This Year's Expedition: Peru's Cordillera Blanca

The astonishing natural environment of Peru is the cradle of South America's most magnificent and diverse cultures, which are widespread from the coastal plains to the high Andes and the Amazonian forest. The Andes nurtured over 20,000 years of Pre-Columbian evolution and spawned 21 major cultures.

The Cordillera Blanca, in the heart of the tropical Andes is Peru’s showpiece, a wonderland of ice-encrusted peaks glistening against the bright blue sky. This iced-draped world rivals the Himalayas in alpine grandeur. Protected by the Huascarán National Park, this mountain range encompasses many of the highest peaks of the Andes; scarcely a corner of the park lacks a dramatic view of towering peaks, precipitous gorges, hundreds of colorful lakes, and abundant wildlife.

Huascaran National Park is internationally recognised as a Biosphere Reserve under UNESCO's Man and the Biosphere program and inscribed on the World Heritage List. It is the home of El Huascaran which at 6,768m is the highest peak in Peru.

The Cordillera Blanca runs parallel to the Cordillera Negra, forming the impressive Callejón de Huaylas Valley. Here, the Andean mountains have nurtured 12,000 years of cultural development from Guitarrero Cave to the highly developed Chavín de Huántar Culture. The rural descendants of this people have remained virtually untouched, and numerous archaeological remains provide an opportunity to gain insight into the cultural achievement of a glorious Inca past. Ceremonial remains, and even mummies found in the top of snow-capped peaks, recognizes Peruvians as the oldest climbers recorded in the history of mountaineering.

This year's trek was by far the most demanding trek that our team has yet undertaken. We left Toronto on May 19th and returned the morning of June 7th. The total trekking journey lasted 13 days and was composed of 3 phases:

1. 2 days warm up hike to Machu Pichu,
2. a 1 day altitude acclimatization leaving from Huaraz, and
3. 10 days crossing the Cordillera Blanca

The primary objective of our trek was to assess our ability to handle altitude, as we aim to increase the heights that we scale each year. And this trek certainly did the job!

The following is a synopsis of our journey. It was an adventure that none of us will ever forget for the beauty of the mountains, the kindness and hospitality of the people, and the wondrous remnants of their ancient civilizations.

REMEMBER: You can click on the images of this blog to see them better.