Santa Cruz Trek

As our prior video shows, Señor Justino could not wait to get out of the clinica!  Once we escaped the whitewalls,  we immediately went to work organizing our equipment, renting a pack for Justin, eating good food, and learning from other travelers about details for our first trek at the gringo hotspot Cafe Andino`s.  Justin was all for setting out the next day on what is considered one of the most beautiful treks in South America – the Santa Cruz trek.  Below is a map of out trek – the blue dashed lines show our route.

Vicky, the wife of Jo at the hostal “Jo`s Place“, let us store our bikes in their backyard for free.  Bikes locked and covered – checked.  Packs packed with gear for next four days in epic mountains – check.  Off we went into town to catch a ride north to the start of the trail.  A collectivo, a van stuffed to the gills with people needing to travel up and down the main highway, spotted us running towards  the main drag, and pulled over.  When the gentleman who handles the sliding door and payments opened the door, I was shocked to see it packed with 18 people already.  He yelled for us to hurry in and Justin jumped right in, stuffing our packs at the folks feet in the front seat.  I ended up in the front right next to the driver with Justin sitting right behind me facing the back.  An hour later, we arrived in Caraz and found ourselves in a small toyota-hatchback climbing up from 8,000 feet to 10,000 to start the trail in the small town of Cashapampa. 

There were two gentleman sitting in a small wooden shed that stood as the official entrance into Huascaran National Park. 

“Yeah… we pay about five soles to get a little park pass.” Justin pointed out as the taxi stopped and we brushed off the dust covering us from our hour long ride up a dusty dirt road.

“65 soles cada uno por favor” the guard said. 

“65 soles per person?!”  Justin choked.  It seems in recent years, Peru has really started upping the price for popular tourist attractions – I don´t even want to mention what we have learned about Machu Picchu yet.

Fortunately,  we had recently stopped by an ATM and had extra cash – although I was questioning if we had enough soles to make it back to Huaraz.  We purchased our tickets, took a picture next to the entrance, smiled, and took off for a few days in the backcountry drooling over beautiful mountains. 

Our first night was absolutely beautiful.  We went off the trail quite a ways and found a seccluded spot nestled in the bottom of the U-shaped valley, which we both assume was carved out by glaciers.  The milky way was so bright, it looked like a strip of fog floating across the sky.  It is so odd to me to look up at an unfamiliar sky.  One – there are so many stars due to less light pollution that  it is hard to make out any constellation.  Two – since we are in the Southern Hemisphere, it is impossible for me to see my familiar formations in the sky.  But I still gazed on in awe.

Morning was surprisingly warm, for being at 12,000 ft, and we ate oatmeal, packed up camp, and set off within a half hour.  The clouds in the distance made us nervous they were going to hinder us from seeing an magnificent peaks, but they kindly receded the closer we came.  And then- wa-bam!- our first peak above 20,000 feet soared above the deep canyon walls.  We both sat and stared while munching on peanuts.  Not even the massive horseflies determined to bite us could take away from taking in this peaks power.

We trekked on and came across multiple heards of pack mules crankily jogging along the trail with a herder who kept whistling and mumbling to them.  “That is where all the poop is from on the trail” I noted.  Well, that and the cows, sheep, and horses that graze on what ever nutrients they can find.

It turns out, it has become quite popular to go with organized treks which carry your personal items, carry food and equipment for you, set up your tents and cook along the trail.  We saw many large groups of folk who chose to hike the trail in this fashion.  However, it cost more than$200 US dollars!  While the idea of trekking this way was foreign to us, it was cool to see that these guides were making it possible for people who are not trained in backpacking to be able to explore this magnificent mountain range.

We continued our hike across the Cordillera Blanca in the Andes and reached a side trail headed to the Alpamayo basecamp.  We both looked at each other and smiled.  Of course we want to camp under what has been deemed the most beautiful mountain in the world!  Up up up again we went to an elevation of about 14,500 feet.  We set up camp at an elevation equivalent to Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the continental US and giggled at the sheer beauty of Alpamayo (5947m / 19,500ft)  and her friends staring down at us.  It was only about 3:30 and we knew if we settled down early, we would eat all the food we had, so we decided to hike to a lake about 400 feet higher.  The best decision we ever made!  The blue lake was rippling with big chunks of ice floating throughout.  Across the lake was the terminus of a massive active glacier.  Check out this video we caught of the glacier cracking! A must see!

After many pictures and jaw-dropping thunderous roars from the cracking ice, we hiked back down to camp, cooked some pasta with chicken sauce, and fell to sleep at the reasonable hour of 7pm.  Morning time was quite different than our first as it was quite frosty outside.  Inside our snuggly tent our thermometer read 34 degrees Farenheit.  Outside was a different story.  Justin made us some delicious apple-vanilla tea with sugar while I shot a 360 view with our camera.  I walked around taking pictures and slipped on a frozen rock into the creek.  I was so shocked it took me a little while to explain  just why  my pants were all wet.  I changed out of my pants into my wool long underwear and within minutes my pants were frozen! So, too, were my shoelaces which took a while to attempt to tie. I was having flashbacks to the Pacific Crest Trail and trekking through the Sierra with frozen shoes.

I wish we could upload pictures from Justin´s fancy camera but unfortunately the files are too big and we are too scared of picking up a virus on our big memory card in his camera.  You´ll just have to wait for our next film! 🙂

Our third day of trekking led back down to the valley floor and then back up to the famous Punta Union Pass at 4750 meters or 15,600 feet – the highest I have ever been!  We have both been acclimating quite well and the climb was not half bad!  It was not until I watched our many videos do I see how we huff and puff.  We skipped down the otherside, excited to be finished (for the most part) with climbing and camped in a gorgeous valley over looking the mountain pass we conquered in the morning. 

Trying to get back to  Huaraz was the most difficult part of the trail.  We climbed up to Vaqueria, a town of 10 families, along a main dirt road that climbs over the Andes back to the main highway to Huaraz.  After four hours of waiting and negotiating with drivers, we finally caught a ride up and over an INSANE road down to the highway.  At the top of the pass we could see Huascaran, the tallest mounatin in Peru, as well as many other spectacular peaks.  I got goosebumps and a lump in my throat as I looked at the road descending down to Yungay. 

“Treinta-ocho vueltas”  our driver said – 38 sharp turns along the side of a mountain!  I squeezed Justin`s hand at each turn as I held my breathe from the wind blowing dust into the front seat.   4 hours later we arrived in Yungay, and 1 hour later in a collectivo, we found ourselves in Huaraz.  Our stomachs were our number one priority as all we had eaten was  a candy bar and stale bread for the day it was inching closer to 4:30pm. 

There is something about backpacking.  I absolutely love the remoteness, the simplicity of carrying what you need, and being able to explore and sleep wherever you wish.  Our trek was rejuventing to say the least.  We both feel strong and excited for our next leg of our journey to Chiquian where there will be a big celebration for a Saint on the 30th of Agosto. 

It hurts me to not be able to share with you all of our videos and pictures but unfortunately the internet is too slow so I will continue to do my best!

**Melissa

“The feet have been washed, the belly has received some cheap food, and our bodies are thankful they are no longer wearing ill-fitting backpacks.  The past few days have been spent trekking through the Santa Cruz Valley, crossing over the Cordillera Blanca via Punta Union Pass.  The Cordillera Blanca is the highest mountain range outside of the Himalaya, and has more than 50 peaks over 5500 m.  The glacier covered peaks are breathtaking, and remind us how small we are.  It is rare that we can get so close to these mountains, observing the detail and definition of each rock outcropping and the bright snow that covers them.  Now feeling better and having enjoyed our time here we are going to begin working our way South, towards the Cordillera Huayhuash, home to Peru’s second highest peak. 

Having been bit by the travellers bug on my first travels to Latin America, it is fun to observe how some things have changed since my last visit here in 2005 and some things just may never change.  The overwhelming stench of exhaust fumes is still present in the cities, as smog regulations are non-existent, and if the dark smoke emited from the autos isn’t around, then smoke from fireplaces will replace the smell.  Traveling has a way of humbling the mind, and expanding the heart.  We are reminded that each traveller or local that we connect with has a story, a struggle, and a dream.  Seeing big mountains or immersing oneself in culture, has a way of fullfilling a connection to our place and other people.  As my internet time comes to a close, and I try and hunt down a bag of chocolate M & M candies that the store sold out of while we were gone, I thank everyone for the encouragement and support as we travel slowly, and enjoy each pedalstroke.”

**Justino

Enjoy this video, as well, of our buddy Brian from Boulder, Colorado, rocking out some sweet bluegrass on his mandolin!