Driving into Peru was a bit of a shock. Literally 2m after passing the border (and for hundreds of kilometers along the coast after that) the sides of the roads were full of thrash. We had been warned that the North of Peru was dirty but we did not expect this. What made it very remarkable was that the roads in Ecuador had been extremely clean. Crazy how the mentality (or is it the policies) in two neighboring countries can differ this much.
After two months in the high Andes, the kids wanted to go back to the sea. Still slightly traumatized by the humidity and heat of Central America, we were a bit hesitant to come down the mountains. But the Northern Peruvian coast during winter has nothing to do with that tropical heat. The climate reminds us of Baja California. It is the last chance for the kids to play in a warm Pacific Ocean on this trip. From here on the ocean will start to get very chilly. It is hard to pull them away from the beach but we have a long drive ahead of us to the Cordillera Blanca.
The Tumbas Reales de Sipan museum is the perfect break in that long drive along the Northern Peruvian coast. The story of the discovery of these tombs is quite interesting. In the 1980’s, a local archaeologist noticed all kind of unique pieces were popping up on the black market. In true Indiana Jones style, he found out that ‘grave robbers’ were active somewhere in the region. Together with the police, he was able to find and secure the site. The local people were however not prepared to give up ‘their treasures’ and had already sold a lot of artifacts overseas. Luckily, they had not found the most important graves yet. The content of those are now on display in this very cool museum. A lot of the people from the Sipan village were trained in the archeological work and some still work for the museum. This way they are still benefiting from ‘their treasure’. The museum is not only about the treasures found in the grave but also teaches us a lot about the burial rituals at that time. To make sure they would not be alone in the ‘after life’, we learn that a king (or high priest) was never buried alone. In the grave of the king, the archeologists discovered the bodies of his army chief, several servants & bodyguards, his first wife, his dog and even one of his children! All of them had to accompany him in the grave during the funeral.
After the museum visit that took longer than expected, we spend the night at a truck stop along the highway. We almost never sleep in these kind of places, but in this region, safety is really an issue and this place was recommended to us.
After another long drive through the coastal deserts, we arrive in Huanchaco, one of the places in the world that claims to have invented surfing. Since ages, the local fishermen go out on reed boats and surf the waves when they come back in. They still use the same boats today.
In nearby Trujillo, we visit two historic sites (and sleep next to a third one) on the outskirts of town. The Chan Chan ruins (1300 AD) are all that is left of the biggest Pre Colombian city that was ever discovered. Only a small part has been restored. The rest of this magnificent city looks just like sand dunes with highways and settlements across and on top. The Huaca de la Luna site is even older (100-600 AD – Moche civilisation) and has been carefully restored after it was discovered and looted by ‘grave robbers’. The bigger Huaca del Sol is just across the plain, but here restoration has never started. It’s a story we will hear more in Peru. The country is simply littered with amazing ruins and there are not enough funds to even start restoration for most of them. We spend the night in the garden of a restaurant that is built against this amazing structure and uses the pyramid as their back wall.
After another a long drive along the coast, we take the turn off to do one of the most famous road trips in Peru (and South America): the Cañon de Pato. For a long time, we thought it would not be possible to drive this road with our van. But after talking to several other overlanders who had driven it recently, we gave it a try anyway. It was ‘hard work’ driving up. There are a lot of potholes, the road is sometimes narrow with deep drop offs, but it was definitely not as dangerous as some people make it sound. Once up in the Cordillera, we base ourselves in the small town of Caraz. After the grey desert and near permanent mist in the coastal region of the north, it is great to see blue skies and all the colourful dress. And then we have not even seen any of the colorful lagunas yet.
Our first laguna is Laguna Paron. We take a taxi up because the last part of the road was a bit too rough for our van. The elderly taxi driver (‘Grandpa’ as the kids called him) drove up like a mad man or race pilot as you wish. The hike was short but the views were amazing, a deep blue lake with snow covered mountains all around.
The next weeks we do plenty of hikes in those mountains and without an exception this involves driving the backroads of the Cordillera Blanca. The roads are all gravel, sometimes (very) narrow but mostly in good shape and not too steep (if you do your homework and pick the right ones, that is). Even though there is always a bit of stress (Will our 2WD campervan be able to pull it off?), we seem to be drawn to these roads over and over again. Not only are the views of the mountains amazing but the roads also give a good idea of what rural Peru looks like. And there are always opportunities to shop straight from the field.
The most beautiful hike we did in this region was the hike to Laguna 69. The lagunas here are named after the glacier by which they are fed. It seems there used to be so many glaciers and not enough inspiration …A problem that will resolve itself pretty soon. We hike ttogether with Veerle and David, a Belgian couple on motorbikes, who we had been following online for months. The hike to the lake was a tough one: 15km and 1000 altitude gain to 4600m. We feel that after a week by the sea, we have lost some ‘altitude power’ again. Especially the last 80 vertical meters are ‘killer’. But the scenery is amazing. It actually reminds u a lot about the Himalaya in Nepal. As usual when they meet Dutch speaking people, the kids cannot stop talking… So David & Veerle have to listen to all the stories of our trip so far.
In between the hiking we do another road trip. Highway 107 is an absolute stunner! And it’s paved! It goes straight across the Cordillera Blanca and over a 4750 m pass with the highest tunnel in the world. The enormous glaciers feel within touching distance. And we actually nearly missed all this. The only reason we drove up this one, was that we were too ‘beat up’ after the Laguna 69 hike to do another hike that day.
Our next hike to Laguna 513 hike has been announced as the ‘next big thing’ for years. But getting there is not easy! So there are only a few people hiking this trail every day.
It is an exciting drive up, on steep narrow gravel roads through the villages. The GPS told us that there was no road for the last 4 kilometers, so we had to trust fellow travellers that told us the road did continue. The hike itself is hard but so beautiful. The kids only just recovered from their cold, but do great again. The reward is the most beautiful lake we saw in Peru and competing with the most beautiful lakes we saw in Canada last year.
From our basecamp in Carhuaz we drive back down to the coast in two days. We spend the night near Laguna Conococha. There, after a cold night, we go check out the Flamingos in the morning before dropping down 4100m to sea level.
Where the valley meets the plains near the coast, we come across several huge fields where chili peppers lie drying in the sun.
Our last stop before going to Lima is Caral: ‘the world class historical site that you have never heard of’. This site was ‘discovered’ by archeologists about 30 years ago. The sacred city dates back to 5000 years ago which makes it one of the oldest cities in the world. It developed around the same time as cities in Mesopotamia, Egypt and China. Some even claim that it was the first city in the world. Just for reference, Machu Picchu (the most famous site of Peru) is only about 600 years old. The Caral site consists of 6 pyramids, several amphitheaters, courtyards and other religious buildings.
So how come you have never heard of this site? Well maybe because only a small part has been restored so far. The mighty pyramids look more like glorious piles of rocks with some restored elements. And the story here is the same as we heard at sites near Trujillo. “There are so many sites in Peru and not enough funds for conservation and restoration”. But how can a site that is older and (if restored in a similar way) more impressive than the pyramids of Giza not be ‘THE’ top priority for restoration? Maybe, as some say, because “Peru will rather invest in its ‘Inca cash cow’ than developing amazing sites like this. We really loved our visit. And we really hope that one day this site will get the funds, attention and visitors it deserves. And maybe even give Machu Picchu a bit of competition. Before that happens, there is some work in accessibility though. To get there we bumped, bounced and rattled over 30 km of gravel roads, used almost only by local farmers. Oh and the site can only be reached by vehicle during the dry winter months as a river needs to be crossed to get there and there are no funds to build a bridge…