My trekking mates helped me pack my stuff. My left arm was pretty useless. We ate breakfast and Ricardo sent me out first. He probably thought that I would be walking fairly slow. I guessI was walking at a good clip because I wasn’t not supposed to take the trail marked Llamac. I didn’t think that I was walking that fast. In fact I had stopped a couple of times due to pain.
Irene was running to catch me. We turned around. Then Ricardo caught up with us and we turned around again. We walked to a trail that cut down to the trail that all the others were walking on.
I walked four or five hours to Llamac. The others looked out for me in the rough spots. I was uncomfortable and in pain at times. Sometimes I didn’t feel that bad. I was sad to say good bye to the beautiful mountains
When we got to the van in Llamac for some reason I thought things would be better. However the first hour or so of the ride was in unpaved winding road. I held my arm to keep it from bumping anything
We had a stop in a small town and then went on to Huaraz. We arrived there around 5pm
Ricardo and I went to the San Pablo clinic.
I paid 35 Soles initially. I saw a very nice doctor who knew English. She ordered x rays and a trauma doc consult. I went out front and paid two more fees. I had my X-rays. (Painful) The X-ray tech told me that my elbow was still dislocated. Then the trauma doc came in and manipulated my elbow to put it back in place. He then ordered more x rays. So I went back out front to pay for those. Then I went into x Ray. He reviews them and did a prescription order and told me to go to the pharmacy to buy some things. I was a little confused so the nurse went with me. Turns out the pharmacy didn’t have a sling. I paid for all of the supplies there. The nurse told me to go down the street and buy the missing sling. So I left the hospital and went to four pharmacies. None of whom had what the doctor ordered. On has a sling in a smaller size. I took a chance and got that one.
When I returned to the hospital I explained what happened and asked if that was okay. I never really got an answer. Sometime later they wheeled me around in a wheelchair to the doctors office. I found this ludicrous because they had sent me outside the hospital on my own with a messed up arm. Also the person wheeling me around couldn’t seem to get the chair into the doctors office. In the end I got out of it and walked into the office.
The doctor then took all of the other supplies and made a cast type thing that covers the bottom part of my arm. He wrapped the whole thing with elastic. He told me to keep it on and in sling for two weeks The bad wheel chair driver ( who was very nice) gave me some paperwork and helped me get a taxi.
I returned to my guesthouse. The owner told me that the clinic had been calling. They then called again. They wanted 400 more Soles. They were insistent and eventually I told them that I would come back to the clinic the next day.
I had some dinner at the guesthouse and went to bed. What a day.
The next day I organized to return home to the US early to see my orthopedic doctor. To my happiness he got rid of the cast thing. I couldn't shower with it very well and I think that my skin was allergic to it. The MRI showed damage but surgery was not required.
Monday, August 6, 2018
July 23 Hike to Minapata Mirador
We set out on what we thought was an easy day hike. First walking up through the plypeps trees. These trees have reddish peeling bark. They grow very slowly due to the high altitude and challenging conditions.
The terrain got steeper and soon we were clinging to tall grass and using it to pull ourselves up. Occasionally we crossed steep scree. It was hard work but we were rewarded with amazing views.
The walk back to camp was along the lake and pretty in its own way.
Back at camp we had an amazing lunch. It was called Coulda. It is kind of a sandwich but instead of bread a potato mixture is used. Aurelio,our chef, made it into hearts. Mine had a vegetable filling. It was really tasty
Birds played in the lake shallows. I walked back afterwards with my camera to take photos only to find that it was broken
At camp brave Irene went for a quick dip to clean up. Then we had a beer to celebrate our trip. A football / soccer game sprang up until it began to rain. A rainbow over the valley was lovely
Later we had dinner. I gave the kitchen my water bottles to fill and went to pee. Then it happened. I tripped liver the kitchen tent line. When I fell, I felt I felt my elbow dislocate.
Everyone tried to help but my arm was still in a lot of pain I tried to do my best with it. I debated if I should push the SOS button on my spot. With my arm wrapped, in a sling and anti inflammatories in my system I went to bed.
Sleep was not easy. Adrenaline, anxiety, pain and barking dogs were sleeps enemy. I think I got a little sleep.
The terrain got steeper and soon we were clinging to tall grass and using it to pull ourselves up. Occasionally we crossed steep scree. It was hard work but we were rewarded with amazing views.
The walk back to camp was along the lake and pretty in its own way.
Back at camp we had an amazing lunch. It was called Coulda. It is kind of a sandwich but instead of bread a potato mixture is used. Aurelio,our chef, made it into hearts. Mine had a vegetable filling. It was really tasty
Birds played in the lake shallows. I walked back afterwards with my camera to take photos only to find that it was broken
At camp brave Irene went for a quick dip to clean up. Then we had a beer to celebrate our trip. A football / soccer game sprang up until it began to rain. A rainbow over the valley was lovely
Later we had dinner. I gave the kitchen my water bottles to fill and went to pee. Then it happened. I tripped liver the kitchen tent line. When I fell, I felt I felt my elbow dislocate.
Everyone tried to help but my arm was still in a lot of pain I tried to do my best with it. I debated if I should push the SOS button on my spot. With my arm wrapped, in a sling and anti inflammatories in my system I went to bed.
Sleep was not easy. Adrenaline, anxiety, pain and barking dogs were sleeps enemy. I think I got a little sleep.
July 22 Jahuacocha Lake
July 22 Jahuacocha Lake
The day dawned very cold with everything covered in frost. We packed up and then headed to a plateau and Tagush pass. It seemed to take forever because I was not feeling too great. I had a bit of reflux. The cure? Coke a cola for sale at the campsite.
The pass gave us amazing views of Mt Diablo Mudo. A group that we saw yesterday was schedule to started climbing at 2 in the morning. We couldn’t see them as we passed the mountain.
From there we descended and climbed up another valley to a pass. I have to say that my legs felt like lead. The valley was beautiful with a number of colors. From the pass we walked a bit and our chef met us with a vegetarian extravaganza. The non vegetarians also had a bit of chicken. Almost 30 condors flew over our heads. They were amazing. We figured they were in their way to a dead cow to feast
One of our group picked up a set of poles that he thought that either I or another group member left behind. They actually belonged to another group. While trying to get them back to the correct group the owner came by and was really rude. It was not a good display of how hikers should behave. In such a beautiful place I don't understand the negativity.
From there we had a fantastic walk along a ridge where we were able to see the highest mountains in the Huayhuash range.
Below is an image of the ridge.
As we walked in the ridge two beautiful blue lakes became visible- Lake Jahuacocha and Turquoise Lake.
Next we descended a steep trail to our camp on the edge of the lake. There were more tents than normal but this place is the traditional last night of the trek. It is also the starting point for shorter treks.
Sunset over camp
The day dawned very cold with everything covered in frost. We packed up and then headed to a plateau and Tagush pass. It seemed to take forever because I was not feeling too great. I had a bit of reflux. The cure? Coke a cola for sale at the campsite.
The pass gave us amazing views of Mt Diablo Mudo. A group that we saw yesterday was schedule to started climbing at 2 in the morning. We couldn’t see them as we passed the mountain.
From there we descended and climbed up another valley to a pass. I have to say that my legs felt like lead. The valley was beautiful with a number of colors. From the pass we walked a bit and our chef met us with a vegetarian extravaganza. The non vegetarians also had a bit of chicken. Almost 30 condors flew over our heads. They were amazing. We figured they were in their way to a dead cow to feast
One of our group picked up a set of poles that he thought that either I or another group member left behind. They actually belonged to another group. While trying to get them back to the correct group the owner came by and was really rude. It was not a good display of how hikers should behave. In such a beautiful place I don't understand the negativity.
From there we had a fantastic walk along a ridge where we were able to see the highest mountains in the Huayhuash range.
Below is an image of the ridge.
As we walked in the ridge two beautiful blue lakes became visible- Lake Jahuacocha and Turquoise Lake.
Next we descended a steep trail to our camp on the edge of the lake. There were more tents than normal but this place is the traditional last night of the trek. It is also the starting point for shorter treks.
Sunset over camp
July 21 Huatiac
July 21 Huatiac
Today was different because we started the day with a walk down hill. We walked by potatoes sitting on the ground. They will be used to create Tocosh, also called Moraya. The potatoes are left on the ground until a frost. They are then buried in a hole with water for one month. The resulting food product apparently smells horrible but has antibiotic properties. All local folks eat this food.
We walked down the Callinca Valley to the smal village of Huayllapa. We passed some pretty waterfalls along the way. The valley was lined with farming terraces. Many of them date back to pre-Incan times. The farmers grow alfalfa to feed the cows to produce milk and cheese. Also potatoes and the tuber that we ate the previous evening -Olluco - are grown. See image of terraces below.
We met and spoke to a couple of local women in Huayllapa. The woman below had been gathering wood for cooking. Each area of Peru has it's own special hat that all of the women wear.
The we got ready for a hot and hard climb up to our campsite. About a half hour into the climb our chef met us in the trail with pasta for lunch. He was taking a nap and one group almost hiked by without seeing him. His ride and our emergency mule, La Sora, are in the image below.
While we were taking a rest we saw a trekker who must have been in bad shape because he was riding a horse up. We later heard that he was going to be evacuated by helicopter.
We then climbed the rest of the way to the campsite. Part of the time we were walking on pre-Inca trail. I didn’t time it but I think it took a little over an hour.
Today was different because we started the day with a walk down hill. We walked by potatoes sitting on the ground. They will be used to create Tocosh, also called Moraya. The potatoes are left on the ground until a frost. They are then buried in a hole with water for one month. The resulting food product apparently smells horrible but has antibiotic properties. All local folks eat this food.
We walked down the Callinca Valley to the smal village of Huayllapa. We passed some pretty waterfalls along the way. The valley was lined with farming terraces. Many of them date back to pre-Incan times. The farmers grow alfalfa to feed the cows to produce milk and cheese. Also potatoes and the tuber that we ate the previous evening -Olluco - are grown. See image of terraces below.
We met and spoke to a couple of local women in Huayllapa. The woman below had been gathering wood for cooking. Each area of Peru has it's own special hat that all of the women wear.
The we got ready for a hot and hard climb up to our campsite. About a half hour into the climb our chef met us in the trail with pasta for lunch. He was taking a nap and one group almost hiked by without seeing him. His ride and our emergency mule, La Sora, are in the image below.
While we were taking a rest we saw a trekker who must have been in bad shape because he was riding a horse up. We later heard that he was going to be evacuated by helicopter.
We then climbed the rest of the way to the campsite. Part of the time we were walking on pre-Inca trail. I didn’t time it but I think it took a little over an hour.
Sunday, August 5, 2018
July 20 Cerro Gran Vista
July 20 Cerro Gran Vista
We awoke to snow in the morning delaying our trip to see sites from Touching the Void and to head up to Cerro Gran Vista. The snow abated but returned on and off during the day (lightly).
We walked up the Sarapococha valley under a number of gigantic mountains including Carnicero, Suila, Tropecio, Rasac. We stopped at the base camp from Touching the Void (as seen in the image below)
We then started our highest ascent of the trip up to Cerro Grande Vista. I have to say that is was super challenging. It was only slightly higher than the prior day but we seemed to climb for ages in an environment that lacked oxygen.
We made several stops in which we would see three beautiful lakes. We also had views of amazing glaciers. One of the glaciers was the one that Joe Simpson from Touching the Void crawled out of. We could also we the valley of boulders he negotiated to return to his base camp- an incredible feat.
The hike up was tough but the entire group made it. I was the third to the top.
Although there were clouds we had views of many of the mountains in the Huayhuash range. It was stunning. A condor soared above us. The elevation of Cerro Gran Vista is 16767ft.
We could also see the steep descent we made from the Santa Rosa Pass the precious day.
Eventually we had to walk down again. Two incidents happened on the way down. In on of the steepest sections on hikers decided to alter their clothing then run down the steep part. At the bottom the guide asked him where his camera was. Much to his dismay he had left it at the top of the steep part. Up he went to get it. Boy was that tough. We also saw two avalanches on one of the glaciers creating a snow water fall as it cascaded below the glacier.
Eventually we made it back to camp tired but accomplished
For dinner we had a soup made of a Peruvian tuber called Olluco. It was very good
We awoke to snow in the morning delaying our trip to see sites from Touching the Void and to head up to Cerro Gran Vista. The snow abated but returned on and off during the day (lightly).
We walked up the Sarapococha valley under a number of gigantic mountains including Carnicero, Suila, Tropecio, Rasac. We stopped at the base camp from Touching the Void (as seen in the image below)
We then started our highest ascent of the trip up to Cerro Grande Vista. I have to say that is was super challenging. It was only slightly higher than the prior day but we seemed to climb for ages in an environment that lacked oxygen.
We made several stops in which we would see three beautiful lakes. We also had views of amazing glaciers. One of the glaciers was the one that Joe Simpson from Touching the Void crawled out of. We could also we the valley of boulders he negotiated to return to his base camp- an incredible feat.
The hike up was tough but the entire group made it. I was the third to the top.
Although there were clouds we had views of many of the mountains in the Huayhuash range. It was stunning. A condor soared above us. The elevation of Cerro Gran Vista is 16767ft.
We could also see the steep descent we made from the Santa Rosa Pass the precious day.
Eventually we had to walk down again. Two incidents happened on the way down. In on of the steepest sections on hikers decided to alter their clothing then run down the steep part. At the bottom the guide asked him where his camera was. Much to his dismay he had left it at the top of the steep part. Up he went to get it. Boy was that tough. We also saw two avalanches on one of the glaciers creating a snow water fall as it cascaded below the glacier.
Eventually we made it back to camp tired but accomplished
For dinner we had a soup made of a Peruvian tuber called Olluco. It was very good
Saturday, August 4, 2018
July 19 Cutatambo
July 19 Cutatambo
As we hiked out of the valley we saw vicuña on the ridge far above us in the distance.
We hiked up, up ,up. Today is one of higher days and the highest pass that we cross. We arrived at the basin below the pass and heard a noise like a hawk. Turns out it was a vicuña.
The Santa Rosa pass was snow covered and a bit hair raising to climb. I was making two steps for each one as I tried to kick in good steps so I wouldn’t slip and slide to the bottom. I probably wouldn’t have died if I slipped but I would definitely have been wet, bruised and maybe broken. Then I would have to climb it all again. I was definitely wishing for my microspikes the last two days. (Note: I was told that these were not necessary)
The views from the pass (16500ft) were amazing. (The image above is of our amazing guide, Ricardo, and I at the pass). There was a massive glacier and two turquoise blue lakes. The biggest of which was Lake Jurau. It started snowing on us in the way down so I was unable to take photos of the glacier that really show how impressive it was
We met an English guy and two Canadians who are backing it in their own. I am having a hard enough time dragging my body up these high passes much less also dragging all my equipment in my pack and equipment.
We arrived at the campsite early and helped set up camp. We had lunch which was a soy meat and rice dish with veggies.
Irene and I went to investigate a water fall and ended taking a trail which led to a view of Jurau lake from a different angle and a clearer view of the glacier. We also hiked over to a nearby waterfall to check it out.
When we returned we heard stories of local history. Cars were introduced here in 1970. That seems crazy to me. Prior to that people walked on the old trails including the Inca trails. We also heard about the communist Shining Path movement and how it helped communities by rounding up bandits and executing them. That was kind of odd with three Chinese Taiwanese. in our group.
As we hiked out of the valley we saw vicuña on the ridge far above us in the distance.
We hiked up, up ,up. Today is one of higher days and the highest pass that we cross. We arrived at the basin below the pass and heard a noise like a hawk. Turns out it was a vicuña.
The Santa Rosa pass was snow covered and a bit hair raising to climb. I was making two steps for each one as I tried to kick in good steps so I wouldn’t slip and slide to the bottom. I probably wouldn’t have died if I slipped but I would definitely have been wet, bruised and maybe broken. Then I would have to climb it all again. I was definitely wishing for my microspikes the last two days. (Note: I was told that these were not necessary)
The views from the pass (16500ft) were amazing. (The image above is of our amazing guide, Ricardo, and I at the pass). There was a massive glacier and two turquoise blue lakes. The biggest of which was Lake Jurau. It started snowing on us in the way down so I was unable to take photos of the glacier that really show how impressive it was
We met an English guy and two Canadians who are backing it in their own. I am having a hard enough time dragging my body up these high passes much less also dragging all my equipment in my pack and equipment.
We arrived at the campsite early and helped set up camp. We had lunch which was a soy meat and rice dish with veggies.
Irene and I went to investigate a water fall and ended taking a trail which led to a view of Jurau lake from a different angle and a clearer view of the glacier. We also hiked over to a nearby waterfall to check it out.
When we returned we heard stories of local history. Cars were introduced here in 1970. That seems crazy to me. Prior to that people walked on the old trails including the Inca trails. We also heard about the communist Shining Path movement and how it helped communities by rounding up bandits and executing them. That was kind of odd with three Chinese Taiwanese. in our group.
Wednesday, August 1, 2018
July 18 Pampa Cuyac
July 18 Pampa Cuyac
What a day! I woke to snow on the ground, a wet sleeping bag and wet shoes. I had gotten up in the middle of the night and had not properly zipped the rain fly letting moisture into the tent eating my bag. At the same time I left my shoes put in the open. Oh well I am pretty sure that I learned my lesson.
We walked in snow and fog (or rather we were part of the cloud itself I think). We scared a couple of Andean Geese in the way. Ricardo told us because it was cold and the insects didn’t come out, the geese forage through frozen plants to find them. We also saw another viscocho (rabbit squirrel animal).
The going was discouraging because there were no views. Towards the top the cloud thinned and we had views of the Tropecio glacier and the surrounding mountains.
We then made our final push up to the pass. It was cold, windy and the trail was sometimes icy. Tropecio Pass was howling with wind and there were no views. The altitude was 16300 ft. The descent was slippery. I was beginning to question my sanity when an array of beautiful lakes opened up in front of me. They have no names because they are new due to glacial melting. They were all different colors of blue. Some of the lakes were surrounded by jagged red mountains.
We took air of photos but the windy was still pretty intense. We walked down and saw one more lake before descending the valley to our campsite. We are camped in a wide valley below a mountain with a hanging glacier.
It was sunny when we arrive but an intermittent storm blew in later. We saw vicuña (a relative of the llama and alpaca in the far distance )
What a day! I woke to snow on the ground, a wet sleeping bag and wet shoes. I had gotten up in the middle of the night and had not properly zipped the rain fly letting moisture into the tent eating my bag. At the same time I left my shoes put in the open. Oh well I am pretty sure that I learned my lesson.
We walked in snow and fog (or rather we were part of the cloud itself I think). We scared a couple of Andean Geese in the way. Ricardo told us because it was cold and the insects didn’t come out, the geese forage through frozen plants to find them. We also saw another viscocho (rabbit squirrel animal).
The going was discouraging because there were no views. Towards the top the cloud thinned and we had views of the Tropecio glacier and the surrounding mountains.
We then made our final push up to the pass. It was cold, windy and the trail was sometimes icy. Tropecio Pass was howling with wind and there were no views. The altitude was 16300 ft. The descent was slippery. I was beginning to question my sanity when an array of beautiful lakes opened up in front of me. They have no names because they are new due to glacial melting. They were all different colors of blue. Some of the lakes were surrounded by jagged red mountains.
We took air of photos but the windy was still pretty intense. We walked down and saw one more lake before descending the valley to our campsite. We are camped in a wide valley below a mountain with a hanging glacier.
It was sunny when we arrive but an intermittent storm blew in later. We saw vicuña (a relative of the llama and alpaca in the far distance )
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