvian guy with the most fantastic snore, incredibly loud and completely lacking in rhythm, which made for a pretty sleepless night. A one point I had managed to lapse into unconsciousness only to be woken by someone stroking my head. On arriving in Arequipa and comparing our nights experiences, Guinny topped my head stroking story by apparently waking up with somebody holding her hand.
Thanks to the snoring and mystery hand holder/head stroker we weren´t keen to do a huge amount our first day in Arequipa. Spent the morning on our hostel roof, enjoying a leisurely breakfast and admiring the views of El Misti and Chachani, the two enormous volcanoes that loom over the city. Later Jess, a long lost friend from uni, arrived having flown in from the UK and bussed down from Lima to skew the male-female ratio even more. After a day in Arequipa seeing the sights and undertaking some serious culinary adventures including boiled lambs hooves, mountainous plates of ceviche and various other traditonal favourites, we booked a trip into Colca Canyon, the second deepest on earth at 3191m, twice as deep as the Grand Canyon and a close second to the nearby Cotahuasi Canyon.
Off before first light in the morning, we headed over the mountains to Canyon. After breakfast in the little colonial town Chivay we spent an hour at the "Cruz del Condor"a viewing area for Andean condors. Despite being shoulder to shoulder with at least a couple of hundred other expectant tourists representing pretty much every nationality on earth, seeing the condors was very impressive. Swooping along the canyon edge on the mid morning thermals, with their three metres wingspan they moved seemingly without effort, and whenever they ventured close to the viewpoint they were meet with a collective gasp of excitement and a volley of camera clicks.
Eventually made it to the start of the track, looking down 1000 metres from the canyon edge to the river below and the small villages scattered along its length.The track clung to the canyon wall and picked its way through massive basalt bluffs all the way to the bottom in about two hours. Thanks to Jess´s impressive mental library of "games to play while walking that help you to forget about sore feet and knees" we were at the bottom ready for lunch in no time. The track then wound its way down valley through green terraces of alfalfa, peas and potatoes, past a series of villages only accessible by foot or donkey, to our accommodation for the night. Tucked amongst palm trees with a pool and well stocked (if not chilled) bar, the "Oasis" was a welcome site after a hot day walking. Helped to sleep by some Peruvian rum, the 4.30am alarm came all too early and we were off up the canyon side just before dawn. A couple of hours steady climbing and I was back on top, with a bit of a wait for a couple of our group to join us.
From there we walked to the village of Cababaconde for breakfast with me making a dash back to retrieve my stupidly forgotton camera from the canyon edge where it was thankfully still sitting. Then back in the minivan for Arequipa. As we climbed the pass a storm blew and the sun disappeared to be replaced by dark clouds, sleet and eventually heavy snow. With a couple of inches settled on the road and those of us in the back feeling the rear tires slipping around every corner, our driver showed no intention of slowing down, even when asked if he might possibly consider it. Made it to Arequipa intact but the trip definitely took reckless South American driving to a whole new level.
Out to the Coast: Huacachina, Paracas and Lunahuana
Hopped on another night bus, this time headed for Ica near the coast, a famous grape growing region and home of Peru´s favourite drink, Pisco, a grape brandy typically mixed with lemon juice, sugar and eggwhite. Arrived early morning and taxied to the nearby resort of Huacachina, a classic desert oasis fringed with palm trees and surrounded by enormous sand dunes. Passed a couple of lazy days here doing more serious eating and drinking before making a dash for the Paracas on the coast. Seeing the ocean was a welcome sight after almost two months inland as was the taste of some fantastic fresh seafood from stalls along the shore. Our reason for coming here was the nearby Ballestas Islands, called by some the "Poor Man´s Galapagos". Plastered with seabirds (22 per a square metre apparently) the islands are home to pelicans, penguins, boobies and terns. Also living on the island are some unfortunate rangers changed with protecting the islands and obliged to share their home with a couple of million noisy and smelly neighbours.
On returning to Paracas we undertook a public transport epic that saw us take a series of taxis, collectivos and public buses until we eventually found ourselves in the sleepy little town of Lunahuana at nine at night needing a bed. Finally found a place to stay and a cheap meal in a local restaurant playing fantastically cheesy latino dramas. We spent the next day sampling some of the strange local fruits and visiting a couple of Pisco distilleries. The entire town were friendly enough but were strangely unwilling to actually sell us anything. Hooked on the cheesy dramas from the previous night we returned to the same restaurant, feasted on fresh water crayfish, lomo saltado and, best of all, deep fried guinea pig while avidly watching the women's volleyball themed drama to see just who was going to win the trophy/get the man/receive the scholarship
Lima
Left Lunahuana the following day and bussed up to Lima. After all the stories of how dirty and dangerous the place was that we´d heard it was actually reasonably pleasant, given our hostel was in Minaflores, the nicer part of the city. Gemma´s final night in Peru before heading home to New Zealand via Buenos Aires called for something of a celebration so we made some friends and proceed to have our own small party in the hostel bar complete with card games, terrible displays of pool and general hilarity. Predicably this was followed by a slack day wandering around Minaflores and the grotty Lima coast before Gemma had to head for the airport and return to the world of gainful employment and adult responsibility. Conveniently, Jess´s friend Lisa also arrived that evening before they headed off towards Cusco and Bolivia to explore some of places we´d already covered.
Hauraz and the Cordillera Blanca
And then there were two. Guin and I took a overnight bus to Hauraz, nine hours northeast of Lima and the main base for exploring the Cordillera Blanca, the highest tropical mountain range on the planet. Also with us on the bus were Stef and Matt who we meet in Lima. The four of us checked into a central guesthouse and after breakfast and a shower went in search of a company running trips into the mountains. Ended up organising a four day trek through the Santa Cruz Valley followed by two days climbing 5760m high Mt Pisco (Guinny had the good sense to skip the climbing).
Off early the next morning with a breakfast at the guiding office and a hair raising collectivo ride north up the valley to Caraz where the four of us, plus guide Nilton and all the gear piled into a taxi. A cozy half hour had us at the start of the track ready to go, only problem being the lack of any donkeys or a donkey driver. A couple of hours and much back and forward between the gear and the nearby village by Nilton finally had us underway, donkeys in tow, heading up a scenic gorge with impressive cliffs towering above the glacier-feed Santa Cruz River. Four hours later and we made camp on grassy flats by the river looking up to the snowy heights of Alpamayo, once voted the most beautiful mountain in the world. Nilton turned out to be something of a wizard with the camp stove and soon had us slurping on delicious hot soup and chicken with rice before we retreated to our tents for a well deserved sleep. Awoke the next morning to a stunning crisp blue sky and continued up the valley passing herds of grazing cattle, donkeys and horses and a series of small lakes, with the bulk of Alpamayo growing in front of us. After a short but steep climb up the valley wall we collapsed at a mirador (viewpoint) for lunch and to take in the 360 degree views of snow capped peaks. Most impressive was Artesonraju, the mountain used in the Paramount Pictures logo. After a relaxed lunch we sidled along the valley wall before dropping down to camp, kindly already set up by Ronaldo, our donkey driver.Another good meal and we were all in bed not long after dark in anticipation of a big day to come crossing Punta Union Pass. Somehow managed a rubbish sleep that night, spending the night tossing and turning in my sleeping bag and generally disturbing Guinny´s night.
The climb up to the pass began as soon as we left camp in the morning. Zig-zagging our way up from the valley floor to 4750 metres where patches of snow still lay on the ground, we were feeling the effects of altitude by the time we reached the pass. On top we had close up views of Alpamayo with the Santa Cruz River dropping away behind us, bound for the Pacific, while the Huarapampa flowed east ahead of us heading for the Amazon and Atlantic. Climbing steeply down the other side we left behind the high alpine for tussock tops reminiscent of New Zealand before finally dropping through forest to camp on grassy river flats with the ever-present cattle, horses and donkeys.
The final days walk took us down the valley and through a series of basic villages growing crops and raising animals outside the national park boundary. Passed one house that had dedicated their veranda to raising that most delicious of livestock, the guinea pig. A few more hours and we made it to the track end, eventually cramming into an outrageously overloaded collective minivan. I lucked out, being given the seat by the door with shouts of "grande, grande" and much pointing at my legs while Guinny ended up squashed beneath our gear in the front row. My special treatment backfired later while crossing back over the divide when the collectivo door man fell asleep in my lap. At the bottom of the hill the van stopped apparently where we were to start our climb. After much confusion eventually our climbing guide, Edgar, arrived and, with a quick farewell Guinny headed off in the van bound for Huaraz and the coast, while Stef, Matt and I made camp with Edgar not far from the road.
Next day was a climb up to base camp, this time without the help of donkeys, though Edgar managed to haul an impressively large backpack up the hill with most of the food and climbing gear. After setting ourselves up in the emergency shelter, exploring around the glacier and finding chinchilla-like vizcachas amongst the rocks it was time for an early dinner and off to bed by six. Woke up a little while later with snow falling on my face through a gap in the roof and lay there listening to the crack of thunder and rumbling avalanches as a storm rolled in until getting up again at one am to head off up the hill. With a quick drink and eat it was up and across the moraines where the going was made tough by a layer of fresh snow combined with borrowed climbing boots. Eventually made it to the glacier and geared up with ropes, harnesses, crampons and ice axes. Edgar knew his stuff but wasn´t all that communicative so I tried to share my very limited climbing know-how with Stef and Matt. The glacier was pretty hard going with fresh powder and numerous crevasses to cross/stumble into. Eventually made it the col below the summit as it got light and continued up the ridge avoiding more crevasses along the way. Made the call to turn around about half an hour later, 300 metres below the summit with wind blown snow continuing to howl over the ridge and the cloud dropping around us.Beat a hasty retreat down the glacier retracing our route across the moraines and back to the camp for a welcome cup of hot soup. Feeling somewhat recharged we made our way back down to the road and got a ride out to the main road and a collective back to Huaraz. Would have been good to make it all the way to the top but sure wasn´t going to happen that day, interesting anyway, though not exactly fun!
Now back in Huaraz for a couple of days taking it easy and getting used to not being constantly surrounded by a gaggle of females. Trying to organise another trip into Cordillera Huayhaush to the south and after booking two trips and having them both cancelled will hopefully get there in a couple of days time. Hopefully. More joys of travelling in Peru I guess!
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