The last first?

Our trip to Quitaraju wasn't quite as successful as previous ones - As the 5th expedition our bodies were getting tired and I had a passing fever which stopped me getting to the Alpamayo col camp. Two of my friends did, but even they didn't make it to the summit. When we got back from that trip we decided it would be our last trip into the mountains - there is a limit to how long and how far you can push your body and going beyond it wouldn't be sensible. So the two of us that are left have been using up our last few days at the beach and doing a bit of surfing. 5 months is a long time to be away, and I am ready to come home now. I know that I'm not the type to catch the wanderlust and become a perennial traveller. I'm looking forward to having roots and work to focus my energies on.

People keep saying to me that I've packed a lot into my gap year, and looking back, I suppose I have - but none of it felt rushed. And in the main, I wouldn't change the things I've done or the way I've done them. The highlights for me have been learning Spanish and climbing the mountains. Others have used the phrase "trip of a lifetime" - but I don't like this phrase because for me the implication is that I will never do anything as exciting again. It's all about your horizons - and each time you do something new they are expanded a little bit further.

Looking back, it is hard to overestimate how much a trip like this can mature you and give you confidence. Before I came, I was nervous about travelling solo in an unknown culture across a language barrier. But now these things are familiar and not daunting. There is plenty more of South America to see - now that I have some Spanish I am keen to visit Bolivia, Argentina, Chile, Columbia, Mexico... But although I still have many places I want to explore, travelling will be less daunting, and I don't need to prove anything to myself. Travelling now holds less firsts, though of course there are many challenges in other parts of life which I feel ready to take on. I also know myself better and have greater discernment in deciding the things I want to do.

So this will be my last entry from South America. Whether my new life as a PhD student is interesting enough to keep me blogging is an open question.

Earthquake

Yesterday evening an Earthquke of magnitude 8.0 on the Richter Scale hit Peru, with the epicenter near Pisco. 70% of Pisco is in ruins according to BBC news. The current death toll is at 350 and likely to rise. I was in Pisco and Ica myself just a few weeks ago. Lima felt the earthquake very strongly and people were scared but damage and casualties there could have been a lot worse.

Here in Huaraz we felt it for about 30 seconds but it was fairly mild and there was no damage or casualties here. I was sitting playing chess in the very nice Cafe Andino and we felt the building move. At first I asked "Is that the wind?" but quikcly realised it couldn't be. We then started headed for the "Zona segura en caso de sismos" which every well built building should have marked - but by the time we got there it had passed. After a few minutes everyone went back to their coffees. We didn't actually realise until today how serious it was when we heard the news.

So myself and my friends are all fine. Whether we will be affected by ongoing problems remains to be seen. However, any inconvience to us is nothing compared to the devastation of the lives of many thousands south of Lima.

FC

Vallunaraju, 5686m

So we made it up another 5000er, Vallunaraju. There were some spectacular views from the summit - we spent an hour there to enjoy them .


(More) Pics from the last few trips


One of our number is heading home on Friday, but I should have time for two more trips. Certainly next week we are heading out on a long trip to climb one more 6000er - with a 2 day walk in its a long way - but we will get great views across to Alpamayo - "The most beautiful mountain in the world".

After this the question is whether we will have the motivation and mental energy for another trip - each trip is an expedition in itself and quite draining. But when we look back on our time here I am sure we will be happier if we did climb one last mountain in our last week, so we should try to find the energy.

Tocllaraju, 6032m

We made it up Tocllaraju without any major problems. We had a high camp on the glacier at 5100m with spectacular views. We set of 2.30am in the morning, so most of the hard work was done in the dark and we were on the summit by 10am. Of the 5 groups on the mountian that day, it was gratifying to be first on the top - especially as a queue formed for a tricky step and steep bit near the top - as we abseiled down others were waiting to go up. Photos to come.

Off today for another 5000er - a new friend has arrived and needs to acclimitise before we atempt another 6000er.

Into the Cordillera Blanca

I arrived in Huaraz with three climbing friends three weeks ago. Huaraz sits at the edge of the Cordillera Blanca (white mountain range), the highest tropical mountain range in the world - only the Himalayas are bigger. With some Alpine experience, we have signed a disclaimer and are climbing without guides, being careful to progress gradually.

Having all just arrived from the UK, my friends needed some days to acclimatise before attempting to climb and big mountains. We also had to wait for 3 bags to arrive which the airlines had lost, one of which ended up getting sent all round Peru. Unfortunately, two of them got sick just as we preparing to head out our our first expedition; their stomachs not yet accustomed to Peruvian food.

So two of us headed out for our first peak, Ishinca. We enjoyed the novelty of having donkeys carry our heavy packs into our base camp. Despite being an "easy" acclimatisation peak at "only" 5530m, we both found ourselves stopping for breath every 20 steps as we neared the top. Everything is slow and difficult here, even in comparison to the Alps. There can be no rushing of the acclimatisation process.

Still, the views were incredible, and once again reminded me of one of the reasons we climb - if you think the views from the valley are good, they are nothing compared to when you get up high. In the valley you can only ever see the two or three mountains closest to you, but up high you get a vista of the entire range.

By the time we got back from the first trip, our friends were recovered and ready to climb. We headed out for a week to climb Yanapaccha and Pisco . For Yanapaccha, we first headed to a high camp next to the glacier. But our arrerio (donkey driver) had mislead us about far the donkeys could take our gear. So the next day we struggled to ascend 400m to the camp with full camping packs.

As we finally neared our destination, we saw a group coming up behind. Two guys were gaining on us whilst carrying enormous packs. We soon realised they were Peruvian porters. One overtook us, just before we arrived at the campsite and nabbed all the best camping spots. An hour or so later, their clients arrived - a guided group doing a 6 day mountaineering course. In comparison to us they were living in luxury, with mess tents, gas cookers and heaters and a cook producing gourmet dishes. Despite the competition for tent spots, we made friends with the guide and he complemented us on our choice of campsite and route away from the hoards.

Yanapaccha was more technically difficult than Ishinca and the cold wind didn't make it any easier. Having made it to the summit our views were spoilt by seemingly the only hour of cloud of the day. But there were plenty of views on the descent, and we returned to our camp pleased to have completed our first tricky route at altitude.

Pisco was a different proposition - higher at 5752m, but one of the easiest and most popular peaks. It has a refuge at the bottom, where we enjoyed eating a proper meal. We shared the amazing summit views with lots of Italians and other assorted Europeans.

Tomorrow we head out to climb our first 6000er, Tocallraju. After Pisco, we should be acclimatised, but the route will be the hardest yet. The MPS website has a more detailed diary of our activities.

The quest for the perfect photo

Despite the strikes, we got to Machu Picchu. Apparently the train had been cancelled some of the days before, but we were lucky. We were held up for half an hour whilst protestors blocked the line, but were soon through. On the way back, each carriage on the train had two riot police. They obviously expected trouble, but there wasn't any.

The afternoon after we arrived in Aguas Calientes, just below Machu Piccu, we walked up mountain Putucusi. The "walk" involves lots of steep ladders, but when you reach the summit you get a view across to Machu Picchu. It was quite exciting just to come over the summit and discover it there, you could almost imagine you were discovering it for the first time.

The next day we went to Machu Picchu itself. We arrived for dawn, but clouds meant that we missed the classic sunrise. Only 400 people a day are allowed to climb Huayna Picchu, the bigger peak behind Machu Picchu, so we made sure we were near the front of the queue for that. I was number 14 through the gate at 7.11am and decided to race to try and get to the top first. I ended up second to the top, after a German who had been first through the gate at 7am.

Once we were down, the sun came out we joined The Quest for the perfect photo of Machu Picchu, but we were no match for some of the tourists with their huge cameras and zoom lenses. As the day drew on, more and more tour groups were traipsing round the key sights of the site. But we found that Machu Picchu is impressive as a whole, for its setting, not for each individual wall or stone.

Despite the number of tourists, it is such a big site that it is actually quite easy to get away from everyone. You just nip round a corner away from the big attractions and you can have a corner of the lost city of the Incas all to yourself.

Machu Picchu itself is quite tastefully done - no people hassling you or endless gift shops - thankfully that is all confined to Aguas Calientes and Cusco. In Cusco, people ask you to buy things so often that it possible to buy t-shirts that say "No, Gracias".

These last few days travelling with people who have little or no Spanish has made me much more appreciative of what I have. When in Lima, I was always with Peruvians or volunteers who spoke better Spanish than me, and I was constantly wishing mine was better. But on the gringo trail amongst other travellers who spend all their times with other gringos I became aware just how much I have learnt.

Advice from the foriegn office

From the Peru foreign office travel advice:

Since late June 2007, there has been civil unrest, with widespread strikes, in the departments of Ucayali and Puno. A State of Emergency has been declared in the province of Coronel Portillo, Ucayali (including the tourist jungle town of Pucallpa) until mid July 2007. There have also been severe disruptions to road and rail services between Puno and Cusco. You are strongly advised to check with your travel company or airline before travelling to the area.

Well we just travelled through all this. We couldn't take the train from Puno as planned and there were some problems with buses: Delays, never getting the tourist one you paid for, and constantly having to change between local buses. But we made it through and are now in Cusco.

One of the other volunteers still at the school in Lima told me that one of the reasons for the strikes was that the Government had decided to give all the teachers a literacy test which might result in a third or them being laid off. And then the miners, with a different grievance decided to join in too, and then everyone has to. In Peru, a strike doesn’t just mean not going to work – it means putting up road blocks and preventing everyone from travelling – to the extent that on some days stones were hurled at any taxis in operation.

Machu Picchu here we come. It just got voted into the new 7 Wonders of the World. There's been enough hype about this in the last few weeks in Peru, to encourage people to vote. It obviously paid off.