A nine hour bus ride brought us to Peru’s hiker paradise: Huaraz. After a few grey skied days spent in Lima while Kim finished her scuba certification, we were ready for some time spent a little closer to the sun. This city sitting at 10,000 feet above sea level became our homebase for a week as we explored Huascarán National Park. Our time here was marked with high alpine adventures, striking blue lagoons, and probably a little bit too much chifa (Peruvian-Chinese food).
Everyone you talk to in Huaraz will warn you about acclimatizing. Admittedly, this is something we’ve maybe not taken as seriously as we could/should in Colorado before hiking at higher altitudes. We decided to take this advice to heart and give our bodies a day to settle in before diving into the mountains. Huaraz itself doesn’t get a lot of love, but we were quite surprised by how busy and affordable this area was.
Churup Lagoon
Our first hike (relatively) nice and close to Huaraz. This short and steep hike is a little more than 3.5 miles and gains over 2,000 feet. It starts out with essentially a massive staircase and then turns into a beautiful hike along a ridge. We loved how dynamic this hike became towards the top complete with ropes for extra safety while scrambling. As the name suggests, this hike ends at stunning crystal clear lagoon that of course Jack took a dip in.
We were pleasantly surprised by how well adjusted our bodies were feeling hiking right below 15,000 feet. This got the one wheels turning on how we might want to spend the rest of our time here…
Laguna 69
It’s impossible to go to Huaraz and avoid hearing about Laguna 69. It seems like this hike is a rite of passage if you visit this area. While Churup Lagoon was just 45 minutes away, Laguna 69 requires a fun little 5am departure and 3 hour drive. The 6 hours of travel had us wondering if this place is a little overhyped. We quickly learned it’s not.
This hike was longer spanning close to 9 miles and gaining a little less than 3,000 feet. Compared to the stair master 3000 the day before, the two short steep sections of this hike felt pretty breezy in comparison. Before even starting this hike you get to see the most unreal turquoise lagoon. Along the way you get views of the majestic snow capped Nevado Chacraraju standing above 20,000 feet which only goes more impressive as you climb. Reaching Laguna 69 itself gave us goosebumps. We were skeptical a lake could be this brilliant of a light blue.
Santa Cruz Trek
https://www.alltrails.com/trail/peru/ancash/santa-cruz-trek?sh=rcbjzv&u=i
We initially thought we’d spend our time here completing several day hikes. After Churup Lagoon, we were left inspired to join a guided 4 day Santa Cruz trek later in the week. After Laguna 69, we were feeling yet again inspired. This time to complete the Santa Cruz trek independently and within 3 days instead. We were able to rent all the necessary gear, grab food for the trek, and get transportation to/from for less than half of what we would have paid otherwise.
Day 1
We started bright and early leaving Huaraz about 5:15 am to Yungay. From here we caught a second colectivo to Vaquería where we’d begin our 32 mile adventure. We rode with 3 other hikers and all shared coffee together at the trailhead before setting out. One fellow hiker, Mike, also planned on completing the trail in 3 days. We figured we’d all start together before parting ways, but ended up enjoying each other’s company for the entirety of the trip.
Day 1 is the shortest of all the days. It largely consists of a gradual incline and sweeping valley views. We successfully setup camp about 9 miles in and slept higher than we ever had before. We’re used to getting up to 14,000 feet and scurrying back down. Thankfully the night wasn’t nearly as cold as we anticipated inside our thick sleeping bags. After a night of warm, delicious ramen, some Gin Rummy, and cozy sleep under the stars, we were ready for Day 2.
Day 2
The second day is notoriously the toughest. Kim would be lying if she said she wasn’t nervous, but with one night sleep under her belt she was feeling like less of a backpacking newbie. The first 4 miles of this day were essentially all uphill towards Punta Union. We (slowly) made it over this pass with our heavy packs feeling pretty dang accomplished. The reward of new views of snow capped peaks and yet another beautiful lagoon made it all worth it.
After the descent we had to make a choice whether or not to add a few extra miles of an uphill detour to Laguna Arhuaycocha. But of course the answer was yes. We gave ourselves the luxury of stashing our heavy packs for this out and back detour. Our bodies were grateful to be reminded of their typical weight and center of gravity, and our eyes got to feast on yet another pretty lagoon.
It was quite literally all downhill from here. We had accomplished all of the climbing of this trek and now just needed to cover as much ground as possible to lessen the load of Day 3. Thankfully we were able to cruise and setup camp next to a lake with 10 miles left on the trail.
Day 3
After a windy night resting our tired legs, we woke up feeling ready the tackle the final leg. The gradual descent allowed for quick hiking along a stream for the majority of the day. We enjoyed one last picnic lunch and took in the valley views before making our final push. The sun was beating down which made the final 2 steep miles downhill feel like a bit of an extra grind.
We arrived to Cashapampa simultaneously feeling accomplished, grateful, and pretty dusty/smelly. This was a great first backpacking trip together! We were looking forward to cashing in on our well earned hot shower and some vegging time.
Huaraz isn’t always on the typical Peru backpacking trail, but it definitely should be!! These are easily some of our favorite hikes we’ve done. Now that we have gotten in our mountain fix, it’s time to hit the beach. Next stop: Paracas.