Illimani

Okay, not off to a good start. BTW, I'm on the other side pushing too.

We are getting closer, and the road is getting narrower.

Amanda and Mael, in the cloads.

Our guide brought his son, but not on the hikes.

We had some water to cross, but not too tough.

No, I'm not missing my teeth, I'm chewing coca.

A bit rocky, but easy hiking to get to the base camp.

Base camp of Illimani. The donkey handler was the first up, but he had the advantage of modern equipment and footwear.

The donkey was there to lend a hand for tired feet.

In the village below the mountain.

The drive back to La Paz was spectacular.

Illimani as seen from La Paz.

We spent last weekend camping at the base of Illimani, the peak overtowering La Paz. It looks close, but was a 4.5 hour drive to get to the village at its base. It's hard to imagine mountain peaks when we already live at nearly 13,000 feet above sea level, but this mountain is huge: it's over 21,000 feet. Just to get some bearings, Mount Robson is almost 13,000 feet.

We only climbed to about 15,000 feet, to the base camp. We didn't camp there due to the cloudy, rainy weather, so came back down to the village to sleep. But the hiking was great, and sharing this with friends sure was enjoyable too.