Now I am in Lima at my Hostel. I just got back from the parks that are in Miraflores. I spent most of the day just thinking back on my experience, and watching the ocean before I have to go back home.
I had a fantastic time. Taking the time to volunteer in another country was one of the best things I have ever done in my life. And definately one of the most rewarding. Getting to see out people live in another part of the world and seeing how they can be happy even when all the odds are against them has inspired me to take a deeper look into what is truely important in my own life. If I have learned anything from this experience it is that I want to do it again. I am not sure where or how but I definitely know that I want to make volunteering something that I don´t just do once or twice but something that I do through out my life in many different ways.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Day 30 - 33
So this entry will be all about my experience in the Jungle. I left the volunteer house on the 3rd of July at 8 AM for the last time. I stole one last glance at the door and security gate as I slipped into the back of the Taxi and spead off toward the airport. (That is a good as I can do making this look like an actually interesting story haha)
I arrived in Puerto Maldonado around 10 AM and was met there by the other two poeple on my tour and our guide. On the same tour I had there was a couple from San Fransico CA. They where really great. Also doing the same tour but with another guide where 4 men from England who where quite funny haha. Anyway we arrived at the Lodge office and got fitted for our rubber boots. I figured this was pointless and I would rather walk in the mud barefoot but then they told me that there could be bugs and frogs in the mud that are poisonous so I conceeded and put on the boots haha. However to my delight it was still quite fun and humorous to walk in the mud even with the boots. It had just rained their the day before so the trail to the lodge was pretty bad. at some places the mud got to about a 1 1/2 ft deep. After our walk which was about 2 km we got into some canoes and they rowed us across Lake Sandoval to our lodge. The Lake is a motor free zone so the entire trip we were in canoes. Which made things really nice, quiet, and peaceful. It also allowed us to get much closer to the wild life than you would normally be able to so that was night. All of our meals where included with the trip so we had breakfast lunch and dinner at the same times every day and the chefs prepared a wide variety of Peruvian dishes for us to try. The great thing about my group was that the couple I was with was vegetarian, and most of the meals had meat in them. Now the chef did make them their own dinners, but every once in a while he forgot so I got extra food haha. And I love extra food.
The lodge was very nice and very basic. We only had electricity at specific times during the day and hot water was powered by propane. I myself didn´t ever get any hot water, but that was ok. It was pretty warm in the rain forest so a cold shower wasn´t too bad.
Our first day was a pretty relaxing one. Well it was supposed to be. I played soccer (futbol) with the local staff and I hurt my ankle again haha. I am pretty sure everyone that knows me is roling their eyes and going Oh Chase... you never learn do you. Well NO I DON´T haha. After dinner we had a night walk through a trail that started near the Lodge. We saw a whole bunch on night life. Mostly insects, we did manage to spot a Black Caiman baby on the bank of the Lake. And we saw the two resident types of Trauanchula that live near the lodge. The Chicken Trauanchula, and the another one I can´t remember the name of haha. After the walk it was bed time.
Our second day started early, around 5 AM. We had breakfast and got out on the lake to see some of the local bird life, and 3 of 6 different types of monkeys that live around the lake. The Squirrel monkey, the red howler monkey, and another type that I can´t remember haha. We were also trying to catch a glimpse of the family of Giant Otters that make this lake so special. Sadly we weren´t lucky enough to spot them. Later that day we had a walk around the lodge in the medicinal garden, where our guide explained about some of the local plant life and how the locals use them for medical purposes. It was really interesting and I tryed to take a lot of pictures haha. Also we went on another jungle trail and our guide showed us some of the different trees that live there including the Brazilian knut tree. Which gets extremely large. That night we went back out on the lake to see some more birds and monkeys and to spot the Black Caiman. We rode around the edge of the lake and shinned our flash lights across the water trying to get a reflection from their eyes. We saw a few big ones that where about 3 meters but it was way to dark to take a picture haha.
Again we woke up around 5 AM and went back out on the lake for another crack at seeing the Giant Otters, after that we went on a nature walk to see some of the bird life. When we finished that we crossed the lake and had breakfast on the boats. We went for a jungle hike in the early afternoon, and that was where the fun happened haha. Our guides where showing us some of the vines that grow on the larger trees. and I might have been messing around and trying to be Tarzan haha, I have videos they are funny. Anyway I was standing there watching someone else when one of the guys from England said there was a big snake behind us. I turned around and was like wow that is a big snake. So I pulled out my camera and was trying to take a picture. I said to my self well this stinks I really wish I could see the head. Then I looked at the view finder on the camera. There it was! The head about 3 ft from my foot. And that was when the guide recognized the snake and was like. WOW this is an Anaconda. Suddenly I didn´t think where I was standing was the best spot haha. We all gave the snake a wide birth and started to take pictures. I shot a short video and that was when the snake decided to move on across the path toward the river. when it was almost by us. I asked the guide if I could touch it. He said I could but we couldn´t take any pictures because they shouldn´t let me haha. So sadly I have no pictures but that was one of the best experiences of my life. It was really intense to know I was petting a wild Anaconda, I was touching a snake that was about 12 ft long about 6 inches thick, and would have no problem deciding that it had had enough and try and hurt or kill me haha. It was awesome! After that we made our way back to the lodge where none of the other guides believed us until we showed them our pictures. Aparantly they are extremely rare in the Lake Sandoval area. In the evening we went out on the lake one last time to see the Otters but had no luck. One the way back we got caught in the rain which was another awesome experience. I was soaked in seconds and I had a ton of fun with the guides before going back inside to get in dry cloths for dinner and bed.
On the last day we woke up around 6 AM and made our way across the lake to the trail back to the lodge office in Puerto Maldonado. Again we got hit with heavy rain, which was awesome because it was already muddy, but it quickly became one big mud pit heehee. After the walk we were taken back to the airport, where I took off to Lima around 12 PM.
I arrived in Puerto Maldonado around 10 AM and was met there by the other two poeple on my tour and our guide. On the same tour I had there was a couple from San Fransico CA. They where really great. Also doing the same tour but with another guide where 4 men from England who where quite funny haha. Anyway we arrived at the Lodge office and got fitted for our rubber boots. I figured this was pointless and I would rather walk in the mud barefoot but then they told me that there could be bugs and frogs in the mud that are poisonous so I conceeded and put on the boots haha. However to my delight it was still quite fun and humorous to walk in the mud even with the boots. It had just rained their the day before so the trail to the lodge was pretty bad. at some places the mud got to about a 1 1/2 ft deep. After our walk which was about 2 km we got into some canoes and they rowed us across Lake Sandoval to our lodge. The Lake is a motor free zone so the entire trip we were in canoes. Which made things really nice, quiet, and peaceful. It also allowed us to get much closer to the wild life than you would normally be able to so that was night. All of our meals where included with the trip so we had breakfast lunch and dinner at the same times every day and the chefs prepared a wide variety of Peruvian dishes for us to try. The great thing about my group was that the couple I was with was vegetarian, and most of the meals had meat in them. Now the chef did make them their own dinners, but every once in a while he forgot so I got extra food haha. And I love extra food.
The lodge was very nice and very basic. We only had electricity at specific times during the day and hot water was powered by propane. I myself didn´t ever get any hot water, but that was ok. It was pretty warm in the rain forest so a cold shower wasn´t too bad.
Our first day was a pretty relaxing one. Well it was supposed to be. I played soccer (futbol) with the local staff and I hurt my ankle again haha. I am pretty sure everyone that knows me is roling their eyes and going Oh Chase... you never learn do you. Well NO I DON´T haha. After dinner we had a night walk through a trail that started near the Lodge. We saw a whole bunch on night life. Mostly insects, we did manage to spot a Black Caiman baby on the bank of the Lake. And we saw the two resident types of Trauanchula that live near the lodge. The Chicken Trauanchula, and the another one I can´t remember the name of haha. After the walk it was bed time.
Our second day started early, around 5 AM. We had breakfast and got out on the lake to see some of the local bird life, and 3 of 6 different types of monkeys that live around the lake. The Squirrel monkey, the red howler monkey, and another type that I can´t remember haha. We were also trying to catch a glimpse of the family of Giant Otters that make this lake so special. Sadly we weren´t lucky enough to spot them. Later that day we had a walk around the lodge in the medicinal garden, where our guide explained about some of the local plant life and how the locals use them for medical purposes. It was really interesting and I tryed to take a lot of pictures haha. Also we went on another jungle trail and our guide showed us some of the different trees that live there including the Brazilian knut tree. Which gets extremely large. That night we went back out on the lake to see some more birds and monkeys and to spot the Black Caiman. We rode around the edge of the lake and shinned our flash lights across the water trying to get a reflection from their eyes. We saw a few big ones that where about 3 meters but it was way to dark to take a picture haha.
Again we woke up around 5 AM and went back out on the lake for another crack at seeing the Giant Otters, after that we went on a nature walk to see some of the bird life. When we finished that we crossed the lake and had breakfast on the boats. We went for a jungle hike in the early afternoon, and that was where the fun happened haha. Our guides where showing us some of the vines that grow on the larger trees. and I might have been messing around and trying to be Tarzan haha, I have videos they are funny. Anyway I was standing there watching someone else when one of the guys from England said there was a big snake behind us. I turned around and was like wow that is a big snake. So I pulled out my camera and was trying to take a picture. I said to my self well this stinks I really wish I could see the head. Then I looked at the view finder on the camera. There it was! The head about 3 ft from my foot. And that was when the guide recognized the snake and was like. WOW this is an Anaconda. Suddenly I didn´t think where I was standing was the best spot haha. We all gave the snake a wide birth and started to take pictures. I shot a short video and that was when the snake decided to move on across the path toward the river. when it was almost by us. I asked the guide if I could touch it. He said I could but we couldn´t take any pictures because they shouldn´t let me haha. So sadly I have no pictures but that was one of the best experiences of my life. It was really intense to know I was petting a wild Anaconda, I was touching a snake that was about 12 ft long about 6 inches thick, and would have no problem deciding that it had had enough and try and hurt or kill me haha. It was awesome! After that we made our way back to the lodge where none of the other guides believed us until we showed them our pictures. Aparantly they are extremely rare in the Lake Sandoval area. In the evening we went out on the lake one last time to see the Otters but had no luck. One the way back we got caught in the rain which was another awesome experience. I was soaked in seconds and I had a ton of fun with the guides before going back inside to get in dry cloths for dinner and bed.
On the last day we woke up around 6 AM and made our way across the lake to the trail back to the lodge office in Puerto Maldonado. Again we got hit with heavy rain, which was awesome because it was already muddy, but it quickly became one big mud pit heehee. After the walk we were taken back to the airport, where I took off to Lima around 12 PM.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Day 28
Before you ask. Not much happened haha, Here in Cusco it has been one thing after another so the other volunteers and I haven't really got much done. But today was a pretty productive day.
It was my last day at the school, which was kind of sad but at the same time I think I am ready to come home. I worked out in the garden as usual and was trying to get everything taken care of before I leave. We harvested our tiny crop of Beetroot, which was interesting haha. They where planted about 6 months ago, and by someone who didn't fully know what they where doing so most of them where to close together. out of a crop of 30 or so we probably only got about 10 good ones haha. But hey live and learn, and get a volunteer who has some experience haha. So they did. But now I am leaving haha. Well after we took care of the beetroot plants and gave them to the kitchen we went back into the garden, and Juan, Ivan, and myself planted a bed of onions. I showed them how to plant using a grid system, and taught them about proper spacing and seed depth. Juan was very interested and I think he learned a lot, which is good. Because it will really help to have a local person who understands what to do. After that I did what I could for the compost pile and gave everything on last water. Then it was time to do one last computer class with Simon, then it was back to the volunteer house.
Due to some bad luck we lost Heather 2 days ago because of a death in the family, and last night we lost Jo to illness. She is currently in the clinic for 2 days. Don't worry she will be fine. It was just bad timing because that meant that we only had Liz, Ivan, Simon, and myself for House Visits. Ivan had to leave for a trip to Southern Peru for a few days, and Simon was busy working with the database for the volunteer office, so that meant only Liz and I were on house visits and that wasn't enough people to do our project so we had to scrap it today. So I spent the rest of the day working on my garden logs, and my volunteer progress paperwork, so I could turn it in so the next volunteers know what I have done and am working on. I finished that around 4 or so and I had some dinner, and I watched Madagasscar 2 which reminded me a lot of the Lion King but was still a funny movie. Well that is about it. Tomorrow I pack and clean my room and apartment, and I will go on one last house visit tomorrow night. Then early Friday morning I am off to the jungle for one last adventure before I come home.
It was my last day at the school, which was kind of sad but at the same time I think I am ready to come home. I worked out in the garden as usual and was trying to get everything taken care of before I leave. We harvested our tiny crop of Beetroot, which was interesting haha. They where planted about 6 months ago, and by someone who didn't fully know what they where doing so most of them where to close together. out of a crop of 30 or so we probably only got about 10 good ones haha. But hey live and learn, and get a volunteer who has some experience haha. So they did. But now I am leaving haha. Well after we took care of the beetroot plants and gave them to the kitchen we went back into the garden, and Juan, Ivan, and myself planted a bed of onions. I showed them how to plant using a grid system, and taught them about proper spacing and seed depth. Juan was very interested and I think he learned a lot, which is good. Because it will really help to have a local person who understands what to do. After that I did what I could for the compost pile and gave everything on last water. Then it was time to do one last computer class with Simon, then it was back to the volunteer house.
Due to some bad luck we lost Heather 2 days ago because of a death in the family, and last night we lost Jo to illness. She is currently in the clinic for 2 days. Don't worry she will be fine. It was just bad timing because that meant that we only had Liz, Ivan, Simon, and myself for House Visits. Ivan had to leave for a trip to Southern Peru for a few days, and Simon was busy working with the database for the volunteer office, so that meant only Liz and I were on house visits and that wasn't enough people to do our project so we had to scrap it today. So I spent the rest of the day working on my garden logs, and my volunteer progress paperwork, so I could turn it in so the next volunteers know what I have done and am working on. I finished that around 4 or so and I had some dinner, and I watched Madagasscar 2 which reminded me a lot of the Lion King but was still a funny movie. Well that is about it. Tomorrow I pack and clean my room and apartment, and I will go on one last house visit tomorrow night. Then early Friday morning I am off to the jungle for one last adventure before I come home.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Day 21-25
Well I am happy to announce my return from the Trek. I know that some of you are disappointed in me having survived. But you will be happy to know that I didn't make it out of there unscathed haha. Yes Chase has been maimed in his battle against the forces of nature. Mostly through his how stupidity and bad luck. On my last day of the trek I slipped on one of the steps and sprained my ankle. But as a true trekker, I continued on the trial for another 2 hours, and then hiked up the imfamous Waynu Piccu mountain as well haha. In hind sight this was probably not the best idea as i am now house ridden for the next 2 days but the victory and the view from the top were worth it haha. So that pretty much covers what I have been doing for today, I watch the entire 4th season of Weeds and I talked to a few people online and sorted out some paperwork and travel stuff for my trip to the jungle. But enough of the boring stuff I'm sure you all want to hear about the jungle.
Well as most of you know I had a surprise on Tuesday when I found out that I was leaving that night. Everything went smoothly and we arrived at our campsite around 9 or 9:30 PM. We went straight to sleep and woke up around 5:30 or 6 AM the next morning. We finished getting our gear ready and made our way to the first control point. There are a few of these control stations along the trail to monitor who is there. After passing the control station we walked for about 2 hours or so and came to our first set of ruins. These ruins are located at the bottom of a valley and are actually not part of the trek, but our guide said that we had time so he took use along a local farmers trail down to the ruins and we spent about 2 hours there. Then it was back to hiking . We were on the trail for another 2 hours or so until we got to a nice look out peak that we took a break for a little while before setting off again to get to camp. We arrived at camp around 3:30 PM and had lunch. At 5:30 PM was tea time and dinner was at 7 PM. After dinner most of us just went straight to sleep because we where all pretty tired. In the morning was a nice rooster wake up call around 6 AM followed by some coca tea and breakfast, we hit the trail around 8 AM. We hiked a little ways to our second control point and get our tickets and everything cleared to enter the Inca trail. Most people believe that the trail begins the first day but this isn't true the first day the trail that you follow is a newly created route for this trek. The actual Inca trail doesn't begin until the second day at the second check point which is at KM 88. From there we had a free day. Since their were no ruins or monuments on along the trail on the second day our guide told us that we could have a free day. We were allowed to walk and enjoy the trail at our own pace. There are 2 break points during the first part of the trail each about 2 hours apart. After that it's another 2 hours to get to the first mountain pass "Dead Womans Pass". Here you have a spectacular view of both sides of the mountain and you can see the Inca trail winding down both sides of the mountain. It is here that you switch from the Inca trail the another modern trail. the reason for this is because around the 1970s a land slide destroyed much of the trail along this stretch of the mountain range, and because of the expense of reconstruction the Peruvian government decided it would be more cost effective to make a different route that went into the valley instead of following the upper part of the mountain range around to the second pass. It was in this valley that we had our second camp. We arrived their around 3:30 PM again and from there it was pretty much the same as the previous night. Again the morning schedule was the same and we hit the trail around 8 AM for the 3rd day of the trek. This day we had 3 different sets of ruins all of which were very interesting. My favorite how ever was probably Sayaqmarkus. This city is located at the first part of the cloud forest and is situated on the outer most peak of the mountain crest. From the city you can see the entire valley and you are eye level with the clouds. For me I think the name should be the heavenly city, but that is just my opinion haha. these ruins are quite extensive and very well kept. The scene is something out of a fairy tail, with a constant mist that surround this ruins and gives them a sort of mystic and magical feel, truly one of the most beautiful sights I have every been to. after that it was a 2 hour hike down to lunch followed by a pretty long hike up to the 3rd pass. Here our guide took us off the main trail to an outlying peak that allowed for a early view of Macchu Piccu and Waynu Piccu Mountains. and just below the pass is another set of ruins that we got to spend some time in. After that it was another grueling 4 hours of treking to get down the final camp and final set of ruins called WinaWayna. Now here is where things get a little dicey haha. In the morning of the 4th day we started at 4 AM. We had breakfast, packed up camp, and made our way to the final control point. Here everyone that is one the trail lined for the controler to open the gates at 5:30 AM. When the gates opened it was a free for all run to get to the sun gate which is normally about 1 1/2 hours away, we did the run in about 45 minutes. It was here that I sprained my ankle haha, damn you stupid rock and crappy vision. haha. Once at the Sun Gate we stayed for about 5 minutes to take pictures and rest then we were off again on another run to get to Macchu Piccu, the reason for this is because there are only 400 people allowed to climb Wayna Piccu every day, and there are around 1,500 people that visit Macchu Piccu every day. For this reason getting a ticket to climb Wayna is very very difficult. out of all the people that were on the trek and were trying to get a ticket which was around 40 or 50 people. Only 8 of us got tickets. After Sara (the other volunteer I did the trek with) and I got our tickets we went on a tour of Macchu Piccu with our guide, then we went for our final hike up Wayna Piccu. This trail is about 1 hour up and 1 hour down and is very very step and difficult. Our guide told us that on average 4 people die a year climbing this mountain. After that we had very little time. We made our way to the bus station and took that down the the lower city. We had some lunch before boarding our train back to Ollantaytambo and from their we took taxi back to our house in Cusco. We arrived around 6:30 PM, showered and went to sleep.
All in all this trek was one of the best experiences of my life and I highly suggest it to anyone that goes to Peru. And if you don't want to go on the Inca trail their are also alternate routes that you can take to get to Macchu Piccu. All of which are supposed to be fantastic.
And for a finishing thought and fun fact. Macchu Piccu is Chetchuwa which is the language of the Incas, now their are two different dialects of this language, and based on where you lived in the time of the Incas you spoke of one of the two. Where Macchu Piccu is located the name for the mountain is actually in a different dialect. So the correct name of the mountain is Macchu Olko and Waynu Olko.
Well as most of you know I had a surprise on Tuesday when I found out that I was leaving that night. Everything went smoothly and we arrived at our campsite around 9 or 9:30 PM. We went straight to sleep and woke up around 5:30 or 6 AM the next morning. We finished getting our gear ready and made our way to the first control point. There are a few of these control stations along the trail to monitor who is there. After passing the control station we walked for about 2 hours or so and came to our first set of ruins. These ruins are located at the bottom of a valley and are actually not part of the trek, but our guide said that we had time so he took use along a local farmers trail down to the ruins and we spent about 2 hours there. Then it was back to hiking . We were on the trail for another 2 hours or so until we got to a nice look out peak that we took a break for a little while before setting off again to get to camp. We arrived at camp around 3:30 PM and had lunch. At 5:30 PM was tea time and dinner was at 7 PM. After dinner most of us just went straight to sleep because we where all pretty tired. In the morning was a nice rooster wake up call around 6 AM followed by some coca tea and breakfast, we hit the trail around 8 AM. We hiked a little ways to our second control point and get our tickets and everything cleared to enter the Inca trail. Most people believe that the trail begins the first day but this isn't true the first day the trail that you follow is a newly created route for this trek. The actual Inca trail doesn't begin until the second day at the second check point which is at KM 88. From there we had a free day. Since their were no ruins or monuments on along the trail on the second day our guide told us that we could have a free day. We were allowed to walk and enjoy the trail at our own pace. There are 2 break points during the first part of the trail each about 2 hours apart. After that it's another 2 hours to get to the first mountain pass "Dead Womans Pass". Here you have a spectacular view of both sides of the mountain and you can see the Inca trail winding down both sides of the mountain. It is here that you switch from the Inca trail the another modern trail. the reason for this is because around the 1970s a land slide destroyed much of the trail along this stretch of the mountain range, and because of the expense of reconstruction the Peruvian government decided it would be more cost effective to make a different route that went into the valley instead of following the upper part of the mountain range around to the second pass. It was in this valley that we had our second camp. We arrived their around 3:30 PM again and from there it was pretty much the same as the previous night. Again the morning schedule was the same and we hit the trail around 8 AM for the 3rd day of the trek. This day we had 3 different sets of ruins all of which were very interesting. My favorite how ever was probably Sayaqmarkus. This city is located at the first part of the cloud forest and is situated on the outer most peak of the mountain crest. From the city you can see the entire valley and you are eye level with the clouds. For me I think the name should be the heavenly city, but that is just my opinion haha. these ruins are quite extensive and very well kept. The scene is something out of a fairy tail, with a constant mist that surround this ruins and gives them a sort of mystic and magical feel, truly one of the most beautiful sights I have every been to. after that it was a 2 hour hike down to lunch followed by a pretty long hike up to the 3rd pass. Here our guide took us off the main trail to an outlying peak that allowed for a early view of Macchu Piccu and Waynu Piccu Mountains. and just below the pass is another set of ruins that we got to spend some time in. After that it was another grueling 4 hours of treking to get down the final camp and final set of ruins called WinaWayna. Now here is where things get a little dicey haha. In the morning of the 4th day we started at 4 AM. We had breakfast, packed up camp, and made our way to the final control point. Here everyone that is one the trail lined for the controler to open the gates at 5:30 AM. When the gates opened it was a free for all run to get to the sun gate which is normally about 1 1/2 hours away, we did the run in about 45 minutes. It was here that I sprained my ankle haha, damn you stupid rock and crappy vision. haha. Once at the Sun Gate we stayed for about 5 minutes to take pictures and rest then we were off again on another run to get to Macchu Piccu, the reason for this is because there are only 400 people allowed to climb Wayna Piccu every day, and there are around 1,500 people that visit Macchu Piccu every day. For this reason getting a ticket to climb Wayna is very very difficult. out of all the people that were on the trek and were trying to get a ticket which was around 40 or 50 people. Only 8 of us got tickets. After Sara (the other volunteer I did the trek with) and I got our tickets we went on a tour of Macchu Piccu with our guide, then we went for our final hike up Wayna Piccu. This trail is about 1 hour up and 1 hour down and is very very step and difficult. Our guide told us that on average 4 people die a year climbing this mountain. After that we had very little time. We made our way to the bus station and took that down the the lower city. We had some lunch before boarding our train back to Ollantaytambo and from their we took taxi back to our house in Cusco. We arrived around 6:30 PM, showered and went to sleep.
All in all this trek was one of the best experiences of my life and I highly suggest it to anyone that goes to Peru. And if you don't want to go on the Inca trail their are also alternate routes that you can take to get to Macchu Piccu. All of which are supposed to be fantastic.
And for a finishing thought and fun fact. Macchu Piccu is Chetchuwa which is the language of the Incas, now their are two different dialects of this language, and based on where you lived in the time of the Incas you spoke of one of the two. Where Macchu Piccu is located the name for the mountain is actually in a different dialect. So the correct name of the mountain is Macchu Olko and Waynu Olko.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Day 20
Ok this is gonna be short cause I don't have a ton of time. My 4 day trek has been moved up to tonight instead of tomorrow morning because of another strike happening in Cusco. Because of that I have been scrambling to get everything done in time.
Today we went to the school for a construction day. And we got a ton of stuff done. We had a small harvest in the garden of some lettuce and cabbage, and gave that to the kitchens to use in the kids lunches. Then we worked the beds and got them ready for planting. I did a little work with the compost pile, and we watered everything for the next 2 days because we won't be up there tomorrow. After that was the farwell for Sara, Lora, and myself. They included me because it is a big ceremony with the kids from the school and I will only be here for 4 more days after my trek. It was really sweet. the kids gave us flowers, and every kid in the school came around and hugged us haha. It was funny because one of the boys found my tattoo, so I had to hug most of the kids with one arm because the other one was be grabbed, pinched, and poked by the all the kids haha. I have had a wonderful time here and it is really sad to leave.
Today we went to the school for a construction day. And we got a ton of stuff done. We had a small harvest in the garden of some lettuce and cabbage, and gave that to the kitchens to use in the kids lunches. Then we worked the beds and got them ready for planting. I did a little work with the compost pile, and we watered everything for the next 2 days because we won't be up there tomorrow. After that was the farwell for Sara, Lora, and myself. They included me because it is a big ceremony with the kids from the school and I will only be here for 4 more days after my trek. It was really sweet. the kids gave us flowers, and every kid in the school came around and hugged us haha. It was funny because one of the boys found my tattoo, so I had to hug most of the kids with one arm because the other one was be grabbed, pinched, and poked by the all the kids haha. I have had a wonderful time here and it is really sad to leave.
Day 17-19
Sorry for the long absents my loyal follows. HAHA, that makes it sound like this blog is a cult. I like it. Anyway, for all that have been sending me messages on the the subject. Yes I had an amazing time on the river. I would definitely rank the Apurimac among the top rivers I have ever run. It is on its own scale, and I can't really compare it to any of the rivers in the US that I have been on so far. The closest one I would say was the Salmon river.
The Apurimac is about 4 hours North West of Cusco, It is one of the longest rivers in the world, beginning at a glacier as run off water, it passes through part of the jungle and meets with the Amazon river, and continues all the way to the Ocean. The name Apurimac is Chatuwa (native language of the Incas) "Apur" means Guardian or Protector and "imac" means Speaker or To Speak. So the translation is the guardian is speaking or the talking gaurdian. There are 3 runnable sections of the Apurimac, 2 are commercial sections. the one I did, and then another daily section that is a couple hundred kilometers lower. Both are considered class 4 and 5 on over all rapid level and difficulty. the other section is only runnable by private groups and is considered a class 5+ river trip.
My trip was fantastic. Our guides were very knowledgeable and have extensive experience with rivers all over the world. One of our saftey Kayakers is from Napal and has run rivers there, other parts of Europe, the middle east, Africa, all of South America, and Canada. And most of the other guides are about as experienced as well. The first thing to note about the Apurimac was that where we put in was 2000 km above see level. The days are a warm 85 and the nights are almost as warm. Probably around 75 degrees. I didn't even bring a jacket haha. we slept 3 to tent, and the tents are really just to keep the jungle flies off of you. They are nasty little buggers. The camp sites we had, where all beautiful sand beaches, that look similar the those on the middle fork salmon. But the stone and rock formations are comparative to none. On the river there are only 2 seasons, wet and dry. Our guides told me that you can't run the river at all during the wet season because the water level is about 3m higher, and even with a motor, the odds of you controlling your boat are minimal and best. Because of this the walls of the canyon have been rubbed smooth by the high water levels and have eroded the rock in very interesting ways.
Our first day was pretty easy with some class II's and III's and we even had a class IV in there. All of which where really fun. the second day was really intense. with Class III's and IV's and a few class V's. We also had to walk around 2 class V+ that are not run commercially. However, the guides did film them running the rapids so you can all see when I get home. we had lunch and a nice beach for 2 hours and got back on. we rafted for about 8 hours that day, so my shoulders where pretty shot haha. The third day was a blast as well. All class IV's and V's and then 2 more un-runnable rapids. They filmed those as well. I did a little cliff jumping, and my guide let me run a class III out of the raft, which was crazy. It was mostly just a big water rapid but the wave train was pretty intense. I spent most of my time under them haha. After that was take out and clean up followed by a 2 hour drive back to Cusco.
All in all for a commercial trip, it was fantastic. The food was amazing, every meal had 3 courses and was prepared from scratch. The campsites were beautiful, and there was plenty of space for everyone. Since there are only 3 companies that raft the Apurimac we didn't see another person the entire trip which made it that much better. The guides were great and I learned few new tricks for when I get home that I am gonna use on my boat. and they also went into detail about paddle boating, so I learned a ton about how to captain a paddle boat. The rapids where intense and there were tons of them haha. Our guides said they only name the big ones haha. The water was perfect, like glass, and you could see the rocks flowing beneath you, which made the rapids that much better. And Best of all the trip was cheap! I highly suggest it to any one who comes to Peru, and I really want to plan a private trip there in the next few years. So if you interested let me know.
The Apurimac is about 4 hours North West of Cusco, It is one of the longest rivers in the world, beginning at a glacier as run off water, it passes through part of the jungle and meets with the Amazon river, and continues all the way to the Ocean. The name Apurimac is Chatuwa (native language of the Incas) "Apur" means Guardian or Protector and "imac" means Speaker or To Speak. So the translation is the guardian is speaking or the talking gaurdian. There are 3 runnable sections of the Apurimac, 2 are commercial sections. the one I did, and then another daily section that is a couple hundred kilometers lower. Both are considered class 4 and 5 on over all rapid level and difficulty. the other section is only runnable by private groups and is considered a class 5+ river trip.
My trip was fantastic. Our guides were very knowledgeable and have extensive experience with rivers all over the world. One of our saftey Kayakers is from Napal and has run rivers there, other parts of Europe, the middle east, Africa, all of South America, and Canada. And most of the other guides are about as experienced as well. The first thing to note about the Apurimac was that where we put in was 2000 km above see level. The days are a warm 85 and the nights are almost as warm. Probably around 75 degrees. I didn't even bring a jacket haha. we slept 3 to tent, and the tents are really just to keep the jungle flies off of you. They are nasty little buggers. The camp sites we had, where all beautiful sand beaches, that look similar the those on the middle fork salmon. But the stone and rock formations are comparative to none. On the river there are only 2 seasons, wet and dry. Our guides told me that you can't run the river at all during the wet season because the water level is about 3m higher, and even with a motor, the odds of you controlling your boat are minimal and best. Because of this the walls of the canyon have been rubbed smooth by the high water levels and have eroded the rock in very interesting ways.
Our first day was pretty easy with some class II's and III's and we even had a class IV in there. All of which where really fun. the second day was really intense. with Class III's and IV's and a few class V's. We also had to walk around 2 class V+ that are not run commercially. However, the guides did film them running the rapids so you can all see when I get home. we had lunch and a nice beach for 2 hours and got back on. we rafted for about 8 hours that day, so my shoulders where pretty shot haha. The third day was a blast as well. All class IV's and V's and then 2 more un-runnable rapids. They filmed those as well. I did a little cliff jumping, and my guide let me run a class III out of the raft, which was crazy. It was mostly just a big water rapid but the wave train was pretty intense. I spent most of my time under them haha. After that was take out and clean up followed by a 2 hour drive back to Cusco.
All in all for a commercial trip, it was fantastic. The food was amazing, every meal had 3 courses and was prepared from scratch. The campsites were beautiful, and there was plenty of space for everyone. Since there are only 3 companies that raft the Apurimac we didn't see another person the entire trip which made it that much better. The guides were great and I learned few new tricks for when I get home that I am gonna use on my boat. and they also went into detail about paddle boating, so I learned a ton about how to captain a paddle boat. The rapids where intense and there were tons of them haha. Our guides said they only name the big ones haha. The water was perfect, like glass, and you could see the rocks flowing beneath you, which made the rapids that much better. And Best of all the trip was cheap! I highly suggest it to any one who comes to Peru, and I really want to plan a private trip there in the next few years. So if you interested let me know.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Day 16
Today was a very slow day, which is good because I head out for my 3 day rafting trip tomorrow. I will be heading down the Apurimac river. Which is about 4 hours outside of Cusco, I would love to give you the put in and take out areas but as this is a guided trip they aren't seeing it important to put in the itinerary. I guess they are assuming that no one will care anyway. But the trip should be awesome. Day 1 will be class II and III, Day 2 will be class III and IV, and Day 3 will be class IV and V and we will also be walking around some class VI's haha.
Anyway today we had our volunteer meeting in the morning, and that was followed by a cooking lesson with Santusa, I helped make the cake... I know "Irony" haha. After lunch was house visits. We dropped off and built a bed for one family that was fantastic. And then we continued our work on the chimney for the other family. We are almost finished, and one of the local kids tried to make off with my backpack. It was quite cute because it was as big as him. I took pictures before I "walked" him down and took it back, I also applauded his effort haha. Then it was back home for the night.
Anyway today we had our volunteer meeting in the morning, and that was followed by a cooking lesson with Santusa, I helped make the cake... I know "Irony" haha. After lunch was house visits. We dropped off and built a bed for one family that was fantastic. And then we continued our work on the chimney for the other family. We are almost finished, and one of the local kids tried to make off with my backpack. It was quite cute because it was as big as him. I took pictures before I "walked" him down and took it back, I also applauded his effort haha. Then it was back home for the night.
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