Peru: Climbing Nevado Huamashraju (5434 m)

03 Days/02 Nights   April to November   Moderate

Highlights of the Cordillera Blanca. The highest tropical mountain range in the world, the Cordillera Blanca is part of the spectacular Andes that form the spine of South America. A mecca for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts, the region boasts over 50 peaks that exceed 15,000 feet, 700 glaciers and 300 lakes.

The Cordillera Blanca (Spanish for white range) is a mountain range in Peru that is part of the larger Andes range and extends for 200 kilometres (124 mi) between 8°08' and 9°58'S and 77°00' and 77°52'W, in a northwesterly direction. It includes several peaks over 6,000 metres (19,690 ft) high and 722 individual glaciers. The highest mountain in Peru, Huascarán, at 6,768 metres (22,205 ft) high, is located there. The Cordillera Blanca lies in the Ancash region and runs parallel to the Santa River valley (also called Callejón de Huaylas in its upper and midsections) on the west. Huascarán National Park, established in 1975, encompasses almost the entire range of the Cordillera Blanca.

About Nevado Huamashraju: Located east of the tow Huaraz city. A beautiful mountain has spectacular views from the Summitst. you can appreciate the Nevado Churup, Nevado Vallunaraju, Nevado San Juan, Nevado, great Nevado Huascaran, Nevado Huantsan and others.

This is a really tempting mountain close to Huaraz. Actually you see the mountain from most of the places in Huaraz. To get there, you hire a taxi to take you to where the road ends on the other side of the valley from Pitec. There you can hire a donkey to take your luggage more than half ways to base camp. The trek is beautiful, but steep. Still you’ll reach base camp after 3-4 hours of trekking.

From base camp you have several options to reach the summit of this spectacular, pyramid shaped mountain. You can climb the glacier to the right both ways, or you can mountain climb the ridge on the left side or the north wall. The ridge has one difficult section (6-), but is a very nice alternative. The north wall has a couple of sections 3+/4-, but has no major difficulties on the way up (remember some belay gear if you are going the same way down). If you want do some mixed, you can go down the glacier. You will need 3-4 pickets, but except for that it is an easy way down (be aware though to get off the glacier on the right place, on the northern end of the glacier).

Huamashraju in Quechua means: "Nevado del Miedo" or "Mountain of Fear". The mountain has a pyramidal shape and can be seen from most points of Huaraz, being probably the closest mountain to the city, sitting between Quebrdas Shallap and Rajucolta. This mountain is part of the Huantsan massif. It has an east (5350m) and west summit (5434m). It was first climbed in May 15th 1954 by locals J. Cabana and A. Soriano.

Quoting a local, (there are no easy routes on Huamashraju), meaning most if not all are on the D range and above. It offers several alpine routes: the ones on the left side are mainly alpine rock on crack systems, followed by some alpine ice and mixed climbing. Routes on its right side are the opposite, with straightforward and short glacier crossing, followed by alpine ice and mixed climb to the rocky summit. Most of these routes are not cataloged, and the mountain is seldom climb even though it is so close to Huaraz. The north face has some 400m of granite walls that offer quality granite. It is most frequented by locals, but is a great option as a technical acclimatization climb or if you are in a hurry: if fit, you can climb it from Huaraz to Huaraz in a day. Most climbers leave Huaraz one day and return on the next. Huamashraju is a mountain that is being hit hard by global warming, having lost an immense amount of its glacier covering in the past 15 years.

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