San Marco, Perú

I stopped at a small town called Chavín named after the Chavín de Hauntar culture whose ruins are located there, with great underground tunnels and stone carvings it wS quite cool. I then made myRead more
I stopped at a small town called Chavín named after the Chavín de Hauntar culture whose ruins are located there, with great underground tunnels and stone carvings it wS quite cool. I then made my way to San Marco for the evening.Read more
First artisanal beer I've had in a while, Huaraz is a great stopping point for some hikes, and offers great views of snow topped peaks.
A smaller cozier town with plenty of parades of children, fireworks and a great hike to Laguna Paron!
Stopped here for an hour to change buses but the bus ride from Pallasca to here following the Tablachaca river and down into the Canyon de Pato is one of the most beautiful I've seen. Not written up in any guide book but highly recommended by me.Read more
I ended up in Pallasca as it seemed the next logical move on my trip through the Andes, what I didn't realize is how beautiful this town would be. Sitting on top of a hill and over looking a great valley with mountains as far as you can see the red clay roofs of all the house, the church from 1650 with ornate design and the fresh mountain air all made this my favorite place in the Andes between Huachuco and Huarez.Read more
Stopped here for a night as the bus to my next destination would leave at 4am from there. A charming little village where kids were digging up lines to mark a football field and a daughter and her grandmother took me out to the field to cut alfalfa to feed their Guinea Pigs!Read more
Santa Clara De Tulpo is a small village in the Andes surrounded by beautiful hills and eucalyptus forests where most of the men work. I arrived on the rain and was surprised that in such a small place that didn't have a restaurant open had a brand new hostel with rooms far more luxurious than any I had yet to say in. In order to get a room I had to walk up the Main Street to knock on the house with the green door.
I spent a day wandering the streets and ended up spending most the afternoon talking to a gentleman who told me his life story and fed me lunch! Such great people in these small towns.Read more
Just across the valley from Santiago de Chuco is Cachicadan (Also extremely fun name to say). I caught a van here in the morning from Santiago and checked out their thermal baths. After months of cold showers especially on the Andes where it's quite chilly at night at around 3,000 meters you take advantage of all the thermal baths and warm water you can get!Read more
From Cachicadan I caught a van they call them "Combis" to Angasmarcas another small deserted town that lies beneath a giant rock surfaced hill. Here I waited another 4 hours for another Combi to pass. I sat in the square with my bags and made friends as they passed by. The icecream man, a local woman, a gang of girls playing with a top, and witnessed as various locals pulled horses through the square carrying their goods, a funeral procession passed by as the locals carried the coffin towards the church, and as school let out a swarm of children on blue sweaters smiling and yelling GRINGO as they passed by.Read more
Santiago De Chuco a town smack dab in the middle of the Andes, while having a large population 30,000 it has a small town feel. The only reason I came here is because a man I met in Tarapoto is from here and told me I should check it out. It's also along the way of my detour through the Andean pueblos where there is little transport and very few tourists just the way I like it.
I spent a couple nights and enjoyed the early morning and afternoon sun as so walked the streets and enjoyed the view of the endless Andean hills. I also visited the grave of Perú's most famous poets Cesar Vallejo who was from this town.Read more