Cordillera Huayhuash

Mon October 15 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 1) - At 3:50am, (ten minutes early,) our guide Miguel from trekking-company Huascaran rang the doorbell at Jo's Place (our hostel) to pick us up for our next hiking adventure. The plan was to go on a 10-day (165 km = 100 miles) trek around the Cordillera Huayhuash, a mountain range South of Huaraz. The Cordillera Huayhuash has several 6,000m+ mountains and is the setting of the true story "Touching the Void"; a remarkable survival story of two Britons climbing the west-face of Siula Grande (great documentary available on YouTube). On the way to the bus-station we picked up Bridget, 21, Australian, backpacking from Guatemala to Patagonia, who was coming on the trek with us. The first bus-leg took us to Chiquian- through the condensed windows we could see very clear skies and we wondered if this was going to be the best weather-day of the trek... After a coffee in Chiquian the more adventurous second 'bus'-leg started. An old Mitsubishi Rosa mini-bus, likely unfit for duty, drove us to the trailhead in Pocpa. We needed to have steady nerves: unpaved road, steep downhill, steeper uphill, huge drop-offs, packed with people (we had seats) and a ton of heavy cargo 'secured' to the roof-rack. To make it all a little bit more memorable the engine overheated halfway the journey. But no worries; the driver stopped the bus, opened the engine-hood (which was inside the bus- spraying hot steam and exhaust into the enclosed space) and yelled "Agua, agua, agua!" A couple of passengers, they had obviously been through this before, jumped out of the bus, grabbed some water-bottles, ran to the river, filled the bottles, returned the full bottles to the driver who poured many, many liters of 'fresh' river-water in and over the engine.

Miguel (guide & cook on the left) and Elmer (arriero on the right)

Around noon we arrived at the trailhead where our arriero Elmer (with 4 donkeys and 1 horse) was waiting for us. While Elmer loaded the donkeys, we started the trek by signing in at a police check-point. The officer thought Maurits was 22 years old - and married to 31 year old Laura. On our first (short & easy) hiking day we followed an active mining-road for about two hours, before we got to the camp-site at 'Quartelhuain' (4,170m). Elmer (as always) had already set-up camp and on arrival we enjoyed tea, coffee and hot-chocolate in the cooking/eating tent (Miguel and Elmer slept in this tent as well). This cooking tent was going to be the critical success-factor in our enjoyment of a 10 day trek at the start of the rainy season...

Our camp (Bridget's tent, our tent and the cooking-tent)

 

Tue October 16 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 2) - During the trek our morning routine was as follows: we got up at 5:30, packed-up our tent, Miguel brought us coca-tea and warm washing-water (but it was usually too cold to wash much more than hands and face), had breakfast at 6:30 and by 7:15 we would be on the trail. Within 2 hours of departure Elmer would overtake us and set-up camp at the next camp-site well before we arrived.

The view from the first pass we crossed

This second trekking day took us off the mining road, onto a hiking-trail and over a 4,690m high pass. Wherever possible Miguel would take us off the main donkey-trail and onto smaller trails much closer to the mountains and glaciers for better views! Great decision to go on a guided trek- since we would have never been able to find these trails by ourselves. Miguel was also very good at setting a slow but constant walking-pace, which made high-altitude hiking a lot more comfortable. The weather was pretty good today; in the morning high-level clouds with great visibility and after lunch we had some rain. We got to camp 'Janca' (4225m) around 2:30pm and during a short dry-spell, we set-up our tent. Since we brought our own tent and are picky about how and where to set-up the tent, we did this ourselves the whole trek. During our candle-light-strapped -to-the-tent-pole-dinner we had a massive rain-shower! One of many to come.. But it was nice and cozy in the cooking-tent, the stove heated the tent and the excellent food warmed us. Like many evenings, the rain stopped around 7:30pm so we could get into our sleeping bags.

Views from our third trekking day

Wed October 17 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 3) - Frost on the ground! We had a lot of cold nights, one time the whole outside (fly) of our tent was one big sheet of ice! Brrrrrrrrr! Today we took another great off-map route that added a lot of value for las turistas! Soon after we left we got some hail, snow and rain, but then the weather cleared. We climbed up a slippery waterfall, crossed a 4,740m pass, had a million-dollar-view during lunch, and walked down a steep mountain-slope to our camp at 'Carhuacocha' (4,200m). Just before we got back to camp it started pouring! But the cooking-tent was waiting for us to warm up and dry off :-) In the Cordillerra Huayhuash the weather changes so rapidly, and now was no exception. Within half an hour the sun came out, we set-up our tent, and it actually got quite comfortable! But unfortunately we could not see the high peaks.. And during dinner it poured again!

Yerupaja on the fourth morning

This camp-site and the last camp-site were the most picturesque ones of the trek; beautiful setting, right underneath the high peaks! Since we did the trek outside the high-season, it was not very busy on the trail or at the camp-sites. Only two other parties (a French couple with very nice gear(!) and 7 young Israelis with a guide that perpetually played Huayno music from his radio) followed the same route as us. In general most camp-sites comprised of a grassy uneven field, next to a river, with a couple of (nasty) pit-toilets. Surprisingly Huayhuash is not a National Park, but it is only a 'preservation' area. Just like our previous 'Santa Cruz' trek, there are animals everywhere! Cows, sheep, horses, donkeys and dogs. There was actually a dog that followed us the entire circuit! Perhaps because we fed him leftovers... Then there are pueblos, some small 'farms' and a couple of mines. Huayhuash used to be a little unsafe with frequent robberies, but since the trail has been converted in something like a 'toll-road' there is not much to fear. Every tourist pays a fee when passing a local community; some communities charge 15 soles, others 40. However, as advised by Miguel, we did leave our backpacks in the cooking tent overnight for safe-keeping.

One of the farms along the way - this one had a solar-panel!

Thu October 18 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 4) - At sunrise we got a decent view of Yerupaja, at 6,617m the second highest mountain in Peru. Unfortunately as soon as we got on the trail it got cloudier and it started to rain. Once more we hiked a spectacular route that was not on our map; we hiked up a steep slippery slope where we should have had one of the best views of the whole trek..but unfortunately it was raining and we could not see much.. As we made our way over the 4,834m pass it started to snow! The big fluffy snow-flakes were much more enjoyable than rain. Probably the worst weather day on our trek- but we did have a dry-spell to; 1) set-up our tent at camp-site 'Huayhuash' (4,345m) and 2) to get from the cooking-tent into our own tent after dinner. We were 'muy feliz' with the stools and table in the cooking-tent to stay comfortable and dry!

Bridget and Maurits relaxing

The food during our trip was very, very good! Quite amazing actually how fine we ate while on the trail. For breakfast we had a combination of omelet, pancakes, oatmeal and bread; for lunch we had potatoes, vegetables, chicken, soup, tuna always with warm coca tea; and for dinner we had soup, trout, rice, beans, steak, fries, chicken, pasta and/or potatoes. On top of all this we got a daily snack-bag with cookies, chocolate and a piece of fruit (especially the granada-fruit was great!) and at camp, around 4pm, we would have hot drinks with popcorn, fried dough crackers with sugar or normal crackers with butter and jelly. A big thanks to the donkeys for carrying all this!

Mountain scenery

Fri October 19 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 5) - An easy day today. We followed the main trail, crossed an easy pass of 4,785m and got the next camp at Atuscancha (4,365m - the highest camp) around noon. We were now at the Southern end of the Cordillera Huayhuash and about half-way our trek. The best thing about this campsite were the hot-springs! After lunch we had a bath and enjoyed a cold beer in a hail-shower! Great! The hygiene was a little questionable.. Lots of people washing, even shaving.. When was this pool last cleaned?? After we dried off, we spent the afternoon playing cards in the tent. The crazy weather continued and during dinner we had a big hail/snow shower! Our cooking-tent sagged under the weight of the wet snow! It was cold, wet and we found out that Miguel and Elmer did not have proper sleeping mats. They used the (damp) donkey blankets to stay warm! We gave them our extra sleeping mats - a basic mattress provided by Huascaran - we hope this helped a little!

LB on top of the highest pass we crossed

Sat October 20 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 6) - Most of the snow was gone by the time we got out of the tent; but it was still cold and cloudy. We started our hiking day by climbing the highest pass of the trek; according to our guide Miguel the pass was 5,000m (16,400 feet) according to our map 4,950m. Miguel must have been right! Unfortunately Maurits got sick as we were battling the snow and rain on our way up to the pass; stomach pain and nausea.. This was going to be a long day.. On top of the pass the weather cleared and the sun came out, absolutely crazy! Beautiful views! We were planning on climbing another pass at Cerro San Antonio to get a good look at Siula Grande, from Touching the Void... but Maurits' state did not allow for this.. Instead we hiked a little off the main trail to a lagoon, where we had lunch (Maurits just drank some tea). Afterwards Miguel and Bridget continued on to another lagoon, but since Maurits was not feeling well, LB and Maurits set off to the next camp-site at 'Huanacpatay' (4,356m). Miguel specifically told us many times to stay to the left (izquerda) of the river, we dutifully followed directions but when we finally got to the camp we were on the wrong side of the river! Before, when Miguel had mixed up right from left we thought it was pretty cute- but when Maurits was feeling so sick- not funny! Luckily we found a place to leap accross the river so we did not get wet feet! Back at camp Maurits went to bed with some meds to fight the stomach ache and fever...too sick for dinner tonight.

Maurits a little sick..

Sun October 21 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 7) - Maurits felt much better in the morning and after a couple of bites of breakfast we were on our way. According to docotora Chamberlain it was most likely a virus and not altitude related (the altitude did actually not bother us at all). We had no pass to cross today, instead we hiked to the low-point of the trek at 3,500m (the pueblo of Huayllapa) and then up to our camp at 'Huatiaq' (4,253m). We had nice weather all day and the terrain was pretty easy going. When we were almost at camp, we saw Elmer running down the mountain towards us. He had lost a donkey on the way to camp! While we were settling in at camp, Elmer returned with the lost donkey. This was not the only time he would be looking for a donkey or horse (he actually bought a second horse at the hot-springs campsite.) After the arrieros arrive at camp and unload their animals, they let them graze freely. So while grazing the animals wander off for many kilometers up or down mountains - and the next morning the arriero has to go find them. We would recommend a GPS-tracker..

The donkeys at camp

El Diablo in the background

Mon October 22 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 8) - On our longest trekking-day we had to cross two passes (Miguel recommended that we spend two nights at the last camp and do a day-hike from there - which would work out perfectly!) The day started crystal clear with great views of 'El Diablo' and the first pass we crossed at 4,750m was very clear. Unfortunately by the time (11:30am) we got to the second pass at 4,847m, it had gotten a little cloudy. We went off the main trail to get a better view of the mountains and (as expected) right during lunch it started to snow! We were about to experience the craziest weather of our trek; we went from sun with a couple of high level clouds, to zero visibility with snow and a thunderstorm, back to sun and clear mountains within the hour! It was such an awesome transition that even our guide Miguel was surprised by the 'muy loco' weather. [ Of course later in the afternoon it just rained and we could not see anything, again... ] We enjoyed the best views of the trek so far, then we steeply descended to the camp-site at 'Jahuacocha' (4,050m). The mountains are very steep in this part of the world and we had to ascent and descent many steep slopes; our guide Miguel would caution us with 'despacio' and 'concentracion'. On this particular descent Maurits bit the dust once, still experiencing some weak legs after being sick..

Black & white mountains

Miguel on one of the passes

Tue October 23 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 9) - A short day-hike today. We got up at 4:30am and to our pleasant surprise it was crystal clear!!! Exactly what we were hoping for! The stars faded away as the sunlight slowly filled the sky.. At 7am we got to a viewpoint at 'Minapata' (+/- 4,600m) where we spent about 2 hours enjoying the best views of our trek; absolutely amazing! Perfect views of about half the Huayhuash range including Yerupaja! By 9am most of the peaks were in the clouds again, we were not surprised, and we walked back to camp. While we were hiking, Elmer had been fishing and he had caught about 20 trout! Very nice trout for lunch! The rest of the afternoon we relaxed, played some cards and enjoyed the shelter of the cooking tent, since it started raining again and it got very windy.. It seemed almost surreal that the morning had been so clear. Although the weather changes were quite amusing, we still recommend to do this trek in the dry-season! Our last supper consisted of more trout and 'gluhwein' (including a very nice thank-you-speech) for dessert. Miguel and Elmer had both gotten a little sick today, but they kept working hard for us! And we gave them some ibuprofen..

Shortly after biting the dust..

More mountains

 

Wed October 24 (Cordillera Huayhuash, day 10) - It was a very noisy last night; it rained on and off, the dogs were barking at the donkeys and the cows were 'moo-ing' like they were about to give birth. We got up at 3:45am, packed up the tent in a short dry spell, and had breakfast. It was terrible weather! Howling wind and rain, and Elmer was out in the pitch black looking for his horses! We had planned to leave at 5:00am, but due to the bad weather we did not leave till 6. Very soon after we left the rain stopped and as we got closer to Llamac, and left the high peaks behind us, the sun came out! The trail was at first flat and followed an aquaduct on the top of a gorge. The last bit was a gradual descent into the town of Llamac. After saying goodbye to Elmer the most dangerous part of the trek followed; the scary bus-ride back to Chiquian! But despite two pairs of sweaty hands, the same bus that brought us, took us safely back as well. Around 5pm we were back in Huaraz. After a shower the four of us met up again at the Huascaran office, where the owner made us some excellent pisco sours! A little tipsy we had dinner and said goodbye to Miguel and Bridget. What a great trek!!

Sunrise!!

In the early morning sun

Thu October 25 - We did laundry, drank coffee, ate pastries, relaxed, stayed in our room at Jo's Place since we could not find anyone to check-out, packed our bags and took the 10pm bus from Huaraz to Lima.

What a view!

Relaxing..

Fri October 26 - After a not too comfortable bus-ride we arrived around 5am in Lima. We took a taxi to the Alberque Verde hostel in Miraflores, where the owner was so nice to let us into our room! Nice to sleep in a bed for a couple of hours.. The rest of the day we walked around a little bit, sat at a cafe, read a book, worked on the blog and had a delicious 'ceviche' (fish) lunch at Punto Azul. We had been looking forward to the excellent sea-food in Lima, and it did not disappoint! One thing that we noticed in Lima is how surprisingly quiet it is compared to Huaraz. Or maybe Huaraz was just crazy noisy..

All four enjoying the view

LB fishing (for the second time this world trip - but no luck yet!)

Sat October 27 - Our last day in Peru! The day was spent like the day before.. We hung out in Miraflores, had another great seafood lunch at Punto Azul and saw a movie called Argo. Our flight to La Paz left at 10:30pm and by 2:30am (after LB had to pay US$ 135 for a visa! Maurits got in for free..) we were at hotel Estrella Andina - ready for some new adventures!

This was the dog that followed us the complete circuit!

 

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