Cordillera Huayhuash

I'm back in Huaraz again, having just spent several fantastic days down in the Cordillera Huayhuash.

The Huayhuash is a remote range of mountains within the Andes that contains Yerupaja, Peru's second highest mountain (6700m ish). It is wilder and rougher than the Cordillera Blanca (which contains the Santa Cruz trek, see my previous post) and is less well known to trekkers. Huayhuash is pronounced "why wash". I didn't need telling twice!

I knew that the best season for trekking was May to September, but I thought it was worth a go anyway. On Friday I caught a bus down to Chiquian, in the hope of finding good weather and other companions to trek with. I found neither. However Saturday morning brought blue skies, so I hopped on another bus to Pocpa, the start of the 8 day circuit.

I'd already decided that I wasn't going to do the full 8 days, because I was solo and the weather was bound to be bad at times. From the map and the guidebook I had determined that after 4 days I could exit to a village called Queropalca, the only village on the East side of the range. I had packed 8 days worth of food in Huaraz, so my pack was a little heavy, but I looked forward to the prospect of eating 8 days worth of food in 4.

The first day of trekking was really boring - just walking along a track to the start of the trailhead proper. It took me past a few tiny villages and to be honest, I didn't enjoy this day at all. I'd heard from a local that there were thieves in the area, and I didn't like the idea of losing all my gear, money and passport in such a remote place. I just tried to look hard and scary whenever I passed groups of locals - in fact I think the sight of a gringo with blond hair took most of them aback to the extent that they forgot to rob me. I was feeling much better by the time I was in my tent in the mountains that evening. The mountains scared me less.

The next 2 days of trekking were absolutely spectacular. Virtually all of the trek was above 4000m; I think I reached about 4850m. I saw several huge Andean condors on the route - spectacular birds with up to 3m wingspan. I was humbled when I saw an avalanche fall off Yerupaja. I had a scary moment when it started hailing three quarters of the way up some steep fine scree and I thought it was all going to slide off. But it didn't, and the views that were afforded from the pass to which it led made it all worthwhile.

The weather was almost brilliant. Unlike in the UK, the weather in this part of the Andes is predictable to some extent. At this time of year the weather seems to follow a pattern. It is dead clear in the morning, it rains hard for a couple of hours in the afternoon and then it clears up again in the evening. This meant that each day I had some spectacular weather and brilliant views. When I get back to Lima in a few days and find my USB cable I'll put some photos up. The lakes, glaciers and peaks come together to form a stunning backdrop.

During this time I became proficient at outstaring and outbarking pissed-off dogs. There are so many of the beasts! If you go anywhere near a campesino's hut, a dog will come and have a go at you. I find that a mixture of ignoring them, barking at them and pretending to throw rocks at them does the trick.

During my four days of trekking, I encountered no other trekkers or mountaineers. I was quite suprised by that, but not put off. It was fantastic to have the mountains to myself - it only enhanced the wilderness experience. That's not to say I prefer to hike alone - in general I don't. But it's good to get out there on your own from time to time.

The journey back is another story...