Huaraz is at 3050 m/10,000 feet and we could definitley feel the altitude on our first day walking around the city. We all had slight headaches, but some Advil, plenty of water, and a good night's sleep helped alleviate the effects of altitude. The next morning we felt well rested and ready to tackle our fist acclimatization hike to Wilcacocha.

Wilcacocha is located in the Cordillera Negra and is a common first hike when staying in Huaraz. It's a shorter hike, 6.4 km/4 miles round trip with ~ 500 m/1640 feet elevation gain, and on average it takes people two hours to reach the lake (I didn't pay attention to the time, but I think that's about how long it took us).

We met our driver Hacinto and hike companion Alan at eight at our hotel and drove to the trailhead at Chiwipampa, 10 km south of Huaraz. Then we were off!