Alpamayo Expedition

Lima is one of the most vibrant cities on the Pacific coast and a great place to start our expedition together. The first day is arrival day. You’ll be met by a member of the LHO team and taken to our accommodation in the Miraflores district of the city. Your LHO Team Leader will be waiting for you at the hotel to check you in. We usually do gear checks shortly after you arrive to make sure you have everything you need for our upcoming adventure.

Our hotel is located in a very walkable part of the town filled with market streets, coffee shops, bars, and a beautiful seafront boardwalk. Your LHO Team Leader will send you a few of our recommendations closer to your arrival date. Our first official event is a team dinner and briefing at a local restaurant. We usually host it at 7:30 pm, but your LHO Team Leader will let you know exactly where and when the meeting point will be when you arrive. Our team dinner is an opportunity to meet everyone for the first time, receive a detailed breakdown of what our adventure ahead is going to look like, and ask any questions you may have. The first round of drinks is on us!

Our expedition to Alpamayo is one of the most challenging adventure experiences we offer in South America. That’s why we’ve found that it is important to give our team members a chance to recover from our long-haul flights and start slow. Our first full day together aims to do just that.

We’ll start the day with an arranged city tour around the historical town center and visit the many churches and markets that the old city is known for. Depending on how motivated we are, the city tour can include a visit to the San Francisco catacombs, the National Museum of Archeology, and the Museum of Anthropology and History. We’ll also do a walking tour of Miraflores and Barranco, where we’ll enjoy a cultural lunch together. Remember that today is mainly to combat jet lag so, as much as we’d like to do everything, we may be limited based on the energy and recovery levels of the team.

For those of us missing any gear, we’ll have the chance to either rent or buy everything in the afternoon. We’ll have an early dinner at a restaurant near our hotel and aim to get an early night’s rest before our departure to Huaraz on the following day.

For those of us who sleep well on long journeys, this day is for you. For the rest of us; good luck! After breakfast, we’ll load up our gear in the van for the 7-hour journey to Huaraz. For those of us with extra luggage, we can leave them at the storage of our hotel in Lima. The bags we take with us are our duffle bags and backpacks only.

The road out of Lima can be quite congested so we try to get an early start on this day. Your LHO Team Leader will let you know exactly what time to be ready. Our road is northbound in the direction of Peru’s northern Andes. The town of Huaraz itself sits just at the start of the high mountains making it a strategic town for Andinists and trekkers. We’ll stop for lunch on the way, and we’ll also take a couple of coffee breaks to make the trip more manageable. Normally, we arrive in Huaraz in the late afternoon.

Upon getting there, we’ll check into our accommodation and make our way to a nearby restaurant for dinner. We’ll hear a detailed briefing for the following day, including what to pack and what to wear for our first day on the trail.

Distance: 12.3 KM | Ascent: 1,125 M | Descent: 1,125 M | Max Altitude: 4,450 M

Finally! Our first day on the trail, and there’s even more good news. We’ll be staying at the same accommodation tonight as well, meaning there is no need to pack all our stuff again. After breakfast, we’ll be heading out for an acclimatization hike to 4,450 meters and return to Huaraz to recover. The reason we do this is to trigger our body into producing the red blood cells needed for that altitude but also to give ourselves the opportunity to recover in the lower altitude environment.

The day begins with a short ride to the trailhead on the eastern outskirts of the town surrounded by farmlands and the western slopes of the higher mountains ahead of us. The trail begins with a walk through the short grass vegetation area on a gradually ascending slope. Once we’re clear of all the farmland, the trail begins to ascend more directly towards a descending corridor known as a couloir. We’ll enter the couloir and begin the steeper climb towards the plateau above. We’ll top out at the plateau directly in front of the Churup lagoon just beneath the impressive 5400-meter summit of Nevado Churup. We’ll continue along the lagoon to a smaller one just a little bit higher up where we’ll have our picnic lunch and enjoy the views.

Weather permitting, there is absolutely no rush today so we can take our time to enjoy the views. Once we’re all set, we’ll retrace our steps back to the other side of the lagoon before descending the trail beneath the plateau and making our way across the farmlands to the trailhead. We’ll jump into our bus for the short ride back to our accommodation in Huaraz where hot showers and a team dinner await!

Distance: 10.2 KM | Ascent: 997 M | Descent: 125 M | Max Altitude: 3,800 M

Today we’ll be departing for the trail to Alpamayo, which means we’ll need to pack our duffle bags and check out from our hotel. After breakfast, we’ll hop on our bus for a three-hour journey to Cashapma. This is where we’ll meet our extended porter team for the first time. These people are heroes. They’ll be carrying our duffle bags, tents, food, and cooking equipment throughout our time in these mountains.

After a brief introduction, the team will collect the duffle bags and begin heading up the trail. We’ll follow them at a steady pace, keeping in mind that they are already acclimatized and we aren’t. The aim of the day is to reach our Llamacoral through the Santa Cruz Ravine. This is a perfect opportunity for your LHO Team Leader to assist you in finding a sustainable trekking pace that won’t work against you over the long term and that will also enable you to efficiently acclimatize.

There will be a time to push hard on this expedition but these early trekking days are certainly not that time. The trail follows a deep ascending valley heading west towards the deeper Andes mountains with the summit of Santa Cruz immediately to our left side. Lunch will be a picnic at the midway point of our camp. The vegetation on the trail is primarily dry and short grass, which is typical at these altitudes and follows a stream that cuts through the middle of this valley.

Arriving at the camp is always a fun experience, especially the first time. It’s normal to feel a little bit overwhelmed with everything. Your LHO Team Leader will be on hand to help you get into the swing of things. We always recommend unpacking for the night as soon as we arrive. That means preparing our sleeping bags as we want them for later in the evening. Your LHO Team Leader will also show you how to use our toilets and direct you to the mess tent where the team gathers for meals.

At dinner, we’ll discuss the day in detail and particularly what we can all do more efficiently in order to maximize our opportunities for the success of the expedition. We’ll also share a detailed briefing for the coming day.

Distance: 14.1 KM | Ascent: 724 M | Descent: 148 M | Max Altitude: 4,300 M

After breakfast, we’ll depart our camp deeper into the Santa Cruz Ravine towards the Icchicocha and Jatuncocha lagoons. Just as arriving at the camp for the first time can feel a little overwhelming, the first morning can feel equally special because things tend to go from sleepy and quiet to hustle and bustle in almost no time. The key to staying on top of things here is to follow a sequence.

It’s always best to pack up all our belongings before coming to breakfast. This allows the porters to pack up the tents while we eat and you won’t need to interrupt your meal to close a bag or collect something. It’s also important to consider that the end of our meal is the start of the trek. That means trying to finish your morning routine before we start wrapping up breakfast.

This may all seem strange when reading it but with your LHO Team Leader around to help out, it will all become second nature in no time. After breakfast, we’ll head out following the deep valley as it continues in a westbound direction. The trail is similar to the previous day initially. As we ascend higher into altitude, we’ll notice that the sharp walls of the valley start to widen. This is the first indicator that we are arriving at the lagoons, our picnic spot for the day. After lunch and a brief rest, we’ll continue down the valley until we reach a three-way junction. Our route is to the left as we ascend towards a huge basin flanked by Alpamayo ahead of us and Arhuaycocha lagoon beside us. This is the location of Alpamayo base camp. Once we arrive, we’ll check in and relax before dinner.

Distance: 3.8 KM | Ascent: 1,205 M | Descent: 41 M | Max Altitude: 5,000 M

Weather contingency days may require us to remain in place either here or on subsequent days within this itinerary. The sequence we follow is based on the best-case scenario. Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide will give you a more accurate description of the following days based on up-to-date forecasts closer to the time. After breakfast, we’ll depart from the base camp in the direction of the Col del Alpamayo. The Col is a plateau between the base camp and the summit at 5200 meters of altitude. It is where the most classic pictures of Alpamayo are taken from. The trail to the plateau is steep and sustained starting with direct inclines followed by a series of switchbacks until we reach the snow line. Depending on the snow conditions, it may be necessary to wear the crampons at the midway point along the trail to the plateau. Giant summits of the Andes, including Quitaraju, Pucahirca, and Alpamayo, will dominate the skyline from this point onwards. Once on the glacier, it will become necessary to rope up because of the crevasse danger. The trail passes through a small depression in the glacier along the ridge just before we finally top out at the Alpamayo high camp where the impressive face of this epic Andes summit finally reveals itself to us. The aim is to try and reach high camp for lunch. Once we arrive, we’ll check in to our camp, have a meal, and then try to get some rest. Our summit window will depend on conditions, but it is highly possible that we could aim to climb to the top early the next day so it is important to get as much rest as possible. Dinner will be at the camp where we’ll receive our detailed briefing for the following day.

Distance: 4.5 KM | Ascent: 365 M | Descent: 1521 M | Max Altitude: 5,947 M

As with all high-altitude technical summits, we’ll be departing in the very early hours of the morning. The specific time we choose to depart depends on weather forecasts and the pace of the group. Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide will let you know during the briefing on the previous evening. We’ll have a light breakfast before heading out. It is important to put sugary snacks into accessible pockets. It’s important to have efficient energy at hand for when you need it. The rope parties would have also been assigned on the previous night, so your rope party guide will be giving you detailed information about the specifics of your rope party on the previous night and in the morning.

The route begins with a traverse along the glacier below the southwest face of the mountain. We will gradually ascend towards the Bertrund, staying conscious and alert for the crevasse danger that is usually faced on these easier slopes. Once we ascend past the Bertrund, we’ll begin the direct ascent to the summit along one of the many flutes that form along Alpamayo’s face. Depending on the rope party, it may be desirable to either pitch or use the fixed ropes on the more challenging sections. Skill, surefootedness, and mental strength are essential to overcoming the 400-meter direct line to the top. Once at the end of the flute, the trail follows the brief summit ridge to the point on our left. Although we would love to spend all day here, it is important to keep in mind that even if the weather is good, the longer we are exposed to the elements and the high altitude, the weaker we are going to feel. We need our energy to descend safely back to high camp. Once we’ve taken our pictures, we’ll carefully retrace our steps along the ridge and begin abseiling down the face and back to the flat glacier beneath. We’ll regroup on the flat glacier, arrange our ropes, and begin the easy walk back to high camp, where we’ll have lunch and rest a little before continuing down towards base camp, our home for the night. Dinner will be served at base camp where we’ll debrief about the summit and hear a briefing for the following days still ahead of us.

Extra days are built into the program for adverse weather conditions, extra acclimatization, or training on the way up. Unused contingency days at the end cannot be used as extra nights in Lima.

Extra days are built into the program for adverse weather conditions, extra acclimatization, or training on the way up. Unused contingency days at the end cannot be used as extra nights in Lima.

Distance: 13.9 KM | Ascent: 132 M | Descent: 687 M

After breakfast, we’ll bid farewell to Alpamayo and begin our descent back along the moraine to the valley junction and then onwards towards the lagoon at the entrance to the sharp valley floor. Although the summit is behind us, it is important to keep energy levels up and morale high because it isn’t over until the hot shower at the hotel. Until then, stay alert and stay motivated. We’ll once again be stopping at the lagoon for lunch. The descending trail is gradual with hardly any ascents to speak of, so we can really take our time during the break to appreciate our achievement and just enjoy where we are. After lunch, we’ll continue past the lagoons and follow the ravine all the way to our campsite at Llamacoral. During the descending portion of our expedition, it may be expedient to go further or more prudent to camp at a site higher up. Your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide will gauge how we’re all doing to make a determination about where to set up camp specifically. Once we arrive, we’ll prepare our tents and meet in the mess tent for our very last dinner under the Andean stars.

Distance: 9.8 KM | Ascent: 137 M | Descent: 973 M

Hot showers await us on our return to the hotel in Huaraz. If that’s not motivation, I don’t know what is! After breakfast, we’ll continue to follow the valley in an eastbound direction along the gradual trail. The dry path slowly starts to give way to shortgrass vegetation, an indicator that we’re losing altitude! We’ll follow the path until we reach the mouth of the valley marking the end of our trail. We’ll load up the bus with our gear as soon as we arrive. This is also the final farewell for our porters. We traditionally share a tip with them at this point. Your LHO Team Leader will give you more information about how we usually go about this and will handle the collection and distribution. Once we’re all set, we’ll hop on the bus for our three-hour journey to Huaraz. Depending on what time we leave camp, we may have lunch on the bus or further down the road. Once we arrive, we’ll check in to our hotel and have the afternoon free to enjoy the town or the fifteen hot showers we’d been planning for since the summit. Dinner will be at a local restaurant. Your LHO Team Leader will let you know where and when the meeting point for dinner will be closer to the time.

After breakfast, we’ll make our way back onto our long-haul transport for the ride to Lima. As with our inbound journey, we’ll be stopping for lunch at a restaurant on the way. Once we arrive in Lima, we’ll check in to our hotel and head out for our final farewell dinner together hosted by your LHO Team Leader and local lead guide. The last round of drinks is on us!

The last day together is dedicated to airport transfers and farewells. Breakfast is included on the day. Please make sure that you’ve provided us with the correct departure details in your pre-trip Team Details Form. Your shuttle to the airport is arranged based on the information provided. If there is a mistake or if your itinerary has changed, please reach out to your LHO Team Leader as early as possible for arrangements to be made. We’ll be arranging your shuttle 3 hours prior to departure so please make sure to be near the hotel at the time so as not to be late. For those of us departing late, your LHO Team Leader will be available to provide recommendations on where to go and what to do.