Arequipa (Peru)

Hi !

I’m minutes away to leave Arequipa for Cusco and I must say it was quite a nice pleasant stop. From nice visits to specular food, Arequipa has been the tourist heaven I was looking for.

As you can see the city itself is surrounded by beautiful volcanos. It is not the same as Huaraz, but since it is less a mess than Huaraz, I feel a lot more relaxed.

I had to say, the must see is the Monasterio de Santa Catalina (with an official guide). There are a couple of beautiful churches, and the only disappointment was been blocked from entering the cathedral in shorts…

Cusco should be another awesome stop (for two weeks before doing the Inca trek), with the possibility to live there, trying to cook some of these Peruvian meal I’ve been enjoying the past weeks, learning some Spanish and possibly doing some rafting.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

The flight of the condor (Peru)

Hi !

Certainly a cliché, but can you really visit Peru and miss the flight of the condor. I guess not. So I went on what I can tell you I hate the most: a guided tour to Canyon del Colca, with the expected stop at Cruz del Condor, a lookout located where the Canyon gets as deep as 3400m, a place where condors love to glide.

Sure we were several hundreds, all attempting to capture a photo of the magnificent bird, and I would like to think I wasn’t the worst. I could have done better if I would have drop a rotten body for them to eat and get close to me, but I was way to found of my traveling buddy to do that to her.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Mirador de los Andes (Peru)

Hi !

There are a few roads on earth that you’ll always hear people saying that you have to drive them (or been driven on them) once in your life: the West Coast Highway in New Zealand, the Great Ocean Road in Australia, … I would add the one between Arequipa and Chivay.

First, because how many times in your life will you drive over the Mont Blanc, which is what happens when you reach the Mirador de los Andes (4910masl). Second because you’ll pass next to vicuñas while enjoying beautiful volcanos, some probably active. The landscape is incredible, making it obvious that it is hostile to many form of life (trees and humans most definitively).

The above picture was shot at the Mirador de los Andes, aiming at the Cordillera Chilena. The air here is as pure as it gets. Roads seems to leads to the far away mountains, but will drop to the valley below at some 3600masl. The snow is usually appearing above 5000masl, if you want an idea of the size of these giant in front of us.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Ceviche in Lima (Peru)

Hi !

It’s not really possible to leave Lima (which is what I’m about to do) without a reference to the most exquisite of all dishes: the ceviche (classico, with sea bass been my favorite).

First, about the recipe: marinate the freshest pieces (cubes of 1cm3) of sea bass fillet (or Atlantic cod, tuna, salmon, …) in lime and coriander, add some choclo and some cold (but cooked) sweet potatoes. You can of course spice it a little bit, but definitely using Peruvian peppers, which burn reasonably the mouth and not the stomach.

If the fish is insanely fresh, marinate only for a few minutes. The center should remain raw, while a nice white thin layer of cooked fish should form in contact of the lime. If the fish is less fresh, then marinate it longer.

When traveling the Peru, you should really only trust it on the coast, in restaurant. On the beach it is risky, the quality of the fish is not good. La Mar in Lima (or Astrid y Gaston) is your safest bet, they just get the freshest fish.

There’s a vegetal version which is more popular on the mountain, but nothing beats the fish one.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Grey winter in Lima (Peru)

Hi !

Nothing really to add to the already well documented grey winter of Lima. It certainly isn’t as bad as the grey fall and winters of Paris.

More interesting are the burrows of Miraflores and Barranco, settled above the south cliffs of Lima, and the malecón which offers a nice walk with great parks and plenty of life.

I should make the same photo this summer, with a nice blue sky !

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Road from Huaraz to Conococha (Peru)

Hi !

Not all the places live up to one’s expectation, but Huaraz definitely did. So when it was time to leave it for Lima (awfully grey at this time of the year), the best thing to do was to depart as early as possible to enjoy some great views on the Cordillera Blanca with the morning sun.

This photo was taken a few kilometers from Conococha, at something like 4100masl. The snow usually start around 5000masl, so you can judge that the peaks here are definitely not easy one to conquer, and yet they are not the biggest one. The amazing part is that it is sort of a plateau (or we could call it a big mountain flat on top) with other mountains sitting on top it.

I’ll keep a great souvenir of the Cordillera Blanca (and Negra, on the other side of the road), even though we could not reach all the places we wanted to, since a better fitness level and some mountaineering skills are a requirement. Just the view by itself made it worth it. In about 100km from there, the lush green of the valley will become sand and dust, and the beautiful blue sky will become a grey fog.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Laguna 69: Soroche 1 – Greg 0 (Peru)

Hi !

El soroche (high altitude or mountain sickness) is something probably more of a legend for the Peruvians, but for a guy born and raised at 600masl (meter above sea level) and who has climbed the Vosges mountains (or hills would be more accurate) for the most part of his life, it will be a very bad experience. Fortunately, if I can say so, it wasn’t while doing the Everest that I had to face it.

We wanted to hike to Laguna 69, so following some recommendations, we decided to do it in two steps: day 1 we hike to Refugio Peru/Pisco, starting from 3900masl, then reaching 4700masl after some 5km, and day 2, we climb over a 5000masl pass to hike downhill to the laguna and then back to the trail head.

We did the climb to the Refugio in about 4h20 (accounting for more than 2h of breaks and catching my breath). When we passed the 4400masl, a strange feeling similar to light panic attacks and light fever starting to hit us. But it was easier to continue than going back, since there would be no car waiting for us and we could just freeze overnight. So we continued, and it was worst: the panic attack and fever feelings got worst, then came the headache and dizziness. We felt like shit !

The Refugio was however a pleasant surprise. First there’s the insane view, with the Pisco, the Huantoy and Huscaran peaks visible. operated by benevolences, with premium quality accommodation, I would say it wasn’t the worst place to rest and wait for the body to fight back the soroche. I would have hated to do that in a tent. We met there a few people, all having next to no issues with been that high. I won’t even talk about the Peruvian porters, who carried more than 50km and made the climb in less than two hours, no breaks unless they have to wait for their customers.

Anyway, it sort of killed the mood, and feeling that bad (and somewhat reminded of our lack of fitness), we decided not to attempt the Laguna 69 the next day, since passing a 5000masl pass was involved. We also decided to not do the Santa Cruz trek, as clearly we would not properly acclimate, since we are staying below 2500masl. This hike to the Refugio would probably have been a success if we would have slept a night at 3900masl, to acclimate properly.

So here it is, another failed attempt. I wouldn’t say it should mean no more high mountain, but doing better preparation definitively.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned.

Failed attempt at Laguna Churup (Peru)

Hi !

Unlike John “Anibal” Smith of the A-Team, my plans don’t always come together.

We were all pumped about doing the Laguna Churup trail, even though there was some rock climbing involved, something we weren’t really comfortable with. The weather was looking good when we left, just slightly overcast, which would mean we would not cook under the sun all the way up there. We were so confident we added an extra 8km (to go from the hostel to the park entry and back).

When we started the rock climbing part, the weather actually turned bad, cold and wet, something I wasn’t really prepared to face, and ended having to turn back before reaching the lake at some 4450m (we were maybe 10 minutes from it), when the snow became severe. The worst part was to climb done on wet slippery stones, trying to reach for snow covered ropes… even though we were able to do it without any injuries.

Two lessons learnt on that day: avoid what you are not comfortable with and bring more layers to adjust for the weather.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Pitec (Peru)

Hi !

After the busy streets of Huaraz and an excursion to Laguna Wilcacocha, it was about time to hit the road to a more remote location. Pitec was the perfect choice.

It took 20km of an epic unsealed road, passing through rural areas, to reach the plateau at some 3700m (we started at 3000m). Here’s the view from our accommodation, the last hostel before the National Park entrance (some 4km away).

A very cold night was expected, the hostel was minimal as about every other houses up there, but it was guaranteed to have the same view the next morning while I enjoy a breakfast..

The plan for the next day was to do the Laguna Churup trail (a short yet challenging trail, which involves some scary climbing using pre-installed ropes).

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

Peruvian woman looking at the Cordillera Blanca (Peru)

Hi !

Today was the first acclimation hike to reach Laguna Wilcacocha at 3700 meters. It is a 600m ascend over 5km (or 7.5km if like us you miss the shortcuts). The overall idea is to test yourself at hiking above 3000 meters. And I won’t lie, it was actually different from my traditional hiking experience: very quickly I felt out of breath, and couldn’t just walk it without a break. No headache and no extreme tireness though, so I think I avoided the high altitude sickness, but a few more challenging hikes should confirm that before we start trekking (Santa Cruz Trek).

All of that wouldn’t be fun if there wasn’t a reward up there: a view of Huaraz with the white peaks of the Cordillera Blanca in background. Also a pleasant surprise, as this place was sort of the picnic area for the locals to enjoy their sunday afternoon. There was in particular this Peruvian woman, contemplating the view like the rest of us.

I guess a more postal card picture would have been the reflection of the white peaks on the lake itself, but a very welcomed chilling wind made sure the lake was all but mirror still waters.

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !

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