Beyond the comfort zone: Rock climbing at Los Olivos

I’ve been rock climbing a total of two times. My rock climbing technique can be described as something between a baby deer and a kid learning to cross the road - it’s often clumsy and hesitant, but getting better each time.

I’m lucky that somehow being a native English speaker affords me a valuable bartering commodity, and by living in Huaraz means I’m around mountain guides and climbers a lot. All have been patient with me, especially knowing my lack of experience, they’ve been eager to share their skills and knowledge. So, here we are, giving rock climbing a go!

My morning started by hiring my climbing shoes and meeting up with Carlos, my climbing teacher for the day. It took us about 15 minutes to walk to Los Olivos where we’d be climbing. He took me to my training rock face, the same one Guido had taken me to a few weeks before.
They all assure me that it’s ‘easy’, and I hope to be able to call it that as my confidence and skills improve. To be honest, I’d just like to tie the knots with confidence!

I climbed Nevado Mateo for my 36th birthday

“Is this even real? Are we actually doing this right now?” That’s what Travis and I kept asking each other.

This was my Sunday hike, and an early birthday present to myself. Climbing a glacier is certainly an unforgettable way to celebrate my 36th birthday. Last year I did a night SUP and blew out my candles in a glow worm cave, which is still up there as one of my happiest memories. It’s safe to say that I’ve certainly become more adventurous in my thirties!

Even though I was already awake before I heard the high-pitched noise of my alarm at 3.30am, getting out of bed in the cold is never easy. Being slightly over-excited meant that I only had a few hours sleep, but we still had two hours in the car before our hike which meant I had plenty of time to nap.

Nevado Mateo is in the Huascaran National Park (it costs 30 soles per day to enter the park) At 5,150m above sea level, it’s the highest I’ve climbed so far in Peru. Mateo is considered a moderate terrain glacier, which means you don’t need experience with crampons and ice axes to ascent to the summit. Mostly it’s the luck of the draw with the weather, however as it’s nearing the end of the rainy season and we definitely had incredible luck that day. Even at sunrise we knew that we would have blue skies for most of the day.