Huaraz and the Santa Cruz Trek

After Cuzco we breezed through Lima, which did not seem particularly interesting to me, and headed up to Huaraz. Huaraz is situated at the mouth of the Cordillera Blanca, the highest mountain chain in the world outside of the Himalayas. Lima is only 800m high, whereas Huaraz is 3800m so we had to spend a couple of days there acclimatizing again before setting out on any treks (otherwise it might be dangerous). One curious thing about altitude is that doctors say no matter how much time you have spent at high altitude, your body does not develop a permanent tolerance. Every ascent is like it´s the first time. Thus, even though we´ve been at 2500m or above almost for three months, we had to wait a bit. After a couple of days of planning and relaxing, we were ready to go on the Santa Cruz trek.

Someone told me that National Geographic once named the Santa Cruz trek the second most beautiful in the world and I read in one of the guidebooks that the German Apline Club names one of the mountains along the route the most beautiful in the world. It is definitely stunning. We began at about 2900m and worked our way up to a 4760m pass on the third day, which was tough but not nearly as difficult as the Salkantay pass for me. We worked our way through a valley towards the most incredible view of the Andes I´ve ever seen and some of the guide books consider the best in the entire mountain chain. I just sat up there on my own for about 20 minutes, hiked down a bit and soaked it all in while eating a sandwich. After the pass it was a gentle walk for a few hours to our campsite. The next day was supposed to be easy but the write-up we were using neglected to mention that the buses back to Huaraz from a nearby town we were hiking to stop running at around noon. We were told that at 11:30 about an hour and a half away from the town, so it was a mad dash in the rain to get there as fast as possible. Fortunately, we found a bus and went down the most harrowing road I´ve ever seen. It must drop 3000m within a nail-biting hour and has to be one of the greatest engineering feats I´ve seen in my life.

Salkantay

There are many different ways to get to Machu Pichu and the Salkantay trek is the hardest and most beautiful. It lasts five or six days (we did it in five by skipping the first day which goes along a boring road) and is grueling, but definitely worth it. National Geographic once named it one of the 25 most beautiful treks in the world. The first day we began at about 3900 meters and went up for 4 hours to a pass at more than 4500 meters. It was the hardest day of trekking in my life but the views were stunning. At that altitude you have to move very slowly or you run out of breath very quickly, especially when you are carrying a heavy pack on your back (we did not have a guide and did not go with a tour). After the pass it was another 5 or so hours to our campsite down a gorgeous valley. Each day after that was easier but equally long and the cumulative effect was grueling. However, we were moving in a circle closer towards Machu Pichu every hour and on the third day we could clearly see the profile of the mountain from the back end of Machu Pïchu. The fourth day we had a nearly 4000m pass that was surprisingly tough but had lunch at the top with a stunning view of the landscape, including Machu Pichu. Actually climbing around the same mountain valley makes you realize how extraordinary it was to create anything enduring at all in such a challenging environment. The day after that, we climbed up an easy two hours to Machu Pichu (without packs on - sweet releif!) and enjoyed it for several hours before we hiked out and bused ourselves back to Cuzco.

Cuzco

From Arequipa, we moved on to Cuzco and stayed for two and a half weeks with some friends from Buenos Aires. A lot happened in Cuzco, including getting robbed. We went off on the Salkantay trek (which was amazing) and while our friends remained asleep some robbers entered their apartment and took a great deal. I lost my computer and other items but had my camera, passport, and debit card with me so that was a plus. Nobody was hurt and that is the most important thing. This is why there are no pictures for the moment.

Cuzco itself is a pleasant city but extremely touristy and is becoming more dangerous (our own experience aside). It was the heart of the Inca Empire and has many beautiful old relics.