Arrival success and a long bus journey

So I arrived in Cuzco approximately 60 hours after leaving my house! A sum total of 3 taxis, 2 trains, 2 flights and one bus journey have moved my about 7000 miles along and 3500m upwards.

I could have arrived a lot quicker but I decided to take the bus from Lima to Cuzco (a 21 hour adventure) as opposed to flying (a 55 minute hop over the mountains). My main motivation was actually not the £100 it saved (also the bus was like flying first class so comfort was not an issue) but instead it was my curiosity to experience the Andes from one side to the other. However, I hadnt thought through carefully enough the fact that in a 21 hour overnight bus journey the scenery becomes invisible for a good long time. I did see the expanse of coastal desert stretching south of Lima, but darkness fell as we headed up into the mountains. The sun, and my consiousness reappeared high in the clouds as we passed though some agricultural landscape, small fields surrounded by Eucalyptus trees and Agave plants! From there we passed into the cactus-filled canyons before emerging in the valley where Cuzco sits. I will remain clueless about the bits inbetween for the time being!!!
Im also aware that I was planning to blog about the things I got up to between my last post and leaving, but I didnt. I did however have a lot of fun so I will quickly mention some of these things. I spent a week teaching undergrads at Orielton, I saw 2manydjs live, I saw a martial arts show by the Shaolin warriors, I saw not one but 2 stone circles, Stonehenge and Avebury, drank some beer, drank a lot of tea and had my brain scanned (apparently I do have one!!). All in all it has been great fun :D Im going to miss it and everyone over the next two months :-(

Off again

Once again Im heading to rainforest, perparations are underway as I gather equipment and try to finalise my methods. Its 46 days until I have to be at Heathrow, and there are lots of things happening between now and then...I will try to post whenever possible!

Successful Return

I returned to the UK on Monday 20th. I finished the trip with some touring around the country, including a visit to Arequipa to meet Italo Trevino, another Bromeliad researcher. I also went to Lake Titicaca, Colca Canyon and the Cordillera Blanca. Amongst the highlights were getting to see the largest bromeliad, Puya raimondii, which is huge! We also tried our hand, unplanned, at rock-climbing in order to reach a glacial lake, and we ended up hiking to over 4500m, officially the highest altitude I reached in my life (not counting flying)! Anyway, here are a few pics.The descent into Colca Canyon

Arequipa

The giant Puya raimondii

The Cordillera Blanca

Trocha Union - Reflections

So for the second trip down the 'Trocha Union', the trail with our research plots that can only be reached on foot, I was much better prepared. My pack was lighter (few clean clothes), I knew what was coming and I had a plan for work. Here are a few extracts from my diary (Days are counted since my departure from England).
DAY 52 "We arrived at Acanajo in the rain, got a taxi half way [to Tres Cruces] and walked the other 2 hours looking for bromeliads. Finally we arrived and enjoyed a coffee and an inspiring sunset as the clouds finally cleared"

DAY 53 "The rain makes everything so much more difficult. Writing notes, looking into the canopy and keeping dry feet all become difficult. I only worked a half day because everything became so wet. Now my shoes are soaked, as are my feet, and there is little prospect of drying them in the next few days"


DAY 54 "So we walked, in the rain, quickly to plot 1, slowly to plot 2 searching for bromeliads, then half way back to 1 to collect a plant, then returned to 2, walked slowly again to plot 3, and finally quickly to plot 4 because we were too wet again. Anyway, despite the rain the Trocha was proving much more fun this time, lets hope for some sun soon though..."

DAY 56 "We arrived unevetfully at plot 8, ready to camp, but then the fun began. The other group arrived and decided to move straight on to San Pedro. So half unpacked, we quickly repacked and and raced to the end of the Trocha to find a car. Thankfully one appeared after only 20 minutes of star-gazing. With bags and 2 of the team loaded, the rest of us were left waiting, or so I thought. Walter soon disappeared into the undergrowth, and when Hilario followed I realised we were not waiting! Walter explained the trail was a short-cut and it was possible to beat the car. With this news we began running down the side of the mountain. Fairly quickly we reached the river, with no crossing the only option was to wade through, a short climb the other side and we arrived, 10 minutes after the truck, and that was the end of the Trocha. Wet, tired, but having enjoyed myself much more this time."

The "restaurant" in plot 6 (above) poor service but great views (below)

The final return

So I survived, Tres Cruces, the Trocha, more San Pedro, Tono and finally Pantiacolla. We encountered rain, the stormy kind and the persistent drizzle kind, heat, cold, and all combinations of the previous. We also had to drive through rivers, wade across rivers, wash ourselves in rivers. We have done battle with ants, bees, wasps, seen a Jaguar, many rare birds and 7 species of monkies. We also partied, ate and travelled with the locals. The stories are too numerous to tell in one go, but in the next few days I will try to convey some of the more interesting ones. For now I think this picture just about sums everything up...

Disappearing

Tomorrow morning at 5am I am heading out to do my last fieldwork this trip. This means 3 weeks away from civilization, so I have packed some instant cappuccino and a box of white chocolate, and expect to be out of touch until 1st August.

This time we have 3 nights at the house at Tres Cruces, on top of the mountain, followed by 4 days on the Trocha Union, before emerging at San Pedro. Then Im off to pastures new - the lowland sites. This means two weeks of hot humid living in the forest at Tono and Pantiacolla. These forests should be full of animals (and insects) and they have the biggest trees. This should be an exciting time, with lots of data to collect!

Enchanted and disappointed

The Puna is the grassland that covers the tops of the Andes. I went for a 4 day hike across this landscape. The trip was part of a team assessment of carbon stocks of this ecosystem, and so 14 researchers, 2 mule handlers and one cook, 10 horses and 2 mules set off on an epic adventure!

The trip started stood on the back of a lorry, riding along a beautiful valley and getting covered in dust. Shortly after this 4 hour trip we ascended 800m on foot, arriving at camp shortly after nightfall. We slept on the floor of one of the park ranger huts. Over the next three days we hiked up and down the grasslands between 3800m and 3400m, finally arriving at Ajanaco and the road home on Sunday night.During the arduous uphill hikes, pleasing downhill strolls and occasional cliff-scramble, I saw all the enchantment the Puna has to offer. In the full morning sun, with harriers soaring into the sky, lakes reflecting the clear blue, one feels that they are on top of the world. As the clouds close in, the winds hit and water condenses out of the air onto every available surface, I felt a lot like I was on Dartmoor or the North York Moors. All of this, with the wildlife and wild flowers, the unpredictability, the views, and the marking of time only by the passage of the sun and progress measured by the height of the mountain infront, makes the Puna an enchanting landscape.
The disappointment came from the lack of specimens I was able to collect on the trip. The Puna we walked across was highly disturbed by fire and heavily grazed. Bromeliads were few, and far between. Probably as a result of both factors. But in a way, this allowed me to enjoy the scenery and the hiking more, so it was not entirely bad news.

Anyway, I really enjoying the hiking, the scenery is breath-taking, and the company was amazing as always, and Im glad I took the time to make this trip. This might be my first and last post for a while as due to strikes/flight delays I might have to head to the field early tomorrow. Alternatively I could be here for few days more waiting for transport. Such is life in South America...

If you look closely at this picture you can see a rainbow-halo with my shadow in it! This was the most enchanting moment of the trip (it looked better in real life)! Incredible...