Nazca from the air

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The Hummingbird Outside My Window: The Mystery of the Nazca Lines

“We’re gonna die, We’re gonna die, We’re gonna die!” I mumble under my breath as the engine of the tiny plane I’m a passenger in finally sputters to life.

I promised myself long before coming to Peru that I’d never set foot in any airplane too small for in-flight beverage service, yet, here I find myself in an aged five passenger plane ready to depart from a tiny desert airport not exactly known for it’s pristine safety record.

I can’t help recalling stories about publicized deaths that have occurred above the Maria Reiche Aerodrome here in Nazca, Peru, as they unwittingly flash through my mind like news broadcasts on fast-forward. Read more...

 

Rafting the Cotahuasi: One Woman's Whitewater Adventure

I never considered myself an adventure traveler until I got to Peru, where even a short bus trip can turn into an adventure – road blocks, llamas, livestock, rocky cliffs, flat tires and all.

I always considered myself a part of the more mainstream backpacker crowd – Lonely Planet in hand - as I explored Maccu Picchu, Cusco, Lima, and the Nazca Lines.

But tired of this predictable “gringo trail” of sights throughout South America, I signed on with an Ariquippenan rafting company to float down the class IV and V Cotahuasi River 70 miles, along ancient Incan footpaths and untouched archeological sites and remote villages, until it empties into the Pacific Ocean near Ica.

Turek and Guide Rafting

The only problem? I had never set foot in a raft before.

“The Cotahuasi River is higher that it has been in ten years,” I heard Peruvian river guide Gian Marco Vellutino remark in his Spanish-Italian accent as he gazed over the cactus-lined edge of a ravine that dropped 50 feet down to a very white, and very fast river.

But tired of this predictable “gringo trail” of sights throughout South America, I signed on with an Ariquippenan rafting company to float down the class IV and V Cotahuasi River 70 miles, along ancient Incan footpaths and untouched archeological sites and remote villages, until it empties into the Pacific Ocean near Ica.

The only problem? I had never set foot in a raft before. Read more...

 

Watching for the next Dune

In the Land of Sand: Dune Surfing in Huacachina, Peru

To a backpacker hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, boarding is considered a winter sport. It doesn’t get any better than flying down a mountain covered in the fresh fluffy white stuff - does it?

The opportunity to board in the desert – no scarf, gloves or snow required – intrigued me to no end. I was ready to see what the dunes had to offer.

Welcome to Southern Peru – home to some of the tallest sand dunes in the world. Huacachina, an oasis village on the outskirts of Ica city, and Cerro Blanco, a massive dune outside the city of Nazca, are the two most popular spots in the area for sandboarders to put their skills to the test. Read more...

 

Peru's Manu National Park: A Family Adventure in the Amazon Jungle

Space family at Peruvian Site

‘Whump! Thwack, thwack, thwack, thwack!’

I was half undressed in the tiny bathroom when I heard the crash onto the shower stall floor. A long black tail whipped furiously from beneath the shower curtain. The snake was big.

“Oh, crap,” I whispered. I hurriedly put my clothes back on while the snake pounded against the tile behind the curtain. Suddenly, the seriously pissed off seven-foot-long snake burst through the stall and stopped between me and the door. It wavered back and forth, its head at waist level, mouth open. And then it struck.

It started innocently enough nine months ago at the family dinner table. I had read about Manu National Park, a large swath of pristine rainforest in southern Peru that was reportedly full of wildlife. I deftly steered the conversation toward our next vacation and mentioned the Peruvian Amazon. Read more...

 

Read more stories about Peru on GoNOMAD

Biking Peru: The Horizontal Abyss

Hiking the Cordillerra Blanca in Peru's Andes

Hiking to Gocta Falls, Northern Peru

Mystic Tourism: Searching for the Yagé in Peru

Learning Spanish on a Cultural Tour of Lima, Peru

Exploring Peru With My New Family

View photo galleries from Travels in Peru

Machu Picchu: An Ancient Treaure Threatened by Man and Nature

Titicaca the Great: Urcos, Yavari and Sillustani Too!

Chowhounding Peru: From Anticuchos to Zaino

A Homestay with the Aymara on Lake Titicaca

Exploring Peru's Ancient Inca Ruins

Tracing the Rise and Fall of the Inca Empire