DIY

We wrote this while waiting for a flight to Cuzco this morning. It is written about our last day in Huaraz - yesterday.

Tourist information can be fantastic. Laguna 69 was beautiful and a great recommendation. However when all recommendations seem to point to the typical tourist routes, the curious explorer knows there must be more. So we got a lead from some resident gringos and decided to follow the good old do-it-yourself (DIY) motto. Here is the story of how it went...

Buenos Dias, Rex
Caroline Lodging has truly been our home in Huaraz. The friendly staff was so welcoming we felt like we were a part of the family. This feeling rang true when we found Rex outside our door, anxiously waiting to make sure we didn´t miss our trek. ¨Buenos Dias, Rex¨.

We packed up our things and had another delicious breakfast on the terrace of Caroline Lodging. Then we set off on our day.

Cafe Para Llevar
Of course we couldn´t help but stop by our new favorite coffee spot, the California Cafe. Luckily it was open (and on our way). Gladys welcomed us in and dug out some ¨to go¨cups from storage. We chatted with her a bit and added a couple of slices of banana bread to our order. Then, again, we set off on our day with smiles on our faces and good coffee in our hands.

The Quechua Combi

The typical combi driver will run you down at first sight and try to pull you into his minivan. After passing several of these men, we finally found our combi to Llupa. This was not your typical combi. Essentially we had to sell ourselves to the driver. We loaded into the back of the van and tried to act natural. The combi was full of brightly dressed Quechua women in their top hats exchanging the latest gossip (or so we speculated). The driver loaded the last huge bag of rice on the top of the van and we took off. The women continued to chat and joke around with smiles on their faces. Their easy-going and happy demeanor was infectious, and the entire combi had a peaceful vibe. These women are clearly the glue of their society. It was an amazing experience to see them in their element (even though we couldn´t understand a word they said).

The Hike to Laguna Churup

The beginning was quite mellow. We passed the local school, two women and man digging a trench by hand for a water pipe (serious manual labor!), a chatty campesino gathering wood with his little dog, and a handful of other locals carrying on with their daily work. Additionally, as if the people and culture wasn´t beautiful enough, the views were tremendous. There were snow capped mountains shrouded in clouds above, and Huaraz nestled in the valley far below.

The moment we entered the National Park (at Pitec) the trail went up, up, up. Though the trail was steep we felt good at the high altitude. The journey was so much fun we didn´t have time to get to the lake. We stopped at a beautiful waterfall near the lake and had lunch.

On the walk down we were treated to some incredible weather. There were thunderstorms and rain in the valley, and sun above our heads. Then the snow capped peaks popped out of the clouds and into clear view.

On the rest of the trip back to town we gave a woman a banana and we talked to another women about tasty cuy (guinea pig). A satisfying day.