Tiwanaku and Chacaltaya (TE01-02-TC) - Page 3


12:00-13:00 Lunch in the town of Tiwanaku

We will have our lunch at the Gran Hotel Tiahuanacu, the best restaurant in the town of Tiwanaku, frequented by the travellers from all around the world. Local food available (Llama steak, dehydrated potatoes etc.). After lunch we will depart Tiwanaku for Chacaltaya.


14:00-15:00 Tiwanaku – El Alto (90km – 56mi)

Road to Chacaltaya goes back to El Alto where we will pass through some of the typical suburbs where one can appreciate the different style of living of this part of La Paz from that down in the valley. It actually seems as a different world all together. Eventually we leave El Alto and start to climb along inhospitable Altiplano towards Chacaltaya.


15:00-16:00 El Alto – Mt.Chacaltaya (25km – 16mi)

If the weather is good we will get amazing views of Mt. Chacaltaya (5350 m (17550 f)) and Mt. Huayna Potosi (6088 m – 19974 f). We will continue along the desolate Altiplano plateau, gently ascending to a pass on a nearby ridge line. Here we will get the view of the whole Huayna Potosi massif with the Milluni valley at the base of it. If we are in luck we might be able to see herds of llamas and alpacas. The plateau has an inhospitable climate (very cold nights) thus there is no cultivation at this altitude (4000 m – 13123 f). At the pass, there is a turn off east, towards Mt. Chacaltaya. The road continues to rise gently until it gets to the base of the massif, here it becomes narrow and rocky, and it starts to climb sharply in a series of sharp curves towards the Club Andino Boliviano Lodge at 5260 m (17260 f) , which can be seen high above us as an eagles nest. On the way to the lodge we will pass several mountain lakes with crystalline water, and remnants of old mining settlements. Eventually we will arrive to the lodge.

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