Day 25 Wednesday 7th December 2016
Cusco to Nazca 664 kms
Leaving Cusco we soon reached 3,500 mts through farming areas with cattle, pigs & crops. Snow on the highest peaks, hairpin bends and pine tree logging. This was a day climbing up then down again and repeated three times getting up to a height of 4,600 mts.
Our guide told us yesterday to watch out for houses with red plastic bags on poles out the front. After seeing a few, we then came to the village of Curahusai where nearly every residence had the red flag flying. The significance of these bags was that the residents had hooch or moonshine for sale.
Throughout this area there were painted political slogans/pictures on many of the houses & buildings.
Lots of cows and goats on the road, often shepherded by young children.
Up a steep incline we came across the blue Mustang with vaporised petrol. We stopped in front of them, turned off the engine and asked if they wanted assistance. They said they would wait it out and they soon got going. We then discovered that our car wouldn't start because of the dodgy connection on the starter motor (suspected that it was the ignition switch). Put the car into reverse gear, rolled down the incline (almost at a hairpin bend) and started it that way. A hairy moment in case some fast moving vehicle came around the corner.
The scenery around here was back to barren rock with tufts of grass on the sandstone cliffs. Interesting weather going from heat at the lower altitudes to very cold at the summits (4,560 mts) so had to stop and put on extra clothing. At the summits it was bleak, no trees or vegetation, no animals or human life. There was a light drizzle when we came through but other cars came through snow flurries.
It was a long day and we eventually reached the hotel at Nazca just as the day was fading (would hate to drive here after dark on these roads with large lumbering trucks up hairpin bends). On the gravel rocky entrance to the hotel there were large paddocks of farmed cacti.
Cusco to Nazca 664 kms
Leaving Cusco we soon reached 3,500 mts through farming areas with cattle, pigs & crops. Snow on the highest peaks, hairpin bends and pine tree logging. This was a day climbing up then down again and repeated three times getting up to a height of 4,600 mts.
Our guide told us yesterday to watch out for houses with red plastic bags on poles out the front. After seeing a few, we then came to the village of Curahusai where nearly every residence had the red flag flying. The significance of these bags was that the residents had hooch or moonshine for sale.
Throughout this area there were painted political slogans/pictures on many of the houses & buildings.
Lots of cows and goats on the road, often shepherded by young children.
Up a steep incline we came across the blue Mustang with vaporised petrol. We stopped in front of them, turned off the engine and asked if they wanted assistance. They said they would wait it out and they soon got going. We then discovered that our car wouldn't start because of the dodgy connection on the starter motor (suspected that it was the ignition switch). Put the car into reverse gear, rolled down the incline (almost at a hairpin bend) and started it that way. A hairy moment in case some fast moving vehicle came around the corner.
The scenery around here was back to barren rock with tufts of grass on the sandstone cliffs. Interesting weather going from heat at the lower altitudes to very cold at the summits (4,560 mts) so had to stop and put on extra clothing. At the summits it was bleak, no trees or vegetation, no animals or human life. There was a light drizzle when we came through but other cars came through snow flurries.
It was a long day and we eventually reached the hotel at Nazca just as the day was fading (would hate to drive here after dark on these roads with large lumbering trucks up hairpin bends). On the gravel rocky entrance to the hotel there were large paddocks of farmed cacti.
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