The trek to Kuelap pt.1

From Chiclayo we travelled east to Chachapoyas and booked onto a 4 day trek to the huge pre-Inca fortress of Kuelap, reached by foot and horse through cloudforest. We borrowed a camera from the nice folk at the hostel and donned rainponchos and wellies along with Brad from Colorado and Tom from Canada and set off..

We drove out towards Karajia but after meeting our guide soon hit a problem - locals in a village were digging up the only road through. After a few minutes the 30+ villagers came to the agreement that our driver could push 2 rocks over the divide and try to pass over the top of them in the car - it worked! At Karajia we could see a set of 8 sarcofogi on the cliffside - oddly primitaive clay figures painted in red paints with flat faces and some with skulls attached to the top - sons or trophyheads we were told... Bones lay around the path and our guide warned us legend has it they have a strange wasting disease that affects anyone touching them...

Back at the car we set off and shortly after this we hit the mud! After sliding around in the sludgey road we ground to a halt. Being good little travellers we all jumped out to help push to vehicle. I was soon sprayed head to foot in thick orange mud. Then it started to rain. We finally managed to back out the sliding car out and the driver refused to go on - it was on foot from here for another 2 and a half hours before we got to our lodge through the beautiful Gran Vilaya and the Valle de Belen with its huge snaking river. We passed the evening laughing with the 2 lads and gazing up at the incredible view of the stars above.