The Road to PROMESA - Day 1
/On Tuesday, October 17, the journey of ten individuals began to circumnavigate the Ausangate Mountain (highest peak in the Cusco region). Through this Trek of nearly 61 miles we hoped to build a road for the PROMESA school in Cusco, Peru. Each trekker raised funds for the road prior to setting out on this incredible and challenging journey through the Peruvian Andes.
Day one began with the mountain trying to intimidate us by throwing rain and hail our way. Thankful we poncho’d up and we’re undaunted by the elements (which would prove to be a continued challenge throughout the Trek).
Each day we would assess the route and determine where we would set up camp. For the first day we decided to push passed the first camping option by the hot springs in order to reach the second camp and make day 2 shorter. This meant we hiked about 9 miles through the rain and hail to reach camp. We wouldn’t know how important shortening day 2 would be until it was upon us.
Life Lesson from the Mountain: Sometimes you don’t realize the blessing until time (and distance) plays out.
Lined up in our rain gear and ready for the journey ahead
Ausangate looming in the background
Our trusty porters getting our gear and food to camp
Llama and alpaca dotted the mountainside, along with boggy wetlands
Campsite for day one - not a bad view
Day one was just the beginning of a journey that began to fall short of words to describe the beauty and experience.