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Peru
  • Hannah Boe
  • Hannah Boe

Peru

A 33-day adventure by Hannah Read more
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  • Trip start
    February 5, 2020
    Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
    My first mushroom sighting! Street art in Spokane.
    Discovered more mushies during my layover in Seattle

    El viaje a Peru

    February 5, 2020 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 48 °F

    The adventure begins! Getting to the southern hemisphere was quite the journey itself. A snowy bus ride took me from Missoula to Spokane where I hopped on a short flight to Seattle. Some six hours later I took off on my next flight to LAX and spent the night on a bench, cuddling with my luggage. Early Thursday morning I hopped on my next flight to Atlanta, followed immediately by the final leg of the trip, a long flight to Lima. I arrived around midnight, full of equal parts anxiety and excitement. I made it through customs and to my hostel without too much difficulty and settled into bed right away. Even in the middle of the night the heat and humidity of Lima were stifling. The change in hemispheres means it's suddenly summer and the 50+ degree difference between Montana and Peru will take some getting used to. Exhaustion triumphed over muggy discomfort and I drifted off to my first sleep in Peru...Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe

    Paracas

    February 7, 2020 in Peru ⋅ ☀️ 79 °F

    Left the hustle and bustle of Lima right away on Friday morning. A (very comfy) bus took me south along the coast to Paracas, a laid back seaside town. I arrived in the early evening and spent the better part of an hour looking for my hostel. Eventually the owners found me and took me to the hostel which I had walked past at least twice. Had a light dinner of mushroom ceviche and una cerveza at a vegan restaurant overlooking the ocean, then walked down to the beach to stick my toes in the water. Very refreshing on a hot evening!Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
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    Las Islas Ballestas

    February 8, 2020 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 75 °F

    In the morning I took a tour to las Islas Ballestas, a small collection of islands about 25 minutes from Paracas by boat. On the way to the islands we made a stop at la candelabra, an enormous geoglyph carved into the rocky shore 2500+ years ago. Next up was the islands which are home to hundreds of thousands of birds including Humboldt penguins. The sheer number of birds there is incredible and the little group of penguins I saw was a treat! Sea lions also visit the islands this time of year to birth their babies. The rocky shores were full of noisy sea lions and their adorable tiny pups! Overall, it was an excellent excursion. Once ashore I made like the birds and filled up on a lunch of fish two ways, ceviche and fried whole. Both were absolutely delicious! After lunch I meandered around town and splashed around in the water to cool off before heading further south to Huacachina.Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
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    Huacachina

    February 9, 2020 in Peru ⋅ ⛅ 86 °F

    Spent two nights in the Huacachina oasis. It is essentially a tiny lagoon with a few palm trees and reeds surrounded by enormous sand dunes. For a small place it's quite busy, mostly with tourists from around the world and other parts of Peru and the town consists only of hostels, restaurants, and dune buggy/sandboarding tour operators.
    When I left Missoula I was leaving behind some of the season's best powder, but luckily I found that I could shred slopes in Peru, too! I visited Huacachina with one purpose in mind: sand skiing. Most people ride down the massive dunes on sandboards (plywood with straps for your feet) but I managed to find a company renting real snowboard and ski equipment. Not only that, but I found a company with Faction skis!!! (If you don't know what a big deal that is please look up the Candide Thovex Audi ski video. The skis I rode were given to the sand ski company by Candide after they helped him film the sand dune shot.) I spent an epic afternoon riding a dune buggy up mountains of sand and ripping back down on top notch skis. We ended the trip at the top of one of the highest dunes with 360° views and a gorgeous sunset. Nothing beats Rocky Mountain powder, but skiing sand dunes in shorts on an 80° day was one hell of a good time!    Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
    One of a dozen catholic churches in Cusco
    Spanish walls: small stones with mortar2Inca - massive stones cut perfectly to fit together with no mortar!Ceviche is the national dish of Peru. In Cusco it is made from river trout.

    Cusco

    February 11, 2020 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    Monday - Left Huacachina in the dark to catch a bus back to Lima and then a short flight to Cusco which ended in stunning views. As the plane descended below the clouds lush mountains appeared, towering around the plane on either side. I felt the altitude as soon as we landed and the doors opened. At 11,150 feet, the city of Cusco is, quite literally, breathtaking. I made like the locals and munched on some coca leaves which cured the lightheadedness suprisingly quickly. After settling in and relaxing at my hostel for a while I explored the San Pedro market. It's full of every kind of fruit, vegetable, grain, spice, meat, and cheese imaginable and many I had never seen before. Vendors also sell colorful crafts and alpaca clothing. Overwhelmed by all the options and beginning to feel dizzy again, I bought a bag of coca leaves and returned to my hostel for the night.

    Tuesday - At the suggestion of a fellow traveler at my hostel, I spent the morning taking a walking tour of the historic district of the city. My tour guide showed us important historic sites with a focus on what Cusco was like during Inca times, before Spanish colonization. He also showed us the differences between Inca and Spanish architecture which is found all over the city. The tour ended with a ceviche tasting and incredible views of the city.    Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
    View down the valley
    Quechua lesson2San Pedro in bloomOysters!Reishi

    Mushroom Farm

    February 19, 2020 in Peru ⋅ ☁️ 61 °F

    The past few weeks I have been living and working on a mushroom farm in Arin, a tiny town in the Sacred Valley. My time here has been a mix of learning and working, adventuring, and relaxing. Since I haven't managed to make any posts since arriving here, I've decided I'll just post photos and highlights from recent weeks to summarize this experience.Read more

  • Hannah BoePeruHannah Boe
    Itty bitty morel sticking out of a mossy wall
    Slippery JackActive "bios"Stropharia semiglobata

    Mushrooms

    March 1, 2020 in Peru ⋅ 🌧 55 °F

    At the farm, we grow oyster, reishi, lion's mane, and shiitake mushrooms. Lion's mane, cordyceps, and reishi are also grown for their mycelium which is dried and powdered for medicinal use. We forage for slippery jacks and have found a total of three morels.Read more

    Trip end
    March 8, 2020
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