Such great heights

Megan:
Almost all of our time since our last post has been filled exploring the natural beauty of the Peruvian Andes. About a week and a half ago, we arrived in Huaraz, Peru which has served as our base camp for exploring the stunning Parque Nacional Huascarán. After checking into one of the most beautiful and well-kept hotels of our trip, we set out to explore this high-altitude backpacker haven. We spent some time talking to a few tour companies and other travelers about various trails and decided to tackle the famous 4-day Santa Cruz trek in the Cordillera Blanca mountain range. We were accompanied by our guide Marco, six other eager travelers with varying levels of wilderness experience, and four triumphant donkeys (Blanca, Carlos, Daniel and Pancho).

The scenery in the Cordillera Blanca was jaw-dropping to say the least. Our days were filled hiking through immense valleys of golden grasses, traversing rivers and climbing closer and closer to the glaciers that soar 20,000 ft above. This was the first time I had seen a glacier, and let me tell you, these magnificent towers of ice and rock created a very different feeling for me than any other mountain landscape I'd seen. The sheer contrast of jet-black rock with blueish-white ice and snow was breathtaking. We spent our second afternoon watching the lighting and clouds that surrounded the highest peak continually change. The scenery just kept getting more beautiful, until the sun lit up the clouds with the last of the day's warmth as it slipped behind the ridge and darkness took over.

Our highest pass of 15,500 ft was enveloped in clouds by the time we reached the top - creating a kind of unknown abyss on the opposite side of the ridge as we began to work our way down. Our next campsite at 14,000 ft. actually felt comfortable and sheltered after being face to face with the rugged glaciers above.

When we were not out experiencing the natural beauty of this area, we were enjoying the comforts of our hotel bed...not so much by choice, but more out of necessity. That's right, Jon and I took turns with a stomach bug, but luckily these latest episodes were relatively minor and well-timed - mine was before our trek and Jon's was after we returned. I am pleased to report that today we are both feeling 'normal,' so I think the worst of it is behind us.

It's a little difficult to say goodbye to such a beautiful mountain backdrop, but tomorrow night we'll be boarding a bus for Lima, the bustling capital of Peru. We're ready to see what this city has to offer, even though I expect it will be a pretty stark contrast to the rugged natural beauty we've come to love here.