Climbing Nevado Chachani in the Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve

Chachani Volcano is a snow-capped, dormant volcano in the Salinas and Aguada Blanca National Reserve, located 22 kilometres from the city of Arequipa. It’s not considered a highly technical climb, but its elevation of 6,057m a.s.l. (19,872 ft) made the hike challenging.

I had originally booked to climb Misti Volcano, but on the morning of my tour (I was literally just finishing breakfast), I was told that the rest of my group had fallen victim to that all too familiar combination of too many Pisco Sours and ceviche. To cut a long story short, they postponed their tour by a day, but unfortunately for me, I had already bought a bus ticket to Cusco. He offered me a tour to Chachani or a refund. Without hesitation, I said yes to Chachani.

What to see in Nazca beyond the famous lines

After a couple of hours in Nazca, I went on a tour of the Chauchilla Cemetery. The famous cemetery was used as a set location in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The cemetery is in the Nazca plains and about an hour and a half’s drive out of the city.

The site itself is over 1,500 years old, and like many of these sites in Peru, it was discovered and raided by bandits. They would ransack the graves, take the beautifully intricate fabric the mummies wore and discarded the rest.

The ancient Nazca people wore mostly cotton due to its hot, humid climate. My guide, Julio, told me that if there was an individual tomb, it meant they were the only person who died that day. If multiple mummies were found in one tomb, it was highly likely that they were related. However if there are partitions between the mummies, it meant they died on the same day but no related, more likely warriors fighting over water. Water was limited in the plains and was often the cause of fatal battles.

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.

Exploring Laguna Llaca and trekking the Vallunaraju moraine

I’ve made it no secret that Laguna Llaca is one of my favourite places in Peru, there’s something about it that just makes me feel like home. For this adventure, we got to stay overnight at the Casa de Guías refuge hut which made it easier to start the early morning trek up the Vallunaraju moraine. We didn’t make up to the glacier, but at least 4,500 m above sea level with rocky terrain, it proved a challenging one for my knees.

We arrived at the refuge hut on mid-Saturday afternoon, and after dropping off our packs inside, we headed to the lake. It was good to explore the other side of the lake (which I didn’t get to do on my last visit), and we spent a couple of hours walking along the rocky mounds and islands in the middle of the glass-like, turquoise water. The cold wind and fading light (plus we were getting hungry too!) eventually brought us back to the hut.

Misa de Cruces at Laguna Willcacocha

It was Martes Guerra and the last few days of Carnaval 2019 in Huaraz. Denis, Mabel and I headed on a Tuesday trek to the village of Willcacocha to join in the festivities. One of the mountain guides we knew, Señor Hugo had a house there and he had invited us to join him and his family.

Willcacocha is a popular acclimatizing trek, and I had been there as one of my earlier adventures in 2018. It’s easy to get to, just less than 20 minutes outside of Huaraz by colectivo.

Misa de Cruces (Mass of the Crosses) is a procession of large, handmade and beautifully decorated crosses. It’s lead by local musicians usually playing the queña (a traditional flute made of wood) and drums. It’s a result of the Spanish Catholic influence, as well as native traditional music. I noticed that the musicians were older, and Mabel said that many of the younger generation no longer wanted to learn some of the traditions.