Humantay Lake hike

"Humantay" apparently translates to "really damned cold".  How do I know?  I'll get to that in just a moment...

We started off this day with what would become a familiar part of our routine: an enormous breakfast.  Oatmeal, omelets, meats, cheeses and toasts were enjoyed each morning; serious hiking means serious fueling up!  Even though I ate a ton- 3 huge daily meals with desserts at lunch/supper, plus a variety of snacks like nuts, raisins and chocolate on the trail- I ended up losing a couple of pounds by the end of the trip. 

The day's hike would take us "only" up about 1,200 feet through high pastured land, but we started gaining a lot of elevation in a hurry, with a nice snack break along the way.  Ponchos and rain jackets came in handy for everyone on this day, as we got hit with intermittent cool showers.  The rain pants actually became a staple regardless of weather, as they're great for repelling both mud and horse and mule crap!  Almost as handy were the gaiters we brought.  Hose the stuff off at night, and you're good to go in the morning.

I'm not sure the picture above does the steepness of this hill justice.  I was looking uphill here, and the lake is somewhere up over the round foggy peaks.

Break time.  This pic shows the elevation a bit better.  The lake is between the green peaks and the foggy ones.

This is the ridge on which we took a snack break.  Up near the top, you can just see the water spilling out from the lake.

Looking back down on where we've hiked so far.  Landslide on the right.

I'd pretty much decided I was jumping into that glacial lake the moment I found out I'd have an opportunity to do so.  Bravely(?) I wore swimming trunks underneath my rain pants, and I fielded a few "our you really gonna do it?" inquiries on the way up.  Fog, rain and a stiff breeze were overcome by testosterone, adrenaline and, just maybe, a touch of foolishness, and in I went.

2 other fools, er, brave souls also took the plunge, but had the good sense to basically go thigh deep, dip down and run back out of the water.  Did I do that?  The look on my face here should give you the answer. 
















This is the look of a man who just realized he doesn't have any damned sense.

The combination of adrenaline and holy-crap-never-felt-anything-like-this-before cold was quite a rush, but I was glad to dry off (had the foresight to bring a small towel) and get dressed, sparing the group from continued blinding light bouncing off my pasty skin.

Before we headed back down, we had the privilege of attending a small religious ceremony lakeside conducted by 2 local mystic shamans.  I'd already been struck by the spiritual feel of the landscape; as I mentioned to Antonio, it occurred to me that the mountainous landscape was a cathedral, one more majestic than any formal structure with four walls like the one we'd seen back in Cusco.  As the shamans prayed to their 4 sacred peaks (one of which seemed within arm's reach), this point was really driven home.  I'm honored that we had this small glimpse into an alternate spirituality, and happy that we didn't cheapen the moment by making it a photo op.

Our last evening at Salkantay Lodge featured some hot tub time, a great dinner, a few Cusquena cervezas (the cure for what "ales" ya), and yours truly featured as a guest bartender during the Pisco Sour demonstration.  (For the record, shaken is better than blended, and I look pretty good in an apron.)  In our pre-meal briefing, Antonio stressed the fact that tomorrow was "D-Day", so rest up!