The Cordillera Real area of Bolivia is so beautiful that I decided to stay and explore it on foot at a slower pace than the mountain bike ride provided. I returned to La Paz after waiting out the elections in Coroico. I looked into a guided tour of the "Choro Trek", a 60 plus kilometer hike down a southern stretch of the Inka Trail. The guiding agencies wanted around one hundred american dollars to do this 4 day trek. I smiled and said "gracias, pero no. mas carro!" (thanks, but too expensive) and walked out of the office. I found another traveler with a guide book for hiking in the central andes and asked to photocopy the section on the Choro Trek. It included a map, trail description and suggested hiking times. I packed my pack, checked out of my hostel and caught a bus up to La Cumbre or the pass above La Paz where the trailhead was located. The book said there would be small pueblos where food and clean water could be picked up along the way. So in an effort to keep my pack light (total pack weight is exactly 55 pounds and I left some items at the hostal so I was just under 50 pounds) I purchased only three peices of crusty bread, a bag of cookies and a roll of TP. So far the trip cost me about $3 american dollars, a far cry from the $100 the guides wanted, life is good.
The morning was crisp at the top of the pass but the sky was blue and the sun was starting to warm things a bit. An initial acsent of 1000 meters of altitude got the heart pumping (elevation 13,800 feet) after that it was all downhill, no kidding, eight hours of downhill! The knees were a bit tired but my lungs got a rest on the first day after the initial acsent. The views are spectacular coming through the mountain passes, check out the photos on flickr because I don´t have the words to describe. I passed some Incan ruins along the way, not Machu Pichu mind you, but the trail itself was more beautiful and less crowded than the Inka Trail on the more famous Peruvian stretch. Just after mid day I was feeling very depleted and stopped for a lunch of bread, water and cookies in a small village near a river. I very happily dropped my pack which seemed to weigh 300 pounds at this point in the hike, and used it for a seat. With a stellar view of the river and a rocky mountain backdrop I took out my nutritious and delicious lunch. Only a few moments had passed when I was joined by two very large pigs who had taken a vested interest in my lunch. As I looked around I realized that I had settled in their "pen." So, needless to say, my lunch was less than enjoyable as I spent much of it fending off these two pigs. With some food in my system I gathered my small world that I carry on my back and said goodbye to Wilbur and his girlfriend. The angle of decsent had relented somewhat and the temperature was warmer, I headed off down the trail for the afternoon piece of the days trek.
I found myself becoming more depleted as the afternoon went on. Probably as a result of not having any real food since the day before. The villages that I passed who were supposed to have food to offer did not. After all, everything in this area has to be hiked in, it´s not like there are any roads or rail systems available here. I had my water purifier and there was no shortage of river to draw H2O from so no worries there. I was looking to camp at a village called Cha llapampa a few hours down the trail, surely they would have food there! Late afternoon I finally reached my destination. Totaly depleted, I couldn´t wait to get something to eat, hot or cold, I wanted solid food. I was greeted by some local kids in this village of about 50 0r 60 people. I dropped my pack and rested. The kids wanted to play, wouldn´t you if you lived in the mountains and rarely saw any outsiders? Not speaking much spanish, I couldn´t have conversation with the adults. I needed a place to sleep and some food so I thought it a good idea to keep the kids occupied for a time, a gesture that I could carry out non verbally. Two of them had raquetballs, (I didn´t know they played raquetball in Bolivia) so we all played pass for a while and then it evolved into a soccer game. A time later, my duties done, I inquired about a bed and a meal. They had no problem with me camping but there was no food to be had. Major bummer. I was exhausted from a full day of pounding down rocks with a full pack so I was happy to be able to get horizontal and rest my legs. I dined on cookies and water for dinner, they were some of the best cookies I have ever had.
This story is way too long already so I´ll make the second day brief. It had to be one of the longest days I have ever spent hiking. The lack of real food in my system became a real problem as I worked my way through day two of this four day hike. Much more difficult in that I was acsending and decsending again throught the steep mountain valley's. You will notice very few pictures of this section of the trail, although it was stunningly beautiful, I hadn´t the energy to enjoy it. My body was burning huge amounts of callories and I was not fueling it. I was fortunate to come across a village of about 5 stone buildings. One of them sold water, Coca cola and candy bars. Not a hearty Snickers bar mind you but sugar none the less. I bought 10. The man was very happy, he hadn´t done this much business in weeks. They got me through to the next campsite which was a spot on the side of a ravine wall overlooking the valley both up and down the river, an amazing place. The land was owned by a Japanese man who had settled here many years ago. He charged me ten bollivianos, or about one dollar and fifteen cents. I paid it, after all he had worked to flaten some spots so a tent could be laid down.
Day 3. I woke up to rain and the blisters I had developed over the last two days had not shown any signs of drying out or getting better. I so love that feeling of putting on boots over raw, blistered, sore feet. This is why I hike. Today, however, was to be a good day. It was a short day, only four hours of hiking and I could camp in the town of Chairo. To my suprise I dropped out of the mountains and into Chairo within three hours. Even better still, I was able to get an almuerzo or hot lunch. A plate of hot rice, a piece of beef, a fried plantain and a bottle of coke. I was in heaven! I had fuel in my system. It was raining and the town was miserable. I decided to continue hiking to Coroico. It would make a collosal day but I had been to Coroico and it had all the amenities; hot shower, a bed, as much food as you had money! I was doing it, I couldn´t picture sitting in this dreary town for 9 hours until it got dark and still being there when I woke up. So off I went, no longer on the Inka trail, it was now a dirt road. Not as pretty a walk as the previous two and a half days but it was flat and I was tired. I carefully made my way past more than a few angry dogs protecting their homes (unlike home, dogs are not tied and they are encouraged to keep passers by at bay). I was most of the way to Coroico, the latter part a steep uphill, when a man I had talked with in Chairo had driven by and stopped. He offered a ride and I gladly accepted a lift up the last 3 kilometers of hill into town.
The story ends with a shower and a meal on what happened to be Christmas Eve. After a good nights sleep in a bed I woke up to a warm, sunny Bolivian Christmas in the jungle. The impression you got may have been that it was a miserable trip but it really was not. Day 2 was difficult because I didn´t have the proper fuel in my body. Regardless, the scenery was phenomenal and the experience was one that I will not soon forget. As time passes, you do forget about the sore muscles and the blisters, you only remember the sun shining down and the mountains and green, plush jungle. It´s a good life.
Keep on keepin' on! Jeff.
The morning was crisp at the top of the pass but the sky was blue and the sun was starting to warm things a bit. An initial acsent of 1000 meters of altitude got the heart pumping (elevation 13,800 feet) after that it was all downhill, no kidding, eight hours of downhill! The knees were a bit tired but my lungs got a rest on the first day after the initial acsent. The views are spectacular coming through the mountain passes, check out the photos on flickr because I don´t have the words to describe. I passed some Incan ruins along the way, not Machu Pichu mind you, but the trail itself was more beautiful and less crowded than the Inka Trail on the more famous Peruvian stretch. Just after mid day I was feeling very depleted and stopped for a lunch of bread, water and cookies in a small village near a river. I very happily dropped my pack which seemed to weigh 300 pounds at this point in the hike, and used it for a seat. With a stellar view of the river and a rocky mountain backdrop I took out my nutritious and delicious lunch. Only a few moments had passed when I was joined by two very large pigs who had taken a vested interest in my lunch. As I looked around I realized that I had settled in their "pen." So, needless to say, my lunch was less than enjoyable as I spent much of it fending off these two pigs. With some food in my system I gathered my small world that I carry on my back and said goodbye to Wilbur and his girlfriend. The angle of decsent had relented somewhat and the temperature was warmer, I headed off down the trail for the afternoon piece of the days trek.
I found myself becoming more depleted as the afternoon went on. Probably as a result of not having any real food since the day before. The villages that I passed who were supposed to have food to offer did not. After all, everything in this area has to be hiked in, it´s not like there are any roads or rail systems available here. I had my water purifier and there was no shortage of river to draw H2O from so no worries there. I was looking to camp at a village called Cha llapampa a few hours down the trail, surely they would have food there! Late afternoon I finally reached my destination. Totaly depleted, I couldn´t wait to get something to eat, hot or cold, I wanted solid food. I was greeted by some local kids in this village of about 50 0r 60 people. I dropped my pack and rested. The kids wanted to play, wouldn´t you if you lived in the mountains and rarely saw any outsiders? Not speaking much spanish, I couldn´t have conversation with the adults. I needed a place to sleep and some food so I thought it a good idea to keep the kids occupied for a time, a gesture that I could carry out non verbally. Two of them had raquetballs, (I didn´t know they played raquetball in Bolivia) so we all played pass for a while and then it evolved into a soccer game. A time later, my duties done, I inquired about a bed and a meal. They had no problem with me camping but there was no food to be had. Major bummer. I was exhausted from a full day of pounding down rocks with a full pack so I was happy to be able to get horizontal and rest my legs. I dined on cookies and water for dinner, they were some of the best cookies I have ever had.
This story is way too long already so I´ll make the second day brief. It had to be one of the longest days I have ever spent hiking. The lack of real food in my system became a real problem as I worked my way through day two of this four day hike. Much more difficult in that I was acsending and decsending again throught the steep mountain valley's. You will notice very few pictures of this section of the trail, although it was stunningly beautiful, I hadn´t the energy to enjoy it. My body was burning huge amounts of callories and I was not fueling it. I was fortunate to come across a village of about 5 stone buildings. One of them sold water, Coca cola and candy bars. Not a hearty Snickers bar mind you but sugar none the less. I bought 10. The man was very happy, he hadn´t done this much business in weeks. They got me through to the next campsite which was a spot on the side of a ravine wall overlooking the valley both up and down the river, an amazing place. The land was owned by a Japanese man who had settled here many years ago. He charged me ten bollivianos, or about one dollar and fifteen cents. I paid it, after all he had worked to flaten some spots so a tent could be laid down.
Day 3. I woke up to rain and the blisters I had developed over the last two days had not shown any signs of drying out or getting better. I so love that feeling of putting on boots over raw, blistered, sore feet. This is why I hike. Today, however, was to be a good day. It was a short day, only four hours of hiking and I could camp in the town of Chairo. To my suprise I dropped out of the mountains and into Chairo within three hours. Even better still, I was able to get an almuerzo or hot lunch. A plate of hot rice, a piece of beef, a fried plantain and a bottle of coke. I was in heaven! I had fuel in my system. It was raining and the town was miserable. I decided to continue hiking to Coroico. It would make a collosal day but I had been to Coroico and it had all the amenities; hot shower, a bed, as much food as you had money! I was doing it, I couldn´t picture sitting in this dreary town for 9 hours until it got dark and still being there when I woke up. So off I went, no longer on the Inka trail, it was now a dirt road. Not as pretty a walk as the previous two and a half days but it was flat and I was tired. I carefully made my way past more than a few angry dogs protecting their homes (unlike home, dogs are not tied and they are encouraged to keep passers by at bay). I was most of the way to Coroico, the latter part a steep uphill, when a man I had talked with in Chairo had driven by and stopped. He offered a ride and I gladly accepted a lift up the last 3 kilometers of hill into town.
The story ends with a shower and a meal on what happened to be Christmas Eve. After a good nights sleep in a bed I woke up to a warm, sunny Bolivian Christmas in the jungle. The impression you got may have been that it was a miserable trip but it really was not. Day 2 was difficult because I didn´t have the proper fuel in my body. Regardless, the scenery was phenomenal and the experience was one that I will not soon forget. As time passes, you do forget about the sore muscles and the blisters, you only remember the sun shining down and the mountains and green, plush jungle. It´s a good life.
Keep on keepin' on! Jeff.
posted by Phlip | 9:29 AM
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