Huaraz is a funny little town made up of red raw-brick
houses, many only half-built but already inhabited, and all with brightly
coloured washing flapping on roof-top washing lines. Many of the streets are also
‘under construction’ (although the situation seems semi-permanent), muddy and
strewn with random piles of gravel, paving stones and lumps of dug-up concrete.
Walking around can be a challenge, especially after rain, despite the fact that
the resourceful locals have constructed makeshift walkways from boards and
concrete blocks. Only the main street is reasonably well-kept, and lined with
tour agency after tour agency. During the high season, Huaraz is one of Peru’s
most popular ‘adventure tourism’ centres, the surrounding peaks of the Cordillera Blanca (the second highest
mountain range in the world, after the Himalaya) drawing throngs of
mountaineers, climbers and trekkers between May and September. But during the
rest of the year, the little town is pretty dead – apparently a lot of the tour
operators shut up shop and head for the coast J But despite its slightly desolate
feel, the town is still special – because it is located among some of the most
spectacular mountains in the world. There are over 20 summits over 6000m in the
area, including Perú’s highest peak Hauscarán
(6768m) and the picture-perfect Artesonraju
( 5999m - rumour has it that it was the inspiration for the Paramount Picture
logo). And in addition to awe-inspiring peaks, the area around Huarez also
boasts glaciers, jewel-like alpine lakes and some of the oldest ruins in Perú.
Although we had originally only planned our stay in the area as a stop-over on
the way north, we quickly decided to stay a few days and explore a little.
Armed
with directions from our friendly host Emilio, we headed off early on our first
day to hike up to Laguna Churup, 4450m
above sea level. After a bone-rattling colectivo ride up to Pitec, around an hour from Huaraz, we began
the (literally) breathtaking ascent. The
hike up was an adventure in itself, offering beautiful views as we climbed up a
steep valley to the base of a narrow waterfall, then a series of steep,
slippery climbs up wet granite rock walls, aided in some places by cables
bolted into the rock-face. We arrived at the top with fingers stiff and cold from
holding on to the cold rock and metal, legs aching and knees shaking. All this
was immediately forgotten when we breasted the last rise and were rewarded by
the sight of the lake itself; a tiny little jewel of a lagoon, changing colour from
slate grey to azure blue to jade green depending on the movements of the sun
and clouds, surrounded by rugged rock
walls and crowned by the towering snow-capped peak of Mt Churup (5493m). Rugged
up in all our warm gear against the mountain chill, we sat mesmerised the play
of reflections and colours in the lagoon’s crystal-clear waters for quite some
time before thick dark clouds started rolling in over the surrounding peaks,
forcing us to retreat to lower (and warmer) ground.
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| Starting our hike from Pitec - on the left the bone-breaker of a bus that brought us up - one of the seats fell out on the way! :P |
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| Upwards - the thin air didn't help at all.. |
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| Looking back down into the valley floor - we have come a long way up already - but still a long way to go |
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| Our fist glimpse of crystal-clear Laguna Churup (if only it was warm enough for a dip!) |
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| Soaking up the amazing reflections |
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| Mount Churup reflected perfectly in the lagoon |
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| The sun making the lake change colour and light up...amazing |
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| Our fellow hikers reflected in the lake |
After an
early night and an altitude-induced deep sleep, we were up again at the crack
of dawn the next day to catch a bus up and over the backbone of the Cordillera Blanca to the next highlight
of the area - Chavín de Huantar.
Nestled in a picture perfect valley lined with a patchwork-quilt of irregularly
shaped fields in every shade of green you can imagine, the ruins of Chavín were
built more than 3000 years ago by one of the continent’s oldest civilisations. The
ruins are the remains of a holy city, including two central ceremonial squares,
several temples and a maze of underground tunnels, many lined with etchings of
pumas, condors, serpents and humans in differing stages of mystical and hallucinogenic
transformations - the high ‘priests’ of the culture are said to have used the San
Pedro cactus to reach a high(er) J
plane of existence and commune with the gods. The walls of the temples were
studded with stylised masks of half human/half animal faces, some of them with
the bulging, rolling eyes and bleeding noses characteristic of those under the
influence of the psychedelic plant. Crawling through low, narrow underground passages,
we saw the original ancient Lanzon,
the carved granite monolith representing the Chavín’s principal deity, a
mixture of man, puma and condor, a literal pillar of strength; apparently it
cannot be removed from its present location, as it was built in such a way that
its removal would result in the collapse of the walls and roof of the entire
tunnel structure (sounds like something straight out of an Indiana Jones film!)
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On our way through the mountains to Chavín
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The patchwork-quilt valley which is home to Chavín
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| A scale model of the site of Chavín - the lower square was for the 'lower' citizens, only the higher priests were allowed in the nigher, circular plaza where magical ceremonies involving sacrifice and hallucinogens took place |
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| Our very informative and enthusiastic guide Tito - telling us stories with impressive sound effects and wild gestures :) |
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| Serpent steps in the ancient ruins (snakes are apparently a symbol for wisdom) |
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| The main ceremonial square in Chavín - it is built on top of an impressive system of water channels used to create roaring noises to terrify and impress the 'lower' citizens |
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| One of the oldest ceremonial sites in Chavín - originally lined with intricately carved panels and presided over by a giant carved stone obelisk which now resides in the nearby museum |
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| The Obelisk - carved with symbols of power, including pumas, condors and the decapitated heads of enemies |
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| One of the many carved panels which previously lined the walls of Chavín |
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| An artist's rendition of the main ceremonial site, complete with carved paneling and shell trumpets |
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| The holy Lanzon - symbolic and literal pillar of strength |
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| Inside the extensive tunnel system under Chavín |
During our
tour and later in the adjacent museum (VERY impressive, founded by the Japanese
government in 2008) we heard stories of animal and human sacrifice, of
extensive astronomical knowledge, and of how the high priests retained control
over the masses – using mystical noises produced by shell trumpets, and a sophisticated
system of water channels running down from the mountains underneath the city to
create intimidating roaring reverberations, supposedly messages from the gods.
We were seriously impressed these exceptional feats of 3000-year old
engineering; towering walls, mazes of tunnels and hidden chambers which have
withstood not only time, but numerous violent earthquakes which destroyed many
of the surrounding towns. It seems modern man would do well to take some
building lessons from these ancient architects!
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| Shell trumpets used in Chavín ceremonies - transported all the way from Ecuador - proof of the extent of the Chavín culture's influence |
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| One of the masks depicting a 'high' priest - the rolling eyes and bleeding nose are indications of the use of San Pedro cactus as a hallucinogen |
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| Evidence of the brutality of the Chavín culture - a drinking vessel depicting the decapitation of an enemy |
We arrived
in Huaraz not expecting much, but the breathtaking mountains, brilliant lakes
and extraordinary history made us wonder why the area is considered to be ‘off-the-beaten-track’
– although after our tourist-trap-overload in Cusco, the relative emptiness of
the place only added to its appeal! At the risk of ruining the tranquility of
the area – we can really recommend a visit to the Cordillera
Blanca.
