Galapagos Islands

 I’m still alive, but data here on the island is pretty terrible.

I’ve seen lots of wildlife so far, but unfortunately the host of our tour, Forrest Valkai, has been stuck due to the hurricane in Texas, and so we’ve not had him with us. I’m pretty guttered because the only reason I’m on this specific tour is because of Forrest, it costs more than comparable tours, and without his expertise is notably less informative. 

Not sure how one insures against this. I’m guessing my money is lost, as I’ve still “had the tour” despite it missing a vital part.

Somewhat bitter.

Off to Ecuador tomorrow!

 My last week in Latin America. I arrived in early January and this week is my last adventure. I’m quite sad. But I still have one more week ahead of me, the Galápagos Islands. I’m heading off tomorrow.

Jungle — return

 I’m just going to post everything I wrote in my notes app each night. No editing or reviewing done, so excuse any ramblings.

Hopefully it makes some sense, photos and videos to follow once I get back to actual civilisation and can put them together

Medellin

 I’ve spent the last few days in Medellin, Colombia, and I can see why it’s a popular spot for the digital nomad crowd. It’s very active and there are a number of western stores, as well as being very cheap.

Tomorrow I am heading to Santa Marta for the jungle hike. This will be another find-your-limit activity. It’s regarded as one of the most difficult of the popular hikes in South America. The difficulty is the extreme heat and humidity in the jungle, combined with the rain and flooded rivers of the rainy season.

It’s 5 full days of hiking, expect no updates from me for that time (not that I’ve been particularly good at posting regularly at the moment).

Lima, Peru

 I’ve been spending a few days enjoying the seaside in Lima. Though I do note that this time of the year it’s almost perpetually covered in low cloud. That doesn’t stop the surfers and paragliders though!

Couple of days I’m heading to Medellin to enjoy Colombia. I am quite nervous about the lost city hike, it is no joke. It’s gonna be another test of myself, and failure is definitely a possibility.

Goodbye Bolivia

 Getting back from the mountain I had dinner at a local restaurant and got my first bout of food poisoning this entire trip. Combined with the lingering cold, it put a damper on my desires to remain. I’d love to have spent another week here, but my body was not cooperative, so I’ve kept my original flight and am now heading to the airport to go to Lima for a weeks break.

All flights in and out of La Paz appear to be in the middle of the night, a local guide told me she thinks it’s because that’s the least likely time for protests to have closed roads.

I really have fallen in love with Bolivia, and one day I hope to return to this beautiful country. 

Huayna Potosí

A month ago I realised that, to a certain degree, I had succeeded at everything I set myself to in South America, and I decided that I should push myself and see if I can find a limit.

Huayna Potosi is a 6000m mountain near La Paz, and is commonly called the beginners 6000m climb. However that label can be deceiving, it involves ice climbing, not vertical, but steep enough that it’s all new skills.

A few days ago I finally mostly recovered from a bad cold I picked up on my last tour in Bolivia, and it turns out that “mostly” is quite important. Before that cold I’ve been at altitude, even higher than camp 1 for Huayna, and while I wasn’t climbing there, I wasn’t exactly sitting around (see the videos of the dancing and climbing over the coral hill).

The net result of this is after doing the glacier practice the first day near camp 1 I was absolutely exhausted and feeling the first symptoms of AMS. I did not sleep a wink at all that night, instead my AMS score kept climbing with severe headache, etc. 

By morning I had to make the hard call to turn around and not even attempt camp 2. Camp 2 wouldn’t have been a personal record for me (still being lower than Gokyo Ri), and the number one thing you don’t do with AMS is go higher.

On one hand I’ve failed in one of my goals, but on the other hand I’ve succeeded in finding a limit. When I attempt a mountain like this again I will ensure I’ve done more training on ice beforehand and ensure I’m in good health.

If you feel like sending me a “I’m sorry you didn’t succeed” message, send me a “great work for trying” instead.

I wasn’t sure if I was going to stick around Bolivia after attempting the mountain, I figured if I succeeded well then I probably would. But tonight in La Paz, much lower than camp 1, I’m still very winded and tired. It’s time to give sea level a visit, so later this week I’m off to Lima.

Pura Vida