Hiking in Peru is pretty specialPeru has got to be one of the most scenic countries I’ve visited, with pretty much every terrain possible. The landscapes will vary from jungle to beach, to desert and mountains. The small trekking town of Huaraz, sitting at just over 3000 metres is surrounded by the Cordillera Mountain range making it an excellent place for trekking.

There are many treks you can do here, from day hikes to full on mountaineering. I have bad knees so opted to do 3 easy-ish day hikes.

Acclimatisation Hike, Huaraz

This was supposed to be an easy hike to get me used to trekking at altitude but I found it utterly exhausting! Still without practising who knows how I would have fared on the harder treks! I hired a guide just for myself and we hiked up to Laguna Wilcacocha.

It’s around 15 minutes out from Huaraz and easily reachable by public transport. You will start at just over 3000 metres and walk up to the lake at 3720 metres. The path is not too clear at times but it’s pretty much straight up. It will take around 2 hours on the way up and about half that going back down.

On the way to Laguna Wilcacocha you will pass through local houses and farms– just try to resist taking a picture of their sheep! They believe it will bring bad luck. A farmer shouted at me for trying to take a picture of the animals and my guide explained they still believe that it will take a piece of their soul.

Closer to the top you will see snow capped peaks in the background. The lake itself is a little underwhelming but to make up for it you do get pretty stunning views over the valley with the mountains in the background.

I did find this walk a bit of a challenge but then I do have weak knees. For most reasonably fit people I think it’s a fairly easy and cheap way to acclimatise and to see how your body copes walking at altitude.

Laguna 69 Trek

This is a popular day hike in Peru, all you need to do is see a picture of the lake to decide it’s worth it. This is a challenging hike so to have that mental image of the end goal is motivating. It was one of my favourite treks in terms of scenery but also one of the hardest.

Laguna 69 is beautiful icy blue/green lake sits at 4600 metres above sea level. This is pretty high as people start to feel the effects of altitude sickness at 4000 metres. Bring lots of water and snacks and take it slow.

Walking up will take around 3 and a half hours and 2 hours on the way back. The first part of the trek is pretty steady and you will walk through grassland, past grazing cows, over streams and denser green vegetation.

About half way it starts to get harder, the path gets steeper and the air gets thinner. You may only walk a few yards and be out of breath. But just as you feel like giving up you will see a tiny glimpse of that blue lake.

The final 15 minutes are surprisingly flat and seeing the lake in full view is breathtaking. Some crazy people went for a swim in the icy blue water, I was so tired I slept for almost an hour! (managed to take in the scenery, eat my egg sandwich and take pictures but then I was out for the count).

Coming back down was a lot easier, the more you come back down, the more energy you feel! Returning the same way you see things from a different perspective and anything you may have missed trekking up.

The Laguna 69 trek is extremely difficult at times but it’s definitely do-able and totally worth the effort. I have bad knees and still managed it even though in some pain, so for any reasonably fit person I’d say its manageable but will be challenging. There are some amazing photo opportunities and scenery to keep you going on this trek and that end result is most certainly worth the hard climb.

Pastoruri Glacier Hike

This is the highest of all the hikes at around 5000mt but the one I found most easy, although I was well acclimatised by this point. Acclimatisation is KEY, I would not have been able to do this at the start of my trip and probably would have felt very ill with the altitude.

I was booked on a massive coach with around 50 or so people from the town of Huaraz and they take you pretty high up before you start hiking. The trek is only 1 hour but pretty steep. You could also hire a mule to take you up halfway but most people walk it.

The half way point is pretty scenic with the horses and mules standing in front of a snowy mountainous background and the path is well paved. The last part towards the glacier is over rocky terrain but I would say running shoes are still ok to wear.

Once at the glacier you can pose for photos and are able to touch the ice. Pastoruri Glacier is slowly melting so it’s smaller then it once was but still an impressive sight, especially with the backdrop of the blue water and towering mountains.

This is only an hour hike BUT be sure to be well acclimatised before as altitude sickness is common. The tour will also take you into a valley where the Puya de Raimondi plant grows. It looks like a giant cacti but (fun fact) it’s actually relative of the pineapple family.

An impressive day tour to round off a weeks trekking in Huaraz. If you know someone who loves hiking then share this post 🙂

Try Reading: Things To Do In And Around Cusco, Peru

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