Huaraz, Peru

  Huaraz, Peru
Friday, August 24, 2007

Day 71 to 76 (18th August to 23rd August): Huaraz

We arrived into Huaraz on Saturday evening and found the best accommodation in Peru, Olaza's Guest House. It's super-comfortable, clean, HOT showers and great mountain views from it's roof-top terrace (where we have our fresh breakfast every morning. We're talking freshly squeezed OJ and all!!!).

On our first night, we went out for a Thai meal, which was very yummy and a nice change from the usual Peruvian fare.

The next day, Andrea woke up ill and Fraser must have had the same, only a day later. Luckily whatever it was, it only lasted a day for each. We won't go into details, but let's just say the roll of toilet paper seemed to disappear in a day. 

View from Cordiella Negro 1

On Tuesday, we were ready for our first mountain bike ride. We took a taxi up the Cordillera Negro, and biked down 700m back into town through rural areas, with locals screaming "Hola Gringos" as we whizzed by. We biked passed sheeps & cows grazing and many local dogs came running after our feet, but the trick of picking up a rock and pretending we'e about to throw it at them kept them away. 

Don Julio and Andrea in front of Ranrapalca

On Wednesday, we were ready for a more challenging ride. This started with a 1.5 hr bike climb. It felt pretty good once we reached the top, 700m above Huaraz. We spent the rest of the day biking downhill. The terrain was quite varied, ranging from grassland, rocky downhills and Fraser's favourite, single track. We were completely knackered once we got back into Huraz that we decided to take the next day off and visit the hot thermal springs in the neighbouring village of Monterrey.

Fraser riding down