The area around Huaraz, Peru....

is what you get when you mix the cultivated hills of Guatemala and a similar people, the rock walls, rain, and sheep of Ireland, the sheer cliffs of Yosemite with the trees and foliage of the Pacific Northwest (and maybe a dusting of Sinks Canyon- just for fun)-- ok, ok- and throw some snow capped Swiss Alpes in for good measure. There are many parts of this area that remind me of my time in Ecuador as well. Pero es un poco obvio- that´s like saying South Dakota is a bit like North Dakota, or Kansas is a quite similar to Nebraska. Only the hard core locals note the differences. In any case- I´m enjoying my days in the heartland of the Andes. I´ve been staying in the city of Huaraz which lies between the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Negra. El Parque Nacional Huascarán is a few hrs by car, taxi or combi away. We have had a week full of mtn adventures and try as I might- acclimatizing to this altitude truly is a challenge for this girl straight off the California coasts. I´ve been loading my body with as much Matè de Coca that I can get my hands on, but my digestion has been slow and my body tired. Regardless Nora, Meche and I have done our best to track down tours and hikes of the local area. The first day we visited the famous Pastoruri glacier. Like all other glaciers the globe over, this one is melting at an alarming rate. Though the landscape and people living up there above 5000 m. gave us enough to experience as we slowly crept up to the base of the glacier.
The next day we decided to do a small hike as the alitude was affecting and rain and snow was in the air. We got ourselves up to Lagunas Llanganuco and did a small hike around the lake and back down the hill a ways through a fairyland forest.
Feeling a bit accustomed to the land of little oxygen, we set out the following day to Lago 69 with a some Frenchmen from our hostel (um... seriously). Luck wasn´t on their side however and their taxi was stopped for over an hr by the Police. We didn´t realize this and went on without them. We lucked out with a clear, sunny day, and the views were amazing. Combine green grass, grazing cows, steep cliffs, rugged trails, white mtn tops and very little oxygen. The last few km to the lake were tough. As we got closer to 4600 m. it was literally one step at a time. I think Budda said, "Just do one more forever." Those were the words that brought me to the edge of the blue lake below the glacier. A truly amazing place. Oh and the french guys did eventually arrive at the lake (after nearly running up the mtn) just as we were departing. On our way down we were crossing an avalanche path that we had previously gone over and Meche commented that a guy at the lake had mentioned it had occured only 4 days beforehand. Hummm...
After a good meal and a night´s rest, Meche and I decided on a tour to the ruins of Chavín (Nora´s sore throat kept her in Huaraz for a day of R&R). The day was brilliant. We crossed over into the Cordillera Negra and were able to see a whole different landscape. This place truly amazes me. The ruins of Chavín that we toured were from a civilization speculating to be 1200 BC. There were many galleries underground that we were able to tour that went on and on. And though it was a 3 hr ride each way, the hill sides, the strong mtn souls of the Andes, the grazing sheep, llamas and cattle, the rock walls and small communities of chosas (stone and thatch huts) and the magnificant mtn peaks surrounding were plenty to keep my gaze constantly intrigued.
Enough said- this is definitely one of the most beautiful places I´ve ever been to. Though I haven´t been to that many places... I haven´t been to that few either.
I´m off on an overnight bus to Lima tonight and flying to Buenos Aires tomorrow. Look out!
(Oh and I´m taking loads of pictures and will hopefully have time to download some soon... stay tuned)