October 4: Exploring Huacawasi

The weather gods didn’t cooperate. The difficult option for today involved leaving the lodge at 7AM, and hiking over two mountain passes at elevations over 14,000ft. At the top of one of the passes a special lunch was to be prepared by the local people. And there are lakes and it is quite beautiful. Unfortunately, the mist, or cloud cover was sitting over us here at 12,585 ft, and there was the threat of rain and thunderstorms. So, being unclear on what might actually be the beautiful vistas with this weather, I opted for the moderate option. Four others headed out on the big hike. It’s 4PM, and they aren’t back yet; but I’m anxious to hear about their trek.

We hiked out of the lodge and down across the little river below, and picked up an old Inca trail that runs along the mountain opposite the lodge. The mist was above us, and our direction was downhill about 1,000 ft in elevation to the town of Lares. And while it was misty and there were occasional sprinkles of rain, and the temperature outside required some bundling up, the hike was perfect for 7 of us. We walk through farm land mostly, and watched alpacas as they posed for photos, and sheep as they cut the grass of a soccer field. There was evidence that farmers had recently planted potatoes and the fields were sprouting the green of the first growth.  At one point we came across a woman and her border collie herding some sheep — we didn’t realize they were heading the same direction we were, and quite literally we had to quicken our pace or be overrun by a small flock. I was taking photos and the woman approached and asked to see the photos — they really made her laugh.

Potatoes are the national tuber of Peru. There appear to be over 3,000 varieties and they are served with most meals. It’s clear that its also a major export of the country, and apparently potatoes are so ancient and important to Peru that it’s likely that many countries that currently grow potatoes may have originally gotten them from this country. Farmers are very protective once they’ve planted and we ran into two areas where the locals had sealed off the trail to stop hikers (and others) from walking across their planted fields. We had to find alternative routes to our destination both times. The second time, we had to climb up several hundred feet to another train that ran parallel but higher along the ridge line of the mountain. It was quite a delightful 5 miles.

When we got back to the lodge we were just in time for a cooking class where we were to make our own appetizers. The dish was called Causa Rellena, and became a staple in the War of the Pacific, also known as the Saltpeter War, which was a war between Chile and a Bolivian-Peruvian alliance. It raged from 1879-1884, and was about some coastal land that Chile claimed that had been Bolivian territory. The dish was one that was easy for women to make for their returning soldiers. It’s basically mashed potatoes with some mayo and spices, and then tuna salad squashed between two mounds of the potatoes.  Very easy to make and definitely filling.  And they said it was an appetizer — to be followed by Lomo Saltado, which is like a beef stir fry — combination of Chinese and Peruvian flavors. I didn’t need any more to eat, so was very happy with my delicious Causa Rellena.

Our meeting about tomorrow is at 6:30 so we will hear about our options — I know that one is difficult, and I’m hoping that the weather is clear enough — I’d like to take on that challenge. It was another buen dia in the Andes.