The bus journey to Sorata already is an adventure. A good five to six hours from La Paz for about 136 km! And the first half of the road up to Achacachi even has asphalt... After that a dirt road starts, leaving the Altiplano and descending into the valleys. Most of the track consists of potholes, rocks, river crossings etc. You certainly would not like to take your car down here. And you would not get very far... Incredible the old japanese buses make it! Keep in mind that this is a "major road" in Bolivia! So when I finally arrived in Sorata, my bum was properly hurting from the bus journey.
The next morning I set out into the mountains to the Laguna Chillata (4204 m) - a steep 1500 m ascent! I was pretty much puffing after the first 800 m due to the thin air. This is where I met Dan, a nice English guy going the same route. So we went on together for a while, but soon I had to stay behind. The last few hundred meters in altitude I felt really bad, had to sit down after every 50 m distance. When I finally arrived at the Laguna Chillata, Dan had already been there for an hour. I was slightly sick, threw up once. I think now this all had to do more with a strange mandarine I had eaten for lunch. I tried to eat a carrot for dinner. After about one hour there was still half a carrot left... I really could not eat anything! So I decided to turn in. The sun was going down and it became really chilly anyway. After dozing for about an hour I woke up again, feeling really hungry! So I ate the rest of the carrot, some biscuits, and chocolate. I even managed to peel myself out of the sleeping bag and get more water from the lake. And at that time it was freezing cold outside!!
After a good night sleep - about 11 hours - I felt really fit again! So I decided to pack in everything and continue up to the Laguna Glaciar together with Dan. We were told the path would be much more difficult and the camp site up there at the lake "muy frio!". The latter was certainly true! The trail was actually not so bad, just a long, long slog up across moraine boulders and scree. The altitude made things very exhausting. But at least I did not have to sit down anymore. So when we finally arrived at the lake, we both were really glad we could stop. Gorgeous scenery! A huge glacier breaking off into the lake, ice-capped mountains to both sides...
Due to the lack of oxygen, everything took at least twice as much time as normal. Even the brain seems to work at slow motion. But time we had. After setting up our tents, we were cooking lunch, which blended into an early dinner. And shortly before sunset, the clouds opened up and we were rewarded with a fantastic sky ablaze with orange and read. The views across the valleys and even Lake Titicaca in the distance were spectacular.
After sunset it immediately became so extremely cold that we had to hurry into our respective tents and sleeping bags. This night I only slept on and off - thin air and low temperatures. My water bottle was half filled with ice in the morning giving a nice tingling and rattling sound. Breakfast in the cold, i.e. the shadow of Illampu. The sun only reaches the camp site at about 8.30 am. So lots of time to wait around and take pictures of the the sun brushing the hills in the distance (with stiff-frozen fingers).
Than a relatively easy walk back to Laguna Chillata, where I spent the night again. Dan went on all the way back to Sorata. I just did not want to rush down 2300 m in one go. So the last day was really relaxed as well. The weather was ideal; blue skies, no wind. After breakfast, I had plenty of time and could even do some Tai Chi - at 4200 m, overlooking the deep valleys and the mountains in the distance. What a treat! The 1500 m down from the Laguna Chillata, which had cost me about 6 hours during the ascent, only took a good two hours down in perfect weather. Walking down I realized how steep the trail actually was!
Arriving in the early afternoon, I could watch the whole town of Sorrata indulging in what appeared to be at least three simultaneous weddings. Lots of dancing in the streets... And so many drunken people, including a brass band of at least fourty guys!
