Hiking in Los Nevados

At noon on Tuesday December 20^th, Sienna and I peeled ourselves out of our seats and hopped in one of the many 1970’s style V8 taxis awaiting passengers outside the Merida bus station. Armed with a few tips from the guidebooks and a phone number for a travel agent called Guamanchi Expeditions we were ready to tackle the Andes.

It took a little bit of searching to find space available in a hostel for two nights. But it was a relief to discover very cheap rates for reasonable accommodations ($7 per person). It was now clear that Merida was a reasonably priced town for tourism in an otherwise expensive country (also the bus tickets to Merida only cost $22 per person each way).

During our first day, we sampled a $1.25 lunch at a local restaurant, did a quick tour of the city, and tasted ice cream from Merida’s international celebrity. A Portuguese migrant has become world famous for his wide variety of ice cream flavors – including tuna, garlic, spaghetti with meatballs, avocado, and others. We stuck to relatively safe flavors and found the ice cream to be very enjoyable.

After our urban explorations we headed to a travel agent to find out what kind of trip we could fit in during the remaining 48 hours. Guamanchi Expeditions was recommended to us by Adriana, Commercial Director at DHL Venezuela. The agency is owned by John and Joelle Pena who are close friends of Adriana’s niece. Of course, in Latin America family and friend connections appear everywhere and are always helpful to exploit.

Upon arrival we met Jan, a friendly Danish guy, who quickly dispelled any plans of climbing a 5,000+ meter peak. Logistics, preparation and acclimatization were the critical impediments sighted. I was less aggressive than usual given our 48 hour time limit and my travel partners novice climbing level.

In lieu of a real climb, Sienna and I signed up for a jeep trip to Los Nevados followed by a ~15 kilometer hike to a mountain pass at 4200 meters and a ride back down to Merida on the longest, highest teleferico in the world. This would get us close to three of the peaks and back to Merida in time for our flight on Thursday evening.

On Wednesday morning, a young Meridian hipster picked us up at our hostel. He was very careful in sculpting his hair and maintaining his look throughout the drive. The three of us swung by Guamanchi to meet up with our guide Rafael. Rafael is an enthusiastic 22 year old climbing/hiking guide looking forward to his graduation from Universidad de Los Andes in the summer.

With Rafael in tow the four of us departed for the 4 hour drive to Los Nevados. Breathing in dust and taking in beautiful mountain views, we listened intently to Rafael’s adventure stories and the local park ranger’s update about someone getting killed the previous night (no real details available). Also, we were intrigued to hear about 2 Belgians who have not been heard from in over 4 weeks after heading up Pico Bolivar.

When we arrived in Los Nevados we took quick power naps in the hammocks at the hostel and headed off for an afternoon hike. Our hike took us past a river and up to a local farm where Rafael got reacquainted with a family he met hiking with his father many years before. (Rafael’s father was a climbing and hiking guide as well and has been taking Rafael out since he was seven).

The farm is populated with 4 children and 3 adults and a wide variety of animals. The matriarch is an older man of 86 years who walks with a cane and has some dope glasses and a killer hat. His wife and sister are also very mature and equally warm and friendly. We took a few pictures, shared some stories, listened to Rafael play the cuatro (Venezeulan 4 string guitar), and then got back on our way.

In the evening Rafael introduced us to another local patriarch. The 83 year old woman is now bedridden from a stroke and was surrounded by members of her family in what, as near as I could tell, equates to a death vigil. She and Rafael shared stories from previous trips he made through Los Nevados.

The following morning we got up early and left at 7am for the hike up to the Alto de La Cruz pass. We left from 2700 meters and made our way up a very well traveled path. This trail serves as the dirt highway for the locals that send goods into town via the teleferico (our final destination).

The weather was emaculate and the views breathtaking as we ascended to 4200 meters. We were accompanied by two very friendly dogs and two more focused mules. Although we did not use the mules, they were included in the excessive fee that we paid to our new friends at Guamanchi.

In any case, we arrived at the pass around 12:30pm and got our first close up glimpse of the highest peak in Venezuela. Pico Bolivar was less ominous then I anticipated and made me long for an extra day to get to the summit. I was also struck by the disappearing glacier on the peak and the receding waters of the glacial lakes at the base. The glaciers, of course, mark another piece of direct evidence I have witnessed in recent years of the impact of our industrialized world.

After taking in the view, we made our way to the teleferico a few hundred meters away and headed back down to Merida. The quick visit to Merida was a big refresher for me. Sharing my love of the mountains with a good friend, Sienna, was a pleasure. The solitude of the long hike provided time to rebalance my thoughts. The clean fresh air soothed my lungs after three weeks in the toxic Caraqueno air. And Rafael’s youthful enthusiasm reminded me of my love for the outdoors and my thirst for adventure.