Day 01
Huillcacocha Lake Hike and Cordillera Blanca Views
- You will complete the hiking circuit at the lake, and our guide will pick you up and take you to the public minivan station (private groups - private car).
- We will drive to Chiwipampa along 10 km of paved highway on the south side of Huaraz. Here, we cross the Santa River by a small bridge in the direction of Santa Cruz Village, where we will begin the hike up to Huillcacocha Lake.
- The short trek is a moderate ascent along a local trail for about an hour. During your hike, you will meet local people still wearing their traditional colorful Andean clothes.
- You will pass by their typical adobe houses while taking the opportunity to appreciate the farming fields and observe the crops they grow, such as wheat, barley, oats, corn, and potatoes, as well as other products that are unknown in Europe and the USA.
- Once you arrive at the lake, you may be surprised by the wonderful views of the Cordillera Blanca and the notoriously impressive Huascaran massif, the highest peak in the Cordillera Blanca at 6768 masl.
- There is an alternative trail that crosses to the north side toward the Cordillera Negra and reaches Huascar Village, where the car will wait for the return to Huaraz.
- You can thus avoid taking the same trail back to Huaraz, or you can return to Huaraz the same way if you prefer.
