On 19th April I set off from Heathrow for a 22 hour travel, 3 flight journey to Cusco, Peru. Not too keen on flying so this was a bit of a challenge in itself, but arrival in Cusco was really the start of my amazing Peru adventure! Here I will try give you a bit of an insight into what we got up to and what was involved in the Trek!
Arriving in Cusco
It was strange to arrive in Cusco with people you had only met less than a day ago, but had already become good friends - i think this is one of the best things about these kind of trips, you get to meet so many people from different walks of life, raising money for different charities for all different reasons, and although I know i'd have never met these people in normal day to day life, we all come together on the trip with something in common and you end leaving with an amazing group of new friends!
Getting of the plane in Cusco was strange - Cusco is already at an altitude 3 x the height of Snowdon, and if any of you have ever been to altitude before, you'd know the reason for acclimatisation! Suddenly feeling light headed and nauseous wasn't the nicest start to the trip but this soon passed once on the coach on the way to our Hotel, seeing my first glimpse of Peru and the new Continent I was now in!
After lots of travelling and time difference, we were still only at lunchtime (Peruvian time) so spent the next few hours having a wander around Cusco, getting continuously called to and jumped out at by market traders and shop keepers selling all the weird and wonderful things you can imagine in a Peruvian tourist town! Taking the walking slow (just standing still it felt like i'd just done a few minutes running on the treadmill!) we wandered to pick up some epic nacho's and had some getting to know each other time before our acclimatisation trek the day to come.
Acclimatisation Day
Our 2nd day in Peru we jumped on the coach at around 7.30am to head up above Cusco to begin acclimbatising in the hills. Our local tour guides (who spent the week with us) Jameile & Alberto took us up to Saqsaywaman (pronounced Sexy Woman), a beautiful Inca area used as a Fort when Peru was invaded by the Spaniards. In the rocks you could see images of Llama - the stones were brought up by hand and, similar to the Egyptian pyramids, archaeologists are still are not sure how they managed this with some of the stones weighing up to 50 tonnes!
Some flat acclimbatising walks around here were strange - having to walk slowly on the flat was a little worrying as you realise how much your body is being affected by the lack of oxygen! After a few hours we moved up to Tambomachay, an Inca spa with natural springs, which for someone who has never experienced these kind of historical wonders before, were just beautiful (but then to be told this was nothing compared to what I was going to see was a little bit daunting! If I was getting excited now, what was I going to be like around these people i'd never met before?! :D ) Then a four hour walk down to Cusco helped our bodies get use to the "Climb High, Sleep Low" scenario that is common for any trekking at altitude. After a good few hours getting to know more of the group, we grabbed a bite to eat and then headed back into Cusco town for the afternoon to relax before our next day beginning of the main Lares region Trek.
Off to the Lares Region & Hot Springs
Early morning breakfast (around 6am) for an early set off on the bus - we had a 3 hour bus journey through the Andes seeing the beautiful mountains and valleys. We journeyed through the Sacred Valley and via high mountain trails, through remote villages and small towns. A toilet stop allowed us to have a few minutes to see a real Peruvian market with vegetables and fruit I have never seen before, and Avacado's and Papaya the size of melons!
After another hour or two we arrived at the beginning of the Lares Trek where we were greeted by hot natural springs and although it was very cold and raining, around half the group jumped in for a dip - they were scorching! We had an hour or so to wait until lunch here so a nice relaxing session in the springs was great to fit in before starting on the long trek in the rain!
Not suprisingly (for those who know me) I somehow managed to lose my waterproof jacket here for a short while - thankfully we had our Peruvian tour guides and switched on Skyline crew to help us search it out :)
Starting the Lares Trek
The beginning of the Lares trail followed a beautiful river through a valley, but with the low cloud and cool air, we were well wrapped up in waterproofs catching just a few glimpses of the hills and mountains to come through breaks in the cloud. We started to realise how this "remote" Lares region was actually bustling with indigenous mountain people who would come and watch and greet us, and set up small stalls on the path ways selling their goods, ponchos, hats and scarfs, jewellery and drinks in their beautiful traditional Peruvian bright clothing.
A real highlight of our day was when a few of us girls managed to catch a few minutes ride on our ambulance donkey, a few minutes to catch our breath in the altitude! We were also passed by a group of local potato farmers and managed to get a photo with them in return for a handful of coca leaves each (bought at the Peruvian market on the way!)
We arrived at our first campsite around 5pm which was at a local school in the valley. Not like a school we would recognise, more a few buildings and a grass area with stone walls and a hole dug in the ground as a toilet. One of the strangest things that continued throughout the trip was the amount of random dogs that appeared around camp and on the trek - i was expecting this to bother me but these dogs were so lethargic that I was fine, even when they poked their heads into the tents and hung around begging at dinner!
Continuing with the Trek...
The next day began at around 7am with a steep trek for about 3 hours around and up the valley. Gaining altitude, we lose 1 degree per 100m rise so being well wrapped up again was a necessity! The beautiful views of lakes and mountains were breathtaking and every direction was never a disappointment. We hit a few tough steep climbs on this part of the trek and with the lack of oxygen being my main problem, i had to take it slow to reach the peak of the day. Rewarded with some stunning views of mountain lakes, seeing one of our donkeys try to do a run for it and some yummy chocolate snacks (and a not so yummy oaty/sugarpuff/nut/cereal bar which the donkey appreciated more than me), we continued to trek for another two hours to our lunch spot, where the sun greeted us for a few minutes of sunbathing, a yummy (but rather filling) meal and a cup of coca tea got us prepared for our next few hours to camp! Another 3-4 hours trekking after lunch included quite a bit of drizzle, (and my attempt at getting waterproof trousers on required another two people's help to make it a success) which was a little disheartening - with low cloud and drizzle you do start to worry that the scenery is going to be covered and the beauty of the Andes isn't going to be seen! But with our super fast group, we managed an an additional 200m above where we should have been camping, and therefore reached our camp at 4,100m, so there was definitely a feeling of acheivement and positivity in the group even before hitting the high point!
I must now mention the beautiful food we were served throughout the trek... The cooks managed to dish up some wonderful meals up the mountain and really stuffed us with stews, chicken, lamb, rice dishes, tasty soups and even jelly for desert. I'd definitely recommend the peruvian mountain chefs if theres ever a chance of you getting to try the food, you'd be amazed! :)
Summit Climb
The next day was our summit climb. From 4,100m we had another 500m to climb in altitude to Mount Haton Paso. Slowly setting off from camp, we meandered our way up the high and steep mountain trail and although having lots of small breaks to catch my breath every few minutes, I couldn't stop for long as it was now getting really cold but these hours up to the high point were really tough for all of us, especially when you know your body can do more but the lack of oxygen just isn't letting you!
The team were great with everyone encouraging and helping each other along and I think this really helped for all of us to manage to make it to the summit of our climb at 4,600m! Pretty windy and cold up here but time to grab a few photos and take in the scenery and the beautiful lake that appeared below us and realise what we had all just managed for our charities and ourselves!
Feeling rather chuffed with the acheivement of 4,600m we began our trek down the other side of Mount Haton Paso where the knees started to work a little harder than previously (and anyone who knows me and my knees, they don't really get on). But with the pass behind us keeping us sheltered from the wind, it was much warmer and comfortable to take it slow and really take in the beautiful scenery of the moutains, sheer slopes, lakes and landscapes all around us.
Will be continued...
