The third day took us down a long and slow descent down the valley we gazed down the previous day. First came the sands, then a marsh, with the steam zigzagging the valley the whole time. For the last part the marshes gave way to waterfalls with trees overhanging. The drizzle started halfway through. It let up when we got… Read more »
In the middle of a mostly sleepless high altitude night, I was woken up by highly accented cries of “Morning!” I looked around in the dark and remembered that wakeup time was 4:45. Shortly, I crawled out of the tent and made my way to the breakfast tent. We had tea and the dry rolls with margarine and jelly. The… Read more »
I got up at 5:40 in hopes of bringing my stuff down and having a cup of tea before the driver got there at 6. He rang the bell at 5:50 and I scrambled to get out without breakfast. By the time I was out the door, he was gone. I had to have the hotel call him back, then… Read more »
Preparations I got up at twenty minutes to seven, took a shower, and packed my daypack. My daypack is currently a colorful bag from an Ecuadorian market, rather than any fancy hiking equipment. I packed it bursting with the following: Camelback + bottle with total of 2L of water Medical kit Rain jacket Extra upper layer Warm cap Sunscreen Zoom… Read more »
Retrospective This was my rest and acclimatization day before going trekking in Huaraz. I had no plan, but I happened to mention at the hostel that I wanted to go rock climbing. A girl there was going just then. We had a great day of climbing. It was only my second time climbing outside. The cliff on the edge of… Read more »
The Huanchaco hostel has been fun and it’s too tempting to stick around indefinitely, but the Cordilleras lay ahead. I said goodbye to the Pacific and hopped on the first of three buses required to get to Huaraz by day. I am glad I ended up on the day bus. The views along the road from Trujillo to Chimbote are… Read more »
I didn’t follow LP’S advice to buy a ticket to Huaraz in advance and this morning the buses were sold out. I’ll try to catch a day bus tomorrow, though that’s more complicated. In the meantime I went to the mall and got a camera. Luckily a girl at the hostel was also looking for one and had found my… Read more »
Rest day at the hostel and surfing round two. The second time was a bit harder on the rocky beach. The instructor didn’t help as much and didn’t take me out as far. Update: I didn’t notice the gash on my back from this round until a few days later. Costs Cost today: $52.44 Cumulative cost: $4,800.68
El Brujo was similar to La Huaca de la Luna, or maybe a combination with the Lord of Sipán. The lady there is very impressively preserved. It’s sad how quickly the amazement at the color friezes (thanks for the term, Lonely Planet) wears off. The view of the emptiness and the sea surrounding the temple is quite impressive as well…. Read more »
The colors at the Huaca de la Luna are hard to believe. Suddenly the notion that these ancient buildings were brightly colored is reality. I’ll refrain from posting pictures, it’s much more fascinating to see for yourself. I should probably stop taking tours in English, but it was nice having an individual guide this time. The honking of the taxis… Read more »