Getting to Huaraz was a really nice trip but it was in a really nasty bus. The route goes from the coast, up and over passes of 3,700m to Huaraz at 3,100m. Its a big change for the body but ok. We squeezed on the 6 hour bus journey with my knees suported in the air by the seat in front. There were 100´s of chickens on the bus and it seemed like ...

Arrived in Huaraz on the overnight bus, well almost... at about 6.30am the bus stopped because the road was blocked by stones left by teachers protesting about some new teaching laws (the government apparently wants qualified teachers, which is not the case at the moment, i.e. not entirely unreasonable). As we had no idea when the demonstration...

We drove through the desert all day before heading inland, back into the mountains and the town of Huaraz. We were meant to be staying in a hostal called "Joe´s Place" belonging to a a bumbling, excentric English expat. When we arrived Joe greeted us in his tartan slippers which he never seemed to be without, later claiming that he even climbed ...

Up at 6, on the trail at 7. The sun tries to come out but it remains overcast. We are supposed to have views of the snow capped mountains but still have one of the valley. Rick pace is very fast as we hit the steep climb to the summit. Samir and I keep a steady pace but as we get higher it starts to rain with the rocks getting slippery. We reach...

to Cachunapampa - 3635m (18k) The big day. Seven hours. We quickly climbed in the last falling flakes of the overnight snow up a steep rocky path to the high point of the trip, the pass of Punta Union (4750m). Great highlight to stand at 4750m for the first time, with light snow coming down. To add to the atmosphere of adventure, Punta Union is ...

On Wednesday the 19th (happy birthday, sis), we got up and had a great day touring a nearby Moche ruin (100 AD- 700 AD). It took us a long time to figure out which combi (small bus) to take to head in the right direction-- imagine two gringos stopping each combi on one side of the street to ask if they were going to the ¨Huaca de La Luna¨, (afte...

When we finally arrived in Huaraz we were exhausted. We started to look for a hostel and soon found that most of them were either full or rather expensive. I hate it when that happens and it always seems to be when you´re really tired! I saw two girls walking past and asked them where they were staying and they took us under their wing into a lo...

Crossed border into Peru at 3am and then arrived in Piura at 5.30am. Took bus to Chiclayo, then another to Trujillo and another to Chimbote. This to catch a night bus to Huaraz. Unfortunately there were no buses to Huaraz in the daytime so some breathtaking scenery was slept through. Met up with a British guy and agreed to do the very popular Sa...

Back in the sky amongst the Andean mountains here in Huaraz. Ice capped mountains can be seen from our hostel, which is fab by the way and it has hot water (hurrah). It is freezing at night but so hot in the day (see photo from hostel). Since i could now shower properly it meant I was ready for the braids to come out. I looked hilarious when the...

Finally, i´m out of Lima. We took the overnight bus and arrived this morning to Huaraz, 3700 meters above sea level. This town is a center for trekking and hiking in the region and is a major attraction for trekkers from around the globe. But, (ofcourse there is a ´but´) you body first has to adapt to the high altitude so for the next few days w...