Got back on Thursday evening from
the trek through the Inka Jungle. It was much more of a light-hearted trek than
Ausungate with us being able to sleep in hostels each night instead of a tent
that was much too short. The trip started on Monday with Dana (med school lady
from the NYC) and I taking a long drive to the starting point of the mountain
biking portion. The cycling portion is advertised as mountain biking but it was
more of a road ride with crappy front suspension mountain bikes. The ride
itself was just over two hours of descending down the curving paved roads into
the jungle. Before we started I was interested to see the carnage that may be
in the future with what looked to be some peoples first time on a bike and a
curvy mountain decent.Once we started
it was a great joyride and I tried to hide my fears of the sometimes, shaky
bike upon which I was hurling myself downhill. We crossed portions of the road
that looked like they were about to be washed out by water coming off the
mountains and each time I went through I could feel the bald rear tire wanting
to hydroplane. Dana and I both made it out safe and felt lucky that we didn’t
have to perform first aid on the guy who passed an 18-wheeler and then veered
straight for a ditch on the side of the road.
We headed to the hostel after the
ride and managed to grab a room with two double beds instead of having to sleep
in the big rooms with at least ten other people. Once we were settled we bought
some beer and played magnetic darts on the patio of the hostel and for me it
was the first time in Peru I was able to wear a t-shirt after the sun went
down. Dinner consisted of a restaurant that seemed to host only large groups similar
to ours and every meal after was quite the similar setting, of thirty or so travelers
stretched out along the tables. While eating we got to know the others is the
group and our suspicion of being the some of the oldest was confirmed with most
of the people being around 20 or 21.
We woke up to the sound of rain the
next morning and I was upset that I had neglected to bring my rain pants and
pack cover. To our delight the rain let up just as we were leaving for
breakfast and although initially wet, the sun dried everything up by the
afternoon. Almost the whole day we walked along a river that had orange, banana
and avocado trees along the bank and the feel of the jungle was in full force.
Our guide was helpful in explaining things along the way, although mostly in
Spanish because the majority of the group was from Chile.We finished the walk at some hot springs and
were able to enjoy a cold beer before getting in the water, which would turn
out to be our only bath of the trip.
The next day we zip-lined or did
the “canopy” as the locals called it and it turned out to be a great time.
There were 4 good-sized zip lines with a repelling part at the end from a
suspended platform. We headed to the town of Aquas Caliente after lunch and
from there we were to go to Machu Pichu the next day. Little did we know we
would be seeing the scenery and the tracks once again. We arrived at Aquas
Caliente and were told to be ready at 4 a.m. the next morning for the ascent of
Machu Picchu, which was to take around an hour or climbing up stairs made of
stone.Dana and I were pretty excited to
have personal showers at the hostal but our hot water didn’t seem to work, so
we decided to go without.
The early wake-up didn’t seem to
scare any of the tourists away the next day as at least 100 people were lined
up at the entrance when we arrived. Once we made out way in we began the steep
climb to the top. When we arrived we couldn’t see anything due to the heavy fog
and clouds that covered the mountain so we sat and ate bread and avocado we
bought the previous day. The clouds finally cleared around 9 a.m. and we were
able to see one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Pictures don’t do Machu
Picchu justice and the ruins seemed to go on forever, jutting in between the
mountain tops in which they were built. After exploring for a few hours we
decided to head down to make sure our train tickets were at the hostel and
because we wanted to take the early train back to town before taking a bus the
rest of the way.
When we arrived at the hostel we
found our guide and we asked him for our tickets. He looked disappointed and
told us we would have to stay another night at the hostel because our tour
company had not booked the tickets in time. We tried everything we could to
make it on a train and nothing seemed to work. Dana had her Spanish skills
tested while trying to negotiate with the ticket office but our efforts seemed
doomed to another night in the town and missing our campaign the next day. One
more time we asked if they was any other way to get back to Cusco and we were
told there was a bus arriving at the hydroelectric plant from which we walked
the day before. It was already 3:30 p.m. and the bus was supposed to be leaving
the plant at 5. Our guide said an hour and a half of hauling ass would get us
their just in time, so without second thought we left Aquas Caliente.
Not knowing exactly how far we had
to go, we began jogging to meet the bus. Along the way we passed herds of
people giving us encouragement and probably thinking we were a little crazy. We
followed the tracks and passed familiar landmarks but we had no idea how far we
really had left. We ran for over an hour before someone told us we had only 2
kilometers until the plant and it seemed we would be able to make it in just
enough time to catch a ride. At 4:48 we arrived at the plant and immediately
saw a taxi with a Colombian couple getting a ride to the next town before
heading to Cusco. We paid 15 soles each for the ride and headed to Santa
Teresa, which was an hour away.
We arrived in Santa Teresa with
high hopes of finding a cheap ride to Cusco but it seemed that the only thing
we may find was a bus that left at 10 p.m. and was over a 7-hour drive! We ate
some street food (which may have been a bad idea) and thought about our next
move. While we were waiting, a minibus drove up with the driver calling out
Cusco as the destination. There were only 2 seats left (both in the middle
without a headrest) and the ride would be 50 soles total. We decided this was
our best option since it was only a 4 hour drive, so we got in. Immediately I
realized how uncomfortable my seat was. Within the first hour I was feeling car
sick from the twisting road (or maybe from the street chicken) and what made it
worse was the lack of the headrest and my long ass legs bumping the seat ahead
of me. I was so tired from the early morning, hiking and running that I would
fall asleep only to be woken up by the next turn.
The bus ride was one of the worst
I’ve had in Peru but it finally came to an end and we were dropped off where we
could find a taxi to the clinic. We made it back by 11 p.m. and were thankful
that it was over. The trip turned out a little but different than expected but
in the end proved to be a great story. It was somewhat ironic that earlier in
the day before train situation, Dana and I discussed the need to be flexible
when travelling and that it is necessary to have a travel partner that is down
to make things work. Well, make things work we did and we had to live up to big
talk we put on early that day.
Now, I’m typing this on the couch
of the clinic while everyone else in on a campaign. I think I picked a bug up
in Aguas Caliente and have yet the conquer it. The next two days we have
campaigns and after that I’m headed home……
During the campaign yesterday I saw
a couple locals riding downhill bikes in the plaza. After talking to one of
them, he invited me to ride with his crew today. They set me up on a full
suspension Kona Stinky and treated me with so much kindness.
I met Brugna around 3 at the plaza
and we headed to catch a bus to the top of the mountain. The bus was actually a
flat bed truck that packed bout 20 people in the back. We strapped our bikes to
the side of the truck, along with a few more of his friends then rode on the
top of the cab all the way, holding on for dear life. Making it to the top was a win in and of
itself but next I had to make it down the mountain alive. Before we started
everyone strapped on their full-faced helmets, knee and elblow pads. I put on
my road bike gloves and helmet and prayed they would protect me.
We started down and I tried to
navigate the toughest downhill I’ve ever seen on a bike. Luckily the suspension
soaked up most of the drops but within minutes I had crashed pretty hard. I
brushed myself off and managed to walk the stuff that seemed too hard and
carefully ride everything else. I had probably four or five pretty big crashes
but nothing that broke the skin. Brugna was incredibly nice and didn’t complain
about having to wait on me while his six other friends were ripping it
downhill. He was obviously the best one of them all because when we got to the
biggest jump of the day (8 meters) he cleared it no problem and managed to do a
trick for the camera.
After making it down the 30 minute
run somewhat intact, we stopped at the tienda and shared and couple large
Pilsens and in traditional Peruvian fashion, shared one small cup that was
passed around after each person drank. It felt great to be hanging out with the
local cycling scene and I wish I had met them all earlier as they told me with
a little more practice I would be rippin’ it just as hard as them. After drinks
we headed to Brugna’s house to drop off the bikes and his small garage was
covered in old bike parts and tires and I felt right at home. He
whole-heartedly invited me to ride with his crew again, but to my
disappointment I probably wont be able to as I am leaving tomorrow and when I
return will have work campaigns until the day I leave….
Not too much going on here in Peru for the past few days. Tomorrow we are headed out for a campaign then Monday I'm heading off to do a trek in the Inca Jungle. I'll be back on Thursday when the Doctor arrives to do a steady four or five days of campaigns around Cusco. Not too much longer in South America, both to my delight and sadness. I will miss being South of the equator but I'm also motivated and ready to start the second year of school and get back to see the folks I love. Here are some pictures from random times throughout the trip, but I just feel like posting them....
Gatito
Ruins
Inti Raymi
Nice Kid
Titicaca
Plaza de Armes
Senor Juan!
Exit
Guest Photographer for Girls4Sport
Empty
Peru vs. Gringas
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Heavy load
I don’t feel like typing a blog about days
3,4 and 5 of our Ausungate trip, so I’m going to list everything about it and
leave the rest up to pictures and imagination.
Big tall mountains with snow
Llamas & Alplacas
Crystal clear glacial lakes
Hot springs
Hot Springs with naked locals (not what you
think)
We woke up early to have a breakfast of pancakes and coffee
before hitting the trail. Once again I was entertained by the barefoot kids
running around the icy yard and I felt kind of dumb in my wool socks and hiking
boots. As we finished breakfast we looked at the assortment of homemade crafts
they had for sale and we bought a few things to thank the family for their
hospitality. We had to walk only a few minutes to get a good view of Ausungate
and we realized our counterclockwise jaunt around the mountain was going to be full
of good views. The whole day was spent checking out spectacular views of
snow-capped peaks, crystal clear lakes and herds of alpacas. We ended the day
with a descent down to Ausungate Lake where we would be camping at around
15,200 ft. Yoel told us it was going to be a cold night and I definitely
believed him as I already had on both jackets, a hat and gloves and the sun
hadn’t even set.
We had a pre-dinner snack of popcorn and coffee, sitting
around the tent talking in Spanish with Yoel and having some good laughs. Once
again we had our soup and rice for dinner. After dinner, Yoel said he would be going
night fishing in the lake and Tim and I insisted that we help. I think he was
surprised at our willingness to face the cold water as the usual gringo would
be happy to be in the comfort of their warm sleeping bag. We headed out with
headlamps to the lake where in certain areas trout had been trapped. Yoel would
shine the light to search for a fish and when spotted would reach quickly to
pick it up or stun it with a rock. No pole necessary. We only got two fish that
night and he said it was due to the full moon being so bright but nonetheless
it was a good experience. After fishing we headed to the tent to go to sleep.
All of us were beat from the day of walking at altitude but it still seemed the
cold could prevent a good nights sleep. After chatting for a few minutes we all
fell asleep. It was 8:00 p.m.
We started the day not too early with a bus ride to the town
of Ocongate. The ride itself took over two hours and once again, my legs begged
for mercy under the pressure of the seat in front of me. After winding through
the mountains, watching the big mountain get bigger, we arrived in the town of
Ocongate. Once off the bus we gathered our gear and grabbed lunch with our
guide Yoel, a young Peruvian guy who looked about 15 years old, but was
actually at the ripe old age of 21.
After lunch we met Louise, cook for the trip, and his wife
who brought the two horses that would be carrying most of the gear for the
trip. Louise was a nice guy who has climbed to the peak of Ausungate more times
than he can count and he had a good air about him. The two horses looked
somewhat weathered from probably too many treks to count in Ausungate. Once the
things were ready we headed out for our five-day trek around the mountain.
The first day of the trek was about 3.5 hours to the small
town where Louise, his wife and children and brothers live. We walked a dirt
road, basically the whole way, passing children begging for candy, women
herding alpaca and men working on houses. It was a difficult walk, not because
of the terrain, but because I never took my eyes of the pure beauty of the
landscape that was surrounding me and often tripped over the baby head boulders
that crowded the road.
We arrived at the house of Louise just before dark and our
tent was already set up in his front yard. We tossed our things inside and
headed to his kitchen for coffee. Stepping into the kitchen, I nearly passed out
from the amount of smoke and looked up to see Louise’s wife tending the fire and
sitting beside her was a 3 year-old girl with a face covered in soot. On the
table were coffee and a huge pile of popcorn to be eaten before the main
courses. As we sat and talked over the pre dinner food, the surroundings of the
kitchen grabbed my senses. Dinner was the traditional soup followed by rice and
chicken. This would be our dinner, and usually lunch, for the rest of the trip.
We ate and talked for a while before having hot tea and calling it a night. We
were to leave in the morning for the base of the mountain.
