idonotwantapickle.com / People ask why "Follow the White Rabbit". Whether you take it literally or metaphorically. Following the white rabbit means, to follow an unlikely clue, an innocuous unbelievable sign, to find oneself in the midst of more or less normal to extraordinary, marvelous, amazing circumstances that challenge one's fundamental beliefs, expands one's horizons and or perception of realities, transforms one's perspective and change one's life.
We spent the night in Chivay and the next morning headed out to Colca canyon to see if we could find some condors flying around. When we first arrived there were over 20 flying directly overhead. Way cool and the area is very beautiful. Just a couple of days earlier they had a pretty good earthquake that damaged the church in Mara. That town had been leveled a few years ago and is in the middle of rebuilding.
Leaving Lima by plane it is a 1 1/2 hour flight to Arequipa. It was early evening when the plane set down. Arequipa is the second largest city in Peru with a population of around one million people.
After breakfast we loaded up on the bus to head up into the mountains to visit a national park. Arequipa is at the base of the Volcanos at an elevation of a little more than 7000ft. The Road took us to a salt lake at over 14,000ft and was a ride of over 3 hours. I was pleasantly surprised by the warm salt water. There were flamingos, cara cara, wild vincuna’s, domestic llamas and other wildlife around the lake. I never knew that flamingos would be that high in elevation. . Last night was beautiful with the full or almost full moon. These are some of the pictures off my phone. More to come.
Lima was the first stop on this trip. Arrived late there in the evening. The next day did a city tour then headed for the airport to go to Arequipa.
Lima is a city of 11 million people. It is very clean. I did not realize that it is foggy 9 months of the year and the ocean was always cold. Only here for a few hours then off to the mountains. The food here is amazing. The old downtown is half empty in most of the buildings. Apparently no one is interested in living there. After 8pm it becomes a ghost town. I would have liked to seen that. I mean the old town is beautiful and imagining it empty at night I found rather sad. Could have spent more time here but the mountains were calling. I will add more pictures after the trip.
Went for a little hike the other day. Was planning on taking a trail to town and catching the bus back but got lost. Oh well a beautiful day. Heading out to Peru today!!!!
Sadly the last day of the road trip. Spent 6 hours on the beach then started back to Tumbaco. This drive has taken 8 hours in the past but was 12 hours this time. All roads but one were closed due to landslides from the rain. It was a great trip from the highest peak in Ecuador to the beautiful beaches. Good times for sure.
After the sulfur springs it was time to head out. Las Tunas is a small village that I have visited many times. Very quiet with a wonderful beach. If you want it a lot louder you can head to Montinita a 30 minute drive south. It is the party town on the coast. Just 20 minutes north is Puerto Lopez a fishing town that is very busy also. Arrived in Las Tunas just in time to see the sunset and BBQ a steak on the beach.
After a small bike ride around “Agua Blanca” in the early morning headed for the National Beach Los Frailes. It was a round trip ride of 36km (22 miles). Was a great ride to a beautiful beach and the sun was out with water that is perfect this time of year. After a couple hours here back to Agua Blanca to jump in the sulfur springs.
The first night spent on the coast was in a small indigenous community called Agua Blanca. The area is rich in history. There is a small museum and a large sulfur pool to relax in after you cover your skin with mud. All is surrounded by a tropical forest. Very nice place.
After leaving Parque Cajas the rest of the day was spent driving to the coast. Went from over 4000 meters (13,,123 ft) to 500 meters (1640 ft) in Agua Blanca. The drive out of the mountains was foggy and rainy with many landslides on the road from the rain. That was to bad because you couldn’t really see anything and I bet it was beautiful. Didn’t get to Agua Blanca until after dark.
When leaving Cuenca heading to the coast within 20 minutes you enter the a national park. Parque National Cajas is a beautiful park that has over 700 lakes. Lots of trails to explore. Stopped a took a small hike around one of the more popular lakes. Very nice.
