From Canete to the peninsula of Paracas and further south to the Nazca lines
                                                        (30.07. - 06.08.2011)

San Vicente de Canete - Pisco (and Paracas) - Hayachina - Ica - Palpa - Nazca

                                 ( 96 - 84,4 - 6,1 - 102,9 -51 km )

Our next route from Canete to Pisco began with a rainy morning. Even without my glasses full of raindrops I couldn' t see more than the shape of the next hill in the mist. But this was the only time I saw rain in Peru. Departing from the coast the mist disappeares and the climate becomes dry dry dry, only 20mm rain per year in Nazca. The days are hot, but from sunset on it becomes cold.

  After 96km we arrived in Pisco, and a Peruvian alcohol is has the same name. Pisco is like Tequila (I had already ordered in Lima in a restaurant and had been a bit astonished that it´s a shot), but mixed in the famous "Pisco Sour" (cocktail with lime) it´s really good.

Pisco: on the right the previous church. In 2007 an earthquake destroyed much of the town

Pisco, as well as the small adjoining village of Paracas, are the base for hords of tourists to explore the bird colonies on the Ballesta islands. As they promised us there were lots of different sea birds, Humboldt penguins and sea lions on this group of islands, we planned the next day for that. The motor boat trip to the Ballesta islands was awful: the islands are covered by  thick cover of guano ( bird shit; which had been exploited for explosive and nowadays for soil fertilizer) and by a enormous number of birds covering the guano as a black moving layer. Seals were sleeping in the sun on some rocks and didn’ t seem impressed by the tourists in orange life jackets, passing every minute, who tried to attract their attention for a good photo.

the Ballesta islands seen from the boat: on the left there is the white guano covering the cliffs

the Candelabro on the Peninsula de Paracas: It' s engraved in the stone, but it´s not sure if by some pre-inca cultures (as the Nazca or the Paracas) or much later. It might be a 3-armed-cactus or a candelabra (if made by european seamen)

seals in the sun: for them it´s not easy to climb the cliffs

Goodby Pacifique, we’ ll see you in Chile where you will be really cold. It’ s due to your cold Humboldt current that Peru’ s coast is a dry desert, that he local politicians make electoral publicity with «  mas agua y mas turismo », that the Nazca lines haven’ t been washed off, that there is no cloud stopping the sun at midday, and that the nights are cold as winter ( ok, indeed it is winter in Peru…).



the Pacific in the small village of Paracas. in the background the peninsula of Paracas, which is a Natural Reserve. The sun was hot, but the wind destroyed the percect beach experience

From Pisco on we headed land-inward and the landscape changed daily. We rode to Ica through a landscape of sandy desert and decided to spend one day in the oasis Huacachina, near to Ica. It' s a green lagoon in the middle of huge sand dunes (said to be the world' s biggest). We spent the day climbing the sand dunes and walking in the desert, giving our best on sand boards and afterwards it was impossible to get rid of the sand which had intruded in all clothes, the ears and all the body.

between Pisco and Ica we had to pass a long desertic landscape, and after this day I had my first sunburn ever on the left lower leg

Huacachina, the oasis in the desert next to Ica

next to Huacachina is said to be the world' s biggest sand dune. We tried out sand boarding there  more or less successfully. In the background you can see Ica



the last clouds Pisco - Huacachina



a field of ... cactus before Palpa. Unfortunately now it´s not the season for prickly pears (the famous higo chumbos)



standing next to the Nazca lines. But at ground level you can only imagine their existance because the small tourist planes cross over your heads all time- to see some the lines zou have to climb the "mirador" or a plane

one of the lineas de Nazca: the " Tree", which has suffered from some vehicles having passed on the lines and which is cut by the Panamericana

There are hundreds of different Nazca lines, amongst which the monkey, the spider and the lizard are really interesting. But they are so easy to make: just pull apart the black stones on the sandy desert floor - et voila,  you have bright lines on dark ground. So I was a bit disappointed, because who can garantuee that these lines were not made yesterday by someone?

the aquaeducts near Nazca were made by the Incas to use the precious and scarce water; the aqaeducts are still in use today for irrigating the adjoining fields of potatoes, "aji" (paprika with hot chili taste) and more