We woke to another sunny mountain morning and piled on to the bus at about 8:00, after a breakfast of rolls and coffee. The bus drove once more through Huaraz and started up a (you guessed it) twisting, switchback gravel road through small hamlets and fields to a pass atop the Cordillera Negra. This mountain chain runs parallel to the west with the Cordillera Blanca and is a nice place for a final look at the high Andes.

We continued over the pass. Our road narrowed and dove into a ... (more)