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Published: November 24th 2008
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The Santa Cruz trek is one of the most popular backpacking circuits in South America. Located in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range, which begins approximately in the middle of Peru and runs south down towards Bolivia and Chile, the majority of this National Park region sits above 4000 metres above sea level.
The most common trek through this area is 4 days/3 nights and provides some of the world´s best examples of dramatic mountain landscape, glaciers, emerald lakes, waterfalls, alpine meadows and local villages.
We have just returned from enjoying this experience, which we initially thought would be ideal training prior to the Inka Trail trek to Machu Picchu. In fact this trek actually reaches a higher altitude than the Inka Trail with the highest pass recorded at 4760 metres above sea level (the highest point on the Inka Trail is recorded at 4200m).
We arrived in Huaraz in the early morning of November 15th. It was our lucky day because there was a group heading out the following morning, and as we are visiting out of what is technically considered ´season´, it can be common to have to wait around for a number of days, if not weeks. Now
View from rooftop
Looking out towards the Cordillera Blanca, Huaraz ideally we would have liked to have had at least a couple of days to acclimatise before heading off on the trek, but due to our time constraints of having to be in Cuzco no later than November 21st for the Inka Trail, we had no choice but to begin the following day. Otherwise we would have had to miss out on the experience all together. We just had to hope for the best. The group that we have organised the trek through includes a guide, food, equipment (tent, sleeping mats) and mules to carry all the gear. This is quite the luxury for us. We are used to carrying everything ourselves.
Day one began at 6am when we departed the hostel with the group. It was a couple of hours driving before we reached the drop off point - Vaqueria (a small, local village). Our elevation at this point is 3700m. On the drive to this point though we have already had amazing views of Huascaran (Peru´s highest mountain at 6768m) and the neighbouring mountains of Chopicalqui, Huandoy and Pisco as well as two beautiful lakes - Llanganuco and Orconcocha (respectively meaning ´girl´ and ´boy´ in Quechua language).
The hiking on this first day was relatively easy, approximately 4 hours in total plus stops along the way. We probably covered about 9-10Kms in total and the elevation was minimal, about 300 metres. The trail that we followed passed little villages and all the local people were dressed in the brightest of colours and were very friendly towards us. The children were all very curious but it was sad that they all begged for money. We did have some
lollies to pass out. Through a couple of the meadows that we crossed we saw some herds of sheep and cattle. The children with these herds, 4 or 5 each time, were the shepherds which was surprising and we wondered whether they had a home or parents to go to (they were a long way from any of the villages and no older than 10 years). We both felt some small affects of the altitude on the first day but nothing too serious. Lotty got a bit dizzy and nauseous just before lunch, but nothing that a rest,some food and a nap in the sun couldn't fix! Both of us had headaches by the end. We arrived at camp on
the first night, Paria at 3870m, a little after 4pm. As the mules hike at a faster pace than us, everything has already been set up for us and we didn't have to wait long for a snack (popcorn) and coca de mate (a tea which is used to help relieve altitude symptoms).
Day two began at 6:15am with ´room service´ - tea and a bowl of hot water for washing brought to the tent. Following a breakfast of omlettes, we packed up camp and began hiking no later than 7:30-8am. This second day is the most challenging as we tackle the highest pass on the trek - Punta Union at 4760m. The climb was steady and manageable (with frequent stops).We had spectacular views of Taulliraju, the dominant mountain immediately to the right of the pass, on the approach. Reaching the pass was both a relief (physically, after climbing 900 metres in vertical elevation) and breathtaking.. The 360 degree panoramic view, with mountains and glaciers and ice fields as far as the eye could see, was magical. It is so nice to be back in the mountains once again! One of the incredible glaciers that was revealed once we had
Llanganuco
´Girl´in Quechua language made it through the pass began on Taulliraju and tumbled all the way to Laguna Taulicocha, the brilliantly blue glacial lake at its base.
We spent quite a bit of time here at the pass for lunch, taking photos, relaxing in the sun and avalanche spotting. The afternoon was all about the descent on the other side of the pass, about 1.5-2 hours down to Taullipampa at 4260m where we camped. We covered a similar distance to the first day, 9-10Kms with a duration of about 7-8 hours including stops. As far as the altitude goes at this point, we were both fine during the morning but developed headaches in the afternoon which increased during the descent and wiped us out before evening hit. So it was an early one for us on day two as we tried to shake the pain, ready for day three.
Similar morning routine on day three aside from breakfast - pancakes! Feeling human again after a decent nights rest, we were feeling confident about the remainder of the trek as we have now passed the highest point. Today is probably the longest day of hiking and there is an additional side trek. Altitude symptoms
Llanganuco & Orconcocha Lakes
´Girl´ & ´Boy´ in Quechua language begin to resurface which indicate that we should give the side trek a miss, but it couldn´t be resisted and was definitely worth it.. We had a great view of Alpamayo, which is apparently the most beautiful/perfect mountain in the world. We´re not sure if we agree with this bold statement. We were both more impressed with Artesonraju across the other side of the valley, not to mention our Canadian Rockies favourites - Rundle, Cascade, Castle etc. The side trek led to a stunning glacial lake at the base on Ririjirca. The glacier was in the most pristine, white condition and came right to the lakes edge. There were bergs floating in the lake
that had broken away from the glacier. After an initial descent, the afternoon consisted of a steady hike across the meadows in the valley to our camping site at 3760 metres above sea level. At this point the numerous waterfalls cascading down from the glaciers above begin to make an appearance. We are all exhausted at the end of this long third day and enjoy some cards before dinner and bed.
The third and final night of camping was by far the best and most
Huascaran
Tallest peak in Peru, 6768m restful. Whether this is because it was a little warmer during the night or because we were all too exhausted to notice, we´re not sure?! It was a more relaxed morning on this final day - 7:15am ´room service´to wake up. The hike out was very easy and quick. We were following Rio (River) Santa Cruz the whole way and finished the hike at a town called Cashapampa, where our transport met us for the return to Huaraz. We arrived back in Huaraz shortly after midday for a much needed shower and some rest.
We had a great group for the hike and met some great people - Andy, Jeroen, Ele, Ferran, Anne, Janine and Burcu. We are hoping to catch up with some of these people again in Cuzco. Our guides, Edit and Lucia, did a fantastic job and looked after us well.
We think that we are ready for the Inka Trail now...
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