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Glacial Lakes on the Huayhuash Circuit, Peru |
Our friend Owen Floody is in
the midst of a series of three treks in Peru, with two down--Machu Picchu in May 2015 (see his post for 1/2/17),
Huayhuash in July 2015--and one coming up in mid-2017, Cordillera Blanca. Owen recently retired from a career of
teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always
been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken numerous trips that
allow him to pursue his passion. He is a frequent contributor to The Intrepid
Tourist. Here is the report of his Huayhuash trek and a few of his excellent
photographs.
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One of our camps. |
The Huayhuash Range (Cordillera Huayhuash, pronounced “why
wash”) is a compact cluster of mountains in the Peruvian Andes, approximately
225 miles from Lima. It only extends
over about 20 miles but contains more than 20 peaks, six of which exceed 6000
meters (19,685 ft) in height. One of
these is Siula Grande, the scene of the adventure described by Joe Simpson in
the book and movie “Touching the Void.”
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Our pack animals awaiting their day’s assignments. |
My trek encircled much of the range, covering roughly 85
miles in 12 days.
As the area is very
remote and sparsely populated (e.g., we never did pass through a village), we
camped throughout, though the excellent support provided by our tour operator,
Peruvian Andes Adventures (PAA), freed us of many of the normal rigors of
camping: We were able to hike with just day packs, avoid the hassle of setting
up or breaking down camps, and enjoy great meals all due to the efforts of the
PAA staff and animals.
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On the Huayhuash Track |
Though the distance we covered may suggest a rigorous trek,
the real challenge was in the altitude.
Most of our time was spent above 13,000 feet and most days saw us
crossing at least one pass exceeding 15,000 feet, the highest of these at 16,400
feet.
One can prepare for some aspects
of such a trek with an appropriately challenging exercise program, ideally
including a healthy dose of actual hiking wherever you can find significant
ascents and descents.
But how can most
of us prepare for altitudes such as encountered here?
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Day hike from Huaraz |
What I did was to arrive in Huaraz (the
trek’s starting point and PAA’s base) four days early and then take full
advantage of the many half-day and day hikes offered by PAA.
These covered beautiful ground and were graded in difficulty, making it
possible to put together a package of pre-trek acclimatization hikes that were manageable
and enjoyable, and that very much helped me to prepare for what was to come.
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Soaring snow-covered peaks of the Andes and wetlands |
The scenery encountered on this trek was
spectacular, the most impressive of any of the seven major treks that I’ve
done. Many of the types of scenes that
we enjoyed are the ones that you would predict, i.e., soaring snow-covered
peaks, high mountain passes, pristine
valleys and meadows, wetlands. But the Huayhuash is especially well known
for its beautiful glacial lakes. Some of
these treated us to the sights and sounds of repeated avalanches. And many, if not all,
presented an array of contrasting and beautiful colors.
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Avalanche |
Altogether, then, this trek around the Huayhuash circuit
provided an outstanding visual feast.
But this did come at the cost of considerable effort.
Why go to the trouble of trekking, especially
when so many outstanding scenes can be seen from roads?
One answer is that the Huayhuash and like
destinations are so remote as to be accessible in few ways other than by foot.
Terrific! Congratulations on all your treks, Owen!
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