Day 5: Huecrucocha to Jancapampa via Tupatupa

Hiking time: ~ 4.75 hours
Elevation gain: 510 m/1673 ft
Elevation loss: 810 m/2657 ft
High Point: Tupatupa 4360 m/14,304 ft
Campsite: Jancapampa 3550 m/11,647 ft

Our day started with a nice easy walk through the valley. Norah got lucky that just as we were going to start our climb to the pass, Joel caught up to us with the horse. Norah rode most of the way to the pass while Steve and I slogged it out. It wasn’t too bad though and all effort was forgotten once we got to the pass and saw the views - fantastic! We also saw pigs at the pass, which was quite unexpected. It took us about 2 hrs and 45 minutes to reach the pass from our camp and we spent well over an hour at the pass enjoying the beautiful day and gorgeous views. We agreed these were the best views on the trip so far.

We had a pretty hike down to our camp at Jancapampa and it took us around two hours. As we descended we started to have nice views of Quebrada Jancapampa and could see the crops and green farmland, which was a contrast to the dryer landscape we had been hiking through. As we got closer to the valley we passed young kids who were minding the grazing sheep and cows and we walked by some houses and farms. We noticed there was actually electricity in this valley (even spotted a satellite), but no running/potable water yet (to be installed). We saw a lot of animals - horses, sheep, goats, cows, dogs, and pigs. Cesar had shown Norah how to scratch a pig’s belly so it will lay on its side for a belly rub and now it was Norah’s turn to give it a try. Success! It was pretty cute.

We had great views of Pucajirca and the glacier at the head of the valley as we walked pretty far to the end to get to camp. Some of the local women were already set up with Cokes and beer for sale when we got there. Steve felt too much pressure and gave me a handful of money to go sort it out. I was able to buy something from everybody and we shared Cokes with the crew (5 soles/$1.50 for a Coke and 9 soles/$2.75 for a beer). Norah quickly became popular with the dogs and often had an entourage waiting around for dog biscuits. We were playing Uno when Cesar came by with a chicken, who would become our dinner. I passed on seeing the guinea pigs that would be dinner the next night. That’s about as farm to table as you can get. Joel made a delicious chicken dish with potatoes and carrots in a sauce, served with garlic rice. Nice end to a great day.

Day 6: Rest day at Jancapampa

We always like to build in a few extra days into our itinerary to allow for rest days and ample time for any schedule changes. Our itinerary wasn’t set in stone and we ended up using a rest day at Jancapampa, which was our halfway point. We slept in and the sun hit our campsite early, so we took our breakfast of fresh fruit and granola outside. Definitely breakfast with a view! Afterwards Steve and Cesar left to explore towards the glacier and Norah and I played a lot of Uno with the guys (they enjoyed the game so much that Norah left Uno with Toni at the end of our trip). Steve and Cesar returned in time for lunch - a medley of beets, potatoes, peas, carrots, and a hard boiled egg. Leftovers were shared with the family on the farm nearby.

We mostly lazed about in the afternoon. I did a lot of reading and Norah and I went for a walk in the valley. Norah was thrilled by one of our rare cat sightings and I thought for sure we would end up with a cat in our tent (she reluctantly left the cat where we saw her). We were camped by a stream and I pointed out to Norah that the local women spent hours doing their laundry by the river - literally pounding the clothes with rocks - and she can never complain again about chores. Dinner was cuy, which I wasn’t too enthused about, so mostly ate the rice and french fries (leftovers were again shared with the local families, so that worked out). Moonrise was still later, so we enjoyed another opportunity to observe the night sky. All rested up - ready for our big climb the next day!