Huayhuash

There is a magic word around here in these parts ... Huayhuash ... it is spoken only in the softest of whispers, for it is a word of great power and even greater danger. And so it was on an afternoon in the bus back from Chavín that the seeds were sown of of what was surely to be one of Señor Hans´ most impressive adventures: the Huayhuash Trekking.

Now the altidude problems of the pass at the Santa Cruz trek were still fresh in my mind, and the Huayhuash trek had seven of these near 5000m passes. Furthermore, it measured roughly 100km of climbing and decending mostly at over 4000m altitude, to be done in eight days (where, we found out later, ten days is the norm). In the Great Galactic Guide of Treks, it is rated as ´difficult´ ... (in comparison, the ascend of the 12km Olympus Mons on Mars is rated ´quite nice for a Sunday afternoon´).

However, all this means nothing when it is someone like Ariane (aka Frau Oesch) who does the sowing of seeds and convincing of hapless travellers. So, accompanied by Pablo the guide/donkeydriver/cook and three of his smartest donkeys, we set off for the mountains.

The first day was mostly bus travel, butt hardening and a brisk but relaxing walk to our first camp up to the 4km altitude mark. The routine would become that Pablo would run away ahead of us with his furry friends and set up camp before we would arrive later in the day, having lost the track an average of 163 times on the way (taking about 11 wrong passes in the process).

On day 2 the fun started: two passes at around 4800 meters. To my utter delight I found out that acclimatising in Huaraz at 3km for more than two weeks actually helps, and I had no trace of any altidude problems. The ascend was steep though and it took considerable effort to see the morning sun reveal the deep valleys on both sides of pass. And here we we would have the first of our Swiss truffle chocolate, a ritual reserved for every one of the high passes.
The weather worsened in the afternoon, but the second pass was more gradual, and it was only hail and knee-deep mud that stood in our way. We arrived at the camp site at the Lago Carhuacocha in the clouds, with a stunning misty backdrop of 6km+ snowy mountains of the Cordillera Huayhash.

I was reminded of the Scottish Highlands when doing the pass on the third day, which prompted me to start singing the more entertaining bits of Queen´s Highlander soundtrack, much to the delight of my energetic Swiss companion. It was only afterwards I found out that she laughed so loudly, because she thought I was singing ¨Princess of the Universe¨ in stead of the ¨Princes of the Universe¨ that everybody knows ...
The pass itself had more of a Swiss note to it, and Ariane gladly tested the echoes with an impressive jodl-performance. The mood was good, the legs held out fine, the air - although a bit short on oxygen - was fresh and the vistas became more and more impressive. Our campsite was at the ´village´ of Huayhuash (population 5) in a stunning valley under the watchful eyes of the white giants.

The next day brought a fortunate change in the weather. A clear sky greeted us in the morning, after a cold cold night (below freezing). This clear weather would last, and more cold(er) nights would come, which neither of Ariane´s and my strategies could really beat. (´23 layers of clothing´ and ´just ignore that stupid cold´, respectively).
The low sun in the valley was no less than stunning. Our energy was at a peak and within no time we were enjoying a sunny hour of relaxation (in addition to a piece of Swiss chocolate) at the Portachuello pass. The afternoon, however, brought bitter disappointment, as the ´hot springs´ did more than honour their description, and we didn´t want to be burnt alive.

In the meantime we had come upon two other groups, one mostly Australian and one Israeli, but a to our own surprise we were clearly the fittest of all. Ariane and I were well matched, me being a bit stronger going up and she being more nimble going down. We went from strength to strength when taking the highest point of the trek, the Punta Cuyoc at 5000m. Being within touching distance of the glacier of the Cuyoc in combination with the breathtaking views made this the most memorable point of the trek. The descent presented a series of lush green valleys, one after another, and we felt like we were wandering through Middle-Earth.

Then the hammer hit... The hellish sixth day was more than just hot and long. It was body-wrecking. An endless descent filled me with more and more dread. We both didn´t feel at our best and we knew we had to go all that way up again as well. We were already beaten by the slippery sandy and rocky paths before the long climb. There was only one thing to do: go for it and suffer. And suffer we did. Almost 4 hours of relentless climbing brought me to the pass, or so it seemed. In true Tolkien-sense we had already shared the last Dextro Energy before the top. But the agony had just started. Every ´pass´ revealed a higher point previously out of sight, and all those false passes dented our morale to breaking point.
But the real pass was sure to come. And surely it did come. My cry of triumph gave Ariane the strength for the last stretch and soon we were sitting down, eating the finest and most-deserved chocolate in the history of mankind.

Our reward would come at the end of day 7, with the most stunning of all campsites. The day trek itself was short, which gave us some much needed relaxation time. And while we marveled at our disbelief of so much natural beauty, our faithful guide was catching fresh trout for the evening meal. The last night was the coldest, but no mere cold could counter the feeling of accomplishment and freedom this trip had brought us.

Day 8 completed the trek around the mountain range. It was during another painful descent that our starting town of Llamac came into view again, and all pain left our bodies. We made it.

Our bodies were battered and bruised, but our minds were clearer and stronger than ever before. We could hear the word ´Huayhuash´ whispering in the wind ...