Lares trek - day 1 + 2

I'm catching up after a few days of travel so this is an account of our two day trek through the Lares Valley. We woke up at 4 a.m to start the three hour drive to the starting point of our trek. The further we drove into the Andes the more isolated and remote the terrain was. When we arrived at our destination our pack horses which were to carry the supplies and equipment, were already grazing in the valley. Our cook Donato and his assistants prepared breakfast for us and then Daniel our guide pointed out the mountain we were going to climb over. It looked daunting to say the least but we started out optimistically. Hannah started singing tunes from The Sound of  Music and others joined in as the students kept up a vigorous pace.  The scenery was beautiful and we stopped at some waterfalls for pictures. Pretty soon the incline ( we had been hiking uphill for 1.5 hours already) started becoming steeper and steeper. We saw no other people except for one family that lived near one of the glacier lakes that we passed. It was becoming harder and harder to breathe because of how high up we were, 13000 feet by then.  Finally each of the professors had to take turns riding one of the horses up to the site where we were going to stop for lunch, at around 14,000 feet.

The students were absolute troopers. I can't say enough about how they persevered and hiked those next several  of hours to get to our campsite.  The incline was incredibly steep and rocky. Some of them were suffering the effects of altitude sickness, everyone was pushed farther than they ever had before. My guess is, many of them discovered reserves of inner strength they never knew they had and hopefully this knowledge will help them realise what they're capable of achieving. Parents, you have raised some resilient kids. We also had our incredible guide Daniel who encouraged everyone, tended to everyone's needs especially those that weren't feeling well and remained relentlessly optimistic and positive that everyone would make it through. 

Once we got to our lunch campsite our cook Donato had whipped up a three course meal out of thin air (pun intended : ) Many of us didn't have big appetites because of the altitude. After lunch there was one more section of steep uphill which took us to the highest point of our journey to the mountain pass at 15000 feet. At that point the view was breathtaking. There were snow capped peaks across from us and we first heard and then saw an avalanche make its way down the mountain opposite us. 

From that point on it was a 2 hour hike down to our campsite for the night over rocky, gravelly terrain but after the four hour uphill climb, we practically flew down the mountain. We could see the orange tents that had already been set up for us and that gave everyone strong motivation to get to our destination. That night we camped at 14000 feet on a flat plain near a stream. Once again Donato had cooked an amazing meal of pan- fried trout, although some of us were still feeling the effects of altitude sickness and crawled into our tents to get some rest. 

The next morning we woke up to the sight of herds of llama and alpaca grazing near our camp and on the sides of the mountains. Togehther with the sound of running water and the early morning mist, it was an idyllic setting, out of a book or a film. Donato had another surprise in store for us. Somehow he had managed to make a cake to celebrate completing the hardest part of the trek. Needless to say it was delicious. 

After breakfast we started our downhill trek to the bottom of the Lares valley. By now we all felt better and the downhill hike was much easier and very enjoyable. We started to notice the climate and terrain changing to sub-tropical conditions with warmer temperatures and thicker, greener plants, foliage and trees. We also started to see more communities and passed by several villages on our way down.  

Daniel told us that the people who lived here were basically carving out a subsistence living by growing crops. Sometimes if the ground wasn't suitable for agriculture they had to walk two days to the place where they had grown their crops. Thy also had no access to medical services if there was an emergency or a serious illness. They would have to travel by horse for a day and a half to a place where they could then hitch a ride to the nearest large town with medical facilities. It made us realise that although the setting was incredibly picturesque, life for the people who lived here was harsh and brutal. There was a a school that children could attend until the secondary level but it was hard to afford to send anyone to university and families usually sent only the son. If the son was successful and could get a job in one of the towns he would stay there, if not he would have to return to the valley.

Our second night of camping was near a town called Canchacancha. Again we camped near a stream and had freshly popped popcorn for a snack while Daniel taught us a Peruvian card game that the students are still playing on occasion.

After dinner we walked around to collect firewood for a bonfire and sat around  the fire for a while. The students started out singing all the EC songs they knew (much to the amusement of Daniel) including the alma mater and transitioned into songs from childhood. It was a fitting end to two hard and satisfying days and everyone went to bed proud of what we had accomplished. All told, we started out at 11,500 ft and at our highest point reached 15,000 ft. You'll have to talk to your students when they return and get their impressions of the trek but I can honestly say that they surpassed my expectations in terms of how well they handled themselves.  Well done guys!