30 June: Dr. Seuss Plants and Glacier near Huaraz

We signed up for a tour to the Pastoruri Glacier. It was a relatively short distance--only about 2 hours by bus, so we didn't have to leave until about 9AM.  On the way we stopped at a grove of Puya raimondii plants, also know as the queen of the Andes, the largest species of bromeliad which reached up to 50 feet in height, an endangered plant native to only certain areas in the high Andes of Bolivia and Peru.

Puya Ramondii less than 40 years old

Puya Ramondii between 40 and 100 years old

The next stop was in front of a pond which was supposed to reflect 7 colors. The more interesting thing was the alpacas waiting to take pictures with tourists. 

At the top was the short hike to the glacier--only about a km without the steep climb of previous hikes although it was still high altitude, around 16,000 ft.
The glacier used to be more than double the size. Now it has shrunk so much that there is more water than ice, and it is roped off since it is no longer safe to climb. It rained a little on our walk but wasn't too bad.

When we got back to our bus, it started snowing so hard that we left in close to white-out conditions. But that was short lived, and we were back to overcast skies.

We took the overnight bus again, leaving Huaraz at 10:20 pm and arriving in Lima around 5:30 am.