Newsletter #27: The Epic Mountains of Huaraz

Huaraz Day Hikes

 spent my first few days in Huaraz on some shorter day hikes attempting to re-acclimate to the difficulty of breathing back at 12000 feet. I ventured up to Laguna 69 and Lake Churup. My lungs were thankful they had time to adapt as I huffed and puffed my way up the trails. It quickly became clear that Huaraz is an incredibly special place. As I sat beside rugged alpine lakes looking up snow capped peaks, I couldn’t help images of the Cascades being brought to mind. At Lake Churup, I met someone from California that had spent a summer up in Bellingham doing lots of hiking and MTB. He too was reminded of Washington without any prompting from me, and was raving about how it had some elite hiking and biking trails (so there, it’s not just us Washingtonians that hold this view).

Crazy coincidence – on my Laguna 69 hike, I happened to run into two of my tour mates from Uyuni way back 10 weeks ago on the trail! It was fun getting a chance to catch up with them and hear how the rest of their time in Bolivia and Peru had been.

There’s not a whole lot else to say in words about the hikes themselves. Picture time!

Huayhuash

I could attempt to write out a detailed description on how amazing the Huayhuash was, but however hard I try, it would be difficult to do it justice. So I’m not going to. I’m going to keep it very short and I hope the pictures will continue to speak for themselves.

• My mouth dropped numerous times.
• Eight days spent almost entirely above 13k feet, reaching 15-16k feet every day, is exhausting, even when the hiking isn’t that difficult.
• Jumping in alpine lakes and rivers makes you feel alive.
• It’s not ideal having minor stomach problems when your toilet is a pit in the ground surrounded by a zip up tent. (Thankfully this was only one night, and all the other campsites had proper toilets).
• Fog timely clearing into blue skies creates special satisfaction around views.
• If there’s a viewpoint that’s just a bit further up, go see it. Every single time.

I can’t include nearly as many pictures as I’d like to here. If you want to see the full selection, you can click below.

Tomo Sushi

Lima is consistently regarded as one of the best cities in the world to eat good food. While on a hike in Huaraz, I ended up chatting about Lima with a few folks and they raved about a sushi restaurant there called Tomo. They said that even having been to Japan, this was some of the best sushi they’d ever eaten. Online reviews corroborated their opinion.

I ended up not having quite as much time in Lima as I would have liked to eat good food, but with the day and a half that I had, I figured that this recommendation was good enough for me. As someone who doesn’t generally crave sushi (and hasn’t ever had “outstanding” sushi), I carried a small amount of hesitation as to whether or not it would blow me away like it did so many others.

As I sat as the sushi bar, one of the chefs explained each plate to me as he presented my sushi one kind at a time. As I took my first bite, an audible sigh of satisfaction came out of my mouth as the flavors melted in my mouth. There is no doubt in my mind that it was one of the best first bites of a meal I’ve ever eaten. The second bite was no different, as was the third. Across all of the rolls I tried, every single one blew me away. Even after I was full, I wanted to keep ordering simply so I could keep tasting the flavors. If you’re ever in Lima, I can’t recommend Tomo enough.

For once, I actually remembered to take pictures of each plate. I wish I could let you taste them, but you’ll have to settle for feasting with your eyes.

These Aren’t My Mountains

Grace is from California. She didn’t grow up camping or hiking. When she was 19, a friend took her on her first backpacking trip in the Sierra Nevadas and she was immediately hooked. She spent several summers working at outdoor camps for kids at different parks around the US. She completed a good portion of the Colorado Trail before an injury forced her to return home. She studied abroad in Nepal and had the opportunity to hike to Everest base camp, and elsewhere around the Himalayas.

After a few days of hiking through the Huayhuash, I asked her where her favorite place she’s ever hiked is as we looked up at some of the most perfect mountains I’d ever seen.

Her response? The Sierra Nevadas. I was slightly surprised. I’ve never hiked there, but I’ve seen pictures. They’re gorgeous, but I’ve also seen pictures of the Himalayas. Plus, I was looking at the incredible mountains right in front of me.

I asked her why. What made the Sierras so special?

I think it’s because the Sierras are home. I have so many memories there. It’s where I fell in love with the mountains. All the other places I’ve been have been beautiful, but they don’t carry the same importance that the Sierras do for me. They aren’t my mountains.

They aren’t my mountains. I immediately understood.

As I thought about my own response to the same question, I couldn’t help but land at the equivalent answer. Washington, the North Cascades, the PNW. With alpine lakes, volcanoes, larch trees, meadows filled with wildflowers, rainforests, I’m fully convinced that Washington has some of the most beautiful natural landscapes in the world. I also believe it’s one of the most underrated mountain destinations in the world (but shhh, don’t tell anyone. I’m not opposed to keeping it that way).

As confident as I am that my answer is objective, I recognize that beauty is subjective. I think back to so many conversations I’ve had in the past half year where other people held similar views about the areas close to their homes. There’s something special about appreciating what’s right outside your door.

It feels like a long time since I’ve been in my mountains. I must say, I’m ready to be back in them. I consider myself very fortunate to live next to such beautiful trails, and I don’t take nearly enough advantage of it as I wish I did. That is one of my highest priorities returning to Seattle in July is to be in the PNW mountains, and remind myself of all Washington has to offer. Hiking abroad is fun, but it never quite feels like home.