midwestern days

I stumbled across the Cordillera Huayhuash circuit while looking for obscure hikes on the internet, someone out there in the ether compared it to hiking in the Himalayas and after a quick google-image-search of the trek I was sold. We hired a guide and donkeys, booked our tickets to Peru and we were off (ok, it was more work than that but to move the story along).  Here’s overview/breakdown of the hike.  If you are looking for facts to plan a trip there is a post here.

Basics:

Length:  97 miles (156 km)

Timeframe: 10 days

Acclimate:  This hike is VERY high up and you need to acclimatize:  we spent 3 days in the Cusco region and 1 day in Hauraz

Day 1:  On August 23rd we got up at 4:30 am to start our bitterly cold, early morning journey into the mountains.  It takes several hours of bus rides to arrive in Pocpa.  The bus company was kind enough to provide us all blankets but it was frigid.  If you get car sick from windy roads (like me) try to get a window seat.  The hiking on the first day is pretty easy, gradual uphills mostly following a road.  This is the only day with no high pass, so appreciate it. You get glimpses of the snow capped peaks and walk though some beautiful grazing land.  This is the beginning of hiking through animal poop, you get used to it.  The camp the first night is nice but they only get better.  This was the only day I had issues with the altitude.  I drank a lot of fluids, took an ibuprofen and went to bed early, that seemed to do the trick.

Hike time: 4 hours 30 minutes

Day 2: This is the first real day of the hike and the first high pass you will cross. Be prepared for lots of switchbacks, it’s a slow and steady slog.  My husband and I were alternating between not being able to imagine making it to day 10 and feeling like maybe we could do this.  We had a great lunch on this day of Russian salad (below) and, after nearly 6 hours, we arrived at a beautiful campsite (view from tent below).

Hike time: 5 hours 45 minutes

Day 3: Many more switchbacks today, the sky was cloudy so we did not go on what would have been our first side trip as the views were obscured.  This made day three pretty short and easy for us. There are some great views as you near the campsite and the campsite itself was a stunner.  The other 4-5 groups on the trail camped off to the side of Carhuacocha lake but we had our very own campsite right on the lake directly opposite snow capped peaks.  This campsite alone was worth the cost of hiring guides.

Hike time: 4 hours 15 minutes

(view from tent)

Day 4: Today was one of the most difficult days of the hike.  We said goodbye to our beautiful campsite at 7:15 am and trekked down a valley leading us to our big pass for the day.  On the way we dropped our packs and scaled a hill for a view of Sulla and Yerupaja peaks.  It’s worth the climb for the beautiful views and we saw 4-5 avalanches which are cool to see but sad from an environmental standpoint.  From there we hiked up a very difficult steep path to the most iconic view of the hike (the three lakes (below) ) shockingly to us, we weren’t yet at the pass which was another hour of grueling switchbacks.  After the pass it was another 3 hours to camp.  This day provided the scenery we were craving but it was an extremely strenuous day.

Hike time: 8 hours 45 minutes

Day 5: Day 5 is pretty chill.  We trekked through these strange round moss formations as we made our way to yet another pass. Enroute we saw a huayhuash animal (something between a rabbit and a squirrel)!  The pass today is not bad and when you finally arrive at camp you are treated to hot-springs!  Also, there is a little shop that sells beer, snacks and toilet paper.  The hot springs are AMAZING!  Day five is heavenly.

Hike time: 5 hours 10 minutes

Day 6: Today we climbed what we thought was our highest pass at 16,568 feet (5050m) it was a very long steady climb up.  We saw a condor and a Vicuña on the way! After we made it over the pass we stopped for a lunch of a Peruvian dish called causa which is basically meat and veggies sandwiched between two layers of mashed potatoes - great, hardy hiking food!  After lunch the weather turned, it started to sleet we only had about an hour to camp I ran to catch up with Eric because he had my rain coat.  I eventually caught him (mostly cause he turned around to come back for me) and we put our heads down and hightailed it to camp.

Hike time: 5 hours 45 minutes

Day 7: If you are the kind of person who hates hiking downhill, like my husband, this will likely be your least favorite day of the hike.  It is a very long, difficult day but the views are world class.  The day starts with very strenuous switchbacks in the snow up to the actual highest pass of the hike, the San Antonio Pass clocking in at a whopping 16,732 feet (5100m). You keep thinking you’re at the top of the pass, but you’re not, it’s a mental challenge.  At this point in the trek I was regretting going on the trek, I felt miserable. Climbing this pass was so goddam hard!  At the top though!  Wow, what a view, it made it all worth it!  On the flip side, all of this hard work is rewarded with 3 hours of climbing down steep, rocky terrain that brutalized my husband.

Hike time: 8 hours 45 minutes

(view from the top)

(view from the top)

Day 8:  As long as I have pretty views I can deal with challenging hiking but ‘Dia Ocho’ is the worst!  A long day, gradually uphill the whole way and short on pretty views.  On day eight you start to leave the big peaks which is a bummer.  To make it worse Eric woke up and his ankle was pretty injured from the previous day but our guide Samual soaked it, applied some magical balm our hiking mate Etta provided, and wrapped it up.  He was a great guide and Eric was good to go.

Hike time: my husband didn’t note the time here but it was a long day.  My guess is 8 hours

Day 9:  Days 8, 9 and 10 are far less beautiful than the rest of the hike.  It would be nice to hike it the other way around.  Today starts with a hike up a pass right away.  For dinner the night before I ate a rich, creamy pasta that did not sit right in my stomach.  I woke up not feeling well and had to ride the horse over the pass which was a bummer but great at the same time. The view was not mind blowing but you still hike through some pretty peaks along the way to camp.

Hike time: 5 hours 30 minutes

Day 10:  We were destroyed by day 10.  Today there is an optional pass you can cross or you can take a flatter, longer route to the end.  We chose the flat route.  We were off at 6:30am and it was a nice easy walk.  There was a lot of downhill as we made our way to Llamac.  We could see the town far before we reached it which made the hike seem long.  Eventually we reached the edge of the town and our Arriero and donkey’s.  We sat on the curb waiting for our ride and cheering on hikers who were finishing.  It felt good, we did it!

Hike Time:  I have no idea, but not long, maybe 5 hours.

This hike is VERY strenuous.  Part of the challenge is the altitude and part of it is sleeping in a tent for 10 days.  The distances aren’t terribly far but it wipes you out.  On the other hand, the views are spectacular!  It’s such a gift in this world to let yourself get cut off from everything and everyone and simply experience a place and a landscape with no distractions.  Also, the stars are ridiculous out there.  Would I recommend it?  If you’re in good shape, sure.  I don’t think it’s the most beautiful hike I’ve ever done (Nepal wins there) but I do think it’s the most difficult hike I’ve done so that makes it a hard sell.  Would I do it again?  No, no way, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything.  I got to experience the Peruvian Andes in a way most people will never get to and sometimes the hard challenges in life end up being the experiences we treasure the most. 

Swayed by beautiful pictures on the internet and the movie ‘Touching the Void’ (have you seen it? you should, it’s on Netflix and it’s great), my husband and I set off on August 23st to hike the 10 day Cordillera Huayhuash circuit in the Peruvian Andes. We chose the winter because it is supposed to be the driest time with the most consistent weather.  The weather in August turned out to be quite cold in the mornings and evenings but really pleasant hiking weather during the day.  We had snow on several nights.  We chose to go with a guide and donkeys because we wanted a fighting chance of enjoying ourselves.  Here are some of the basics.  A day to day breakdown of the hike can be found here.

Distance:  97 miles (156 km)

Average Elevation: 14,100 feet (4300m)

Highest Point:  Crossing the San Antonio Pass at 16,732 feet (5100m)

Typical Sleeping elevation:  Between 12,795 feet - 14,100 feet (3900m-4300m)

Acclimating: We hail from Minnesota so we are what you would call lowlanders.  Because of this we decided to kick off our trip in Cusco.  We spent one night at Ollantaytambo (9000 ft) and the next two nights in Cusco (11,000 feet).  We then made our way to Hauraz where we spent a fourth night acclimatizing at 10,000 feet.  We didn’t do any acclimating hikes but we did make an effort to wander around all day everyday while we were up in the altitude.  We also took prescription meds for altitude the day we left for Peru and the first two days in country.  Did it help?  I’m not sure.  I felt the altitude the second we landed in Cusco but I felt pretty good so... maybe?  Despite all this I did have a brutal headache the first day of the hike. I took some advil (bring advil) and went to bed.  I was fine in the morning.

Guides:  We chose Huascaran for two reasons; 1. They were reasonably priced 2.  They had availability when we wanted to go.  We were really happy with our choice.  The point of contact, Paulino, is a wonderful man.  He answered SO MANY emails that we sent him.  We changed our dates 3 times and he rolled with the punches always being kind and accommodating.  He also takes care of you from the moment you arrive in Hauraz to the day your trek ends when he invites you back to the office for homemade Pisco Sours and the musical stylings of the BeeGees.  Our Guide, Samuel, was really great as well.  Note that he spoke very little English.  He was a truly phenomenal cook and a very slow, steady walker... he was just our speed.  We were worried we might not get enough food on the hike but Samuel provided an abundance of food.  Every morning we were woken with hot tea brought to our tent followed by a hot breakfast and a bag of snacks for the day.  We had really tasty, filling lunches on the trail, a snack when we got back to camp and a two course dinner every night. You will not go hungry with this outfit.  I have done some big hikes such as the Laugavegur, Annapurna, Gokyo Lakes, Julian Alps... and this was the most challenging even with our gear on the donkeys.  I recommend guides if you’re considering it.  Initially, to avoid a crowd, my husband and I signed on for a private guide . In time we decided to open up our trip to the general public and one other person joined us, decreasing the price significantly. 

Packing:  Here is what I brought on the hike:

5 pairs underwear (get hiking underwear!)

7 pairs hiking socks

3 pairs of hiking pants

3 wicking base layer tanks

1 wicking base layer t-shirt

2 sports bras (never wore them)

1 long underwear top

1 heavy long underwear bottom

1 very light fleece/jacket thing

1 heavy fleece

1 long sleeve button down hiking shirt (wore only once)

1 short sleeve button down hiking shirt (never wore it)

1 big thick hoodie for the camp (I wore this but didn’t really NEED it)

1 heavy winter coat

1 rain coat

1 winter hat

1 pair of thin gloves

1 pair of thick mittens (never wore them)

1 pair of pants to sleep in

1 pair hiking boots

1 pair tennis shoes

hiking poles

bug spray (never used)

sun block

hiking hat (wore once)

headbands/hair binders

toilet paper

tooth brush/paste

lotion

iphone

extra battery

solar charger

nice camera (sony a7rii)

tripod

1 daypack (a 24 liter pack it was a little small but it worked - this one)

1 camelbak

(my husband brought a water filter, not necessary but it was nice to have along)

Here is what I wish I had brought in addition:

a thin pair of long underwear bottoms (mine were too thick for cold morning hiking, a thin pair would have been nice)

an additional long underwear top.  (I wore my thermals a lot!  I could have used several pairs)

sandals would have been nice for camp

Costs: 

Guide and Donkeys:  $660.00 (we got this price when someone else joined our trip, it is substantially more expensive to go with just two people (around $128/day)

Entrance fee:  120 soles ($37/per person)

Fees: You pay fees for every campsite you stay at on this trek I don’t remember the exact amount but I believe it was around 300 soles ($100/per person)

Tips:  The suggested amount to tip the guide and the donkey driver 300 soles ($100) for both, we gave more, these people do so much for you it’s hard to not want to give a higher amount.

In August, my husband and I are heading to Peru to hike the 81 mile Cordillera Huayhuash circuit.  That hike is at very high elevations so, in order to try to train for it in Minnesota, we headed up North in search of hills (just hills, that’s all we’ve got here in the great pains).

We decided to hike about 30 miles from Sugarloaf to Lutsen ‘Mountain’ in 3 days and 4 nights.  We planned this trip over 4th of July weekend so when we finally got off work and headed up North we were faced with gnarly traffic.  We arrived up at Lutsen around 8 PM where we met our hiking buddy Lee.  We grabbed some food, left Lee’s car at Lutsen and took my car to the starting point (we parked our car on Sugarloaf Rd).  On the way we dropped a cooler in the woods 5 miles short of what would be our second campsite filled with some cold beverages and frozen hobo dinners.  We like little luxuries (this turned out to be not a great idea).

Day/Night 1:

By the time we parked our car it was 10:30 at night and we hiked about one mile in to our first campsite (Sugarloaf pond).  The site was small and the water source was kinda marshy and not ideal... that didn’t matter to us so early in the hike but just making note of it.  On the brightside, we ventured out to the marsh after setting up camp only to be greeted by hundreds of fireflies.  It was magical.  The highlight of day 1 for sure.  I tried to take some night time photos of them but Eric brought the wrong tripod :/

Day 2:

This was our first real day of hiking, we went 10.5 miles to the first of four campsites near the Cross River.  We made two tough discoveries as we were starting out, 1.  The trail was muddy, very muddy, 3-4″ of mud covering about 90% of the trail.  It was really tough to hike through and slippery made even more difficult by our packs. 2.  Our packs were way too heavy. The bright spot of the morning was crossing some old railroad tracks in a field of wild flowers.   A few hours in we were all hurting and then we stumbled upon our cooler stashed at Cramer Road...  We packed up the hobo dinners and then were faced with the 10 beverages that had to be added to the already heavy packs.  Eric and Lee each had one and then Eric piled ‘em in his pack and we headed on our way.  This extra weight effected Eric for sure.  We rolled into our campsite at Cross River around 4 in the afternoon exhausted.  Luckily we were greeted by warm, friendly people and we had a fun night hanging out with them.  (side note - if you can push it a little further one of the other campsites (maybe the forth) is actually ON the Cross River... super nice site, I wish we’d have stayed there)

Day 3:

The next morning we packed up camp around 8, grabbed granola bars and said goodbye to the good people we met.  We were off for another 10 mile day through mud, mud and more mud.  The first half of this hike is really pretty with Cross River and the Temperance River.  We must have spent an hour sunning on the rocks at Temperance before moving on.  It was a highlight for sure.  The afternoon was a hike up Carlton peak which was visually beautiful when you had brief moments outside of the green tunnel.  Eric twisted his ankle somewhere around here and his pace slowed to a crawl.  We trudged our way to our next campsite Dyers Creek Camp - it was an OK site.  Here we ran into one of the groups from the night before and a father and grown son.  Again, the people were so nice and it’s just great to sit around a campfire and meeting new people.  I was sleeping by 8:30 sore and exhausted.

Day 4:

Break down camp, eat granola bar, say goodbyes and head out for another 10 mile day.  We are all very sore at this point.  Lees knee hurt and Eric’s twisted ankle is puffy and painful. We feel like we are falling apart, I was worried about Eric’s ankle being ready for Peru and we had heard rumors that if we made it to the top of Moose 'Mountain’ we could take a gondola down.  The second Eric heard that his mind was made up.  And THEN we found another way to take some of the strain off ourselves and after our first 5 miles of hiking that morning (through more mud mud mud) we dropped our packs at a parking lot to finish the last 5 miles without packs.  It was a long climb to the top of the mountains.  Lee saw a bear on the trail (he was walking in front of us) I missed him :\ There were some cool rocks and nice vistas.  Most of this trail is a green tunnel so any views are very much appreciated.  And then, we found the gondola.  $17 per person to be transported to a bar/grill.  That’s priceless if you ask me.  Also at the top gondola there is a cafe where you can get a coffee and take in Lake Superior - pretty nice. 

(side note: after Britton peak there is Leveaux Pond and there is a super cool campsite there)

I don’t think we failed on this trip, we made it pretty much all the way save the final descent.  And we did add some mileage hiking to the gondola.  I think Eric and I learned a lot in terms of our future hike in Peru: 1.  Get water bladders for our packs  2.  Get a few more wicking shirts 3. And most importantly, try to take the time to stop and look around, snap some pics, enjoy where we are - we both regret not doing that more on this hike we really just put our heads down and powered through and that’s a shame.

Highlights:

The people we met

The fireflies by sugarloaf

Temperance River

The top of Carlton Peak (not the views but the rocky climb at the top)

Lowlights:

The mud

The mosquitos

Heavy packs

A long time ago I set off on my own to go hiking in Nepal.  I did very little training and even less research and came up totally unprepared.  In my twenties that was fine, there were a lot of challenges and some stupid mistakes but I made it through.  Now, a bit older, my husband and I are about to embark on another long, high-altitude trek and this time I’ve decided to do a little preparation.

For the week:

EXERCISE

Stairs: Got up early two days and ran stairs at Minnehaha falls (between 44-48 floors) - legs were SUPER Sore, I have a long term goal of 100 floors a session.

Biking: 28 miles.  I only got two bike commutes in because of the rain.  OMG it rains here a lot!  The MN climate is getting wetter and wetter I swear.

Push-ups: abysmal (ugh, this is embarrassing, 10 girl pushups the whole week)

Crunches:  even more abysmal (maybe 10 the whole week)

SPANISH PRACTICE

Podcast:  I just finished episode 13 of CoffeeBreak Español.  It’s all been review for me so far, I do have a bit of Spanish under my belt but I’ve still gotten something out of each episode i.e. that five hundred in Spanish is ‘quinientos‘ not ‘cincocientos‘ - which is what I always assumed it was.  (side note, my husband and I love the theme song)

App:  Duolingo - I am on a 29 day streak and on ‘numbers’ which I could test out of but I like to review things.

I had an awful breakfast earlier in the week at Eggy’s (Minneapolis).  It was truly an affront to the meal of breakfast mainly because the person cooking the potatoes clearly hated potatoes and you could taste that in their deep frying method of cooking* them... Anyways, that meal was redeemed with this delicious brekkie at Egg and I. 

We had some time to kill so we went record shopping, I haven't been in ages I got one old record that will not be named. Eric picked up tickets for a show at frist Ave next month and got 3 CDs then we were off.

We went to the MIA (Minneapolis Institute of Art) and checked out the "At home with monsters' exhibit - (guillermo del toro exhibit) Monsters, horror movies, comics, dark illustrations... it was heaven on Earth for me

Then we packed up our gear and headed to a drummers house for some Thai food and band practice. We're not great, but we did 5 hrs straight and it felt like 30 minutes. Playing music is the best. Nothing too exciting but a damn near perfect Saturday for me.

Eric rolled his eyes at me when I suggested checking out Blue Apron for a week he likes grocery shopping and experimenting in the kitchen so the thought of getting ingredients and recipes sent to the house wasn’t entirely appealing to him.  I signed up on the website anyways without actually ‘signing up’ to receive meals and whaddya know I get a $20 off card in the mail that week.  Well played Blue Apron.  I committed immediately.

Our cardboard box arrived Saturday afternoon, inside were: two gel-filled ice packs, all of our ingredients individually packed in plastic and three beautiful, colored recipe cards.  Right off the bat I’m having mixed emotions.  This creates a lot more packaging waste than grocery shopping, yes everything is recyclable but there is something to be said for not creating the trash in the first place - also, to recycle everything is confusing - I’m not sure what our community does and does not recycle.  You can however return the box and all the plastic to the company and they will recycle for you with two or more orders.  This is a nice service.

THE RECIPES

1. ROASTED CAULIFLOWER PANZANELLA

This was a hearty salad with some really beautiful ingredients such as: roasted heirloom cauliflower, homemade rye croutons, dressing made from scratch and a generous portion of Piave cheese.  I was worried I’d feel ripped off ordering the vegetarian menu but it’s not the case, the ingredients are really nice.

I think we were both surprised at how good this was.  Super tasty and I think we both learned some cool cooking techniques.  It felt hearty, healthy and like something I’d want to eat again.

PROS:

Delicious, Creative, Healthy

New Cooking Techniques

Beautiful ingredients

Proper portion size

NEGATIVES:

Our Meyer Lemon was rotten, luckily we had lemons in the house.

This recipe dirtied a TON of dishes!  All of our cutting boards, two sheet pans, countless bowls and cooking utensils.

They say 35-45 min cook/prep time.  It took us closer to an hour and the clean-up time was substantial.

2.  MUSHROOM & POBLANO PEPPER QUESADILLAS

This dish was not quite as interesting or filling as the salad, as you can see in the picture below the portion size was too small, that’s a normal size dinner plate - not enough food for me let alone my 6′3″ husband. The ingredients were all fresh and at the right stage of ripeness and again I learned cooking techniques I didn’t know before i.e. I’ve always wanted to roast a poblano pepper and now I have. The flavors were spot on, it was smoky and spicy and delicious.  I think if the tortillas had been larger this would have been another home run, unfortunately, not the case.  They must have placed it on a side plate for their photo-shoot.

PROS:

Delicious

New Cooking Techniques

Beautiful ingredients

CONS:

Small Portions

Again dirtied a ton of dishes

3.  KIMCHI & BARLEY MISO RAMEN

This recipe is one of the main reasons I chose this particular week.  I used to live in Korea and I'm obsessed with the food.  I don’t remember seeing a whole lot of ramen when I was in Daegu but a quick kimchi recipe was intriguing.  This recipe came with handmade ramen noodles - my expectations were high.

Unfortunately this recipe was a bit of a disappointment.  The flavors were just totally ‘off’ the broth was kind of bland and the kimchi (which had Asian pear in it which is another thing I never witnessed out there) was just missing the mark of the flavors I love and expect.  Also, the handmade noodles, while being totally abundant, were kind of chewy and dough-y tasting.  This dish wasn’t inedible, but I wasn’t a fan.  It never claimed to be ‘Korean’ food but when I see kimchi I have expectations.  Korean flavors are like a beautiful punch in the face and this was not that.

PROS:

We got to use our big Pho bowls

New Cooking Techniques

Beautiful, Interesting ingredients

Those soft boiled eggs were really nice

Huge portion (I couldn’t finish)

CONS:

Weird flavors

Our Rice Vinegar was missing from ingredients and instead we got two Sesame Oils, again, we lucked out and had Rice Vinegar in the house

Not super delicious

They say 30-40 minutes and again this took closer to an hour

WOULD I ORDER BLUE APRON AGAIN?

I think Eric and I both agree that we would order Blue Apron OCCASIONALLY like maybe a couple times a year.  I like that there is no food waste and that it gives you a lot of variety throughout the week which is tough to achieve when you live alone or with just one other person.  I think the ingredients are high quality and the recipes are creative and interesting.  It’d be so cool if they could partner with grocery stores and you could pick up the small portioned ingredients without everything having to be in it’s own plastic bag - or shipped across country.

When I used to think of Death Valley I imagined a flat desert with tall cactus’s and skeletons strewn about.  Clearly I had no idea what this area was all about.  When you drive to Death Valley from Vegas you immediately come across Zabriskie Point - a totally beautiful landscape!  Really it’s stunning.  Apparently there’s a cult move shot there called, wait for it, Zabriskie Point.  It’s now on my must see list and after you watch the trailer you’ll know why.  Here are some pics!

From Zabriskie Point we decided to hit Badwater Basin.  On our way we got some of the best glimpses of the Super Bloom!  It was pretty great.

Badwater Basin is super cool.  The salt looks like snow, it’s really barren and stark and that’s a landscape I’m all about. Here’s my hubby on the flats.

We also hiked to the Red Cathedral.  This hike is worth it for the final vista.  It’s a glorious view. From there we checked out the Artist’s Palette, the colorful rocks are weird, we just drove the loop (pic below).

We just barely scratched the surface of this national park. I already want to go back.  As we drove out we were treated to more of the super bloom.  Who isn’t charmed by wild flowers?!  They were really special but honestly they weren’t the best thing about Death Valley.  It’s not that they weren’t pretty and unusual (they were both) but the rest of the park is so goddamn impressive it’s hard for them to compete.