Santa Cruz, Peru - Polarsteps

Last time for the tent to show its super power and for us to explore the mountain area at high altitude. ⛺🥾We hiked the four-day Santa Cruz trek! The adventure already started on our way to the starting point. The driver had a death wish and was eager to show his driving skills, competing with two other collectivos on the road: not being the first means no passengers = no dinero💸. It was a healthy competition to be ahead of the rest, as long as you define healthy as frightening as can be. At some point we went 100 km/h in a bend with a speed limit of 25 km/h, ooph! 🏎️ When we had to change buses, we first got confused. Nobody asked us where we were going and if we needed a ride.. we needn't worry though, as after a short minute, we got attacked by three bus drivers🤯. Gringo's with backpacks: they knew where we were heading. But don't ask for an exorbitant amount, because we know our prices (looking at you Mr driver, charging us 30 soles for a 10 sole ride!🤨) The last part of the drive took us through beautiful landscapes with lots and lots of hairpin turns! 🛣️ And we got to enjoy the landscapes for the upcoming days. All around us were white peaked mountains 🏔️. All with summits above 6000m. And when we told you the Salkantay-pass was our highest point we ever hiked to: we got a new record! This time a stunning 4850m was the goal for the second day. But man, it was hard! This time we had no mules to carry our paraphernalia. The strange thing is, it is not your legs that feel tired, it is just the lack of oxygen that makes you go so slow and makes you feel like your heart is exploding!😶‍🌫️ On the third day, a little detour took us to a beautiful mirador✨. We took the opportunity of our gas stove and made ourselves a hot cup of coffee to enjoy this beautiful view. Plus, we wanted to wait for the clouds to disappear. And almost when we wanted to leave, it happened! We got some sights on the apparently most beautiful mountain in the world. In the 60s it was voted the most majestic mountain in the world and ever since has been used as the iconic logo of Paramount! (Added a picture to compare). It was a good goodbye to our tent! Each night we had a private campspot. The only creatures we shared it with were the cows. Only Liselot's mattress disappointed her, and it was only until the final night we found the leak and could repair it! Back in Huaraz we spent several hours at the post office, sending our gear back home. Hopefully we reunite with our camping equipment back in the Netherlands! 🤗

Country Guides:

Peru