Today our team took an acclimitization day hike to Lake Humantay(4,221m), fed by the glaciers of Humantay peak (5,917m.) This is one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever seen in the alpine, with many shades of blues and greens, reflecting the snow capped peak above.
We we had a visit with a Q’ero mystical priest above the lake who performed a traditional ceremony for us. The Q’ero are a Quechua-speaking community who live in one of the most remote places high up in the Pervian Andes where they farm potatoes and herd llamas. Some call them ‘the last of the Inca’ as they fled into the mountains during the Spanish conquest and continued living with the Inca traditions and ways of life and religion.
Everyone is doing great and spending the rest of the day enjoying this beautiful lodge in this spectacular valley; hot tubbing, getting massage, resting and preparing for our big day tomorrow, climbing over Salkantay Pass (15,200/4,638m)!
-Anna Zajicek
