Arriving in Chachapoyas

Hello from Chachapoyas,

Yes, we survived the bus trip. It took 19 hours to get to Pedro Ruìz, and another two hours for the taxi to Chachapoyas (once we were able to go that is), but I'm getting ahead of myself...

The bus trip was very nice - buscama seats are almost like first class airline seats, very cushy, roomy, and fully reclining. The trip was very long, with only one stop at hour 9 or so to stretch a bit and then back on the bus. The route follows the coast, which is not the most beautiful part of Peru. The coast is primarily desert, rolling brown hills of sand, not many plants or settlements at all. We did pass through occasional towns and our brief stop was in Trujillo, which is a place that I stayed a few years ago for almost a month. It was nice to see some familiar sites zipping by, and I wished I could stay, but the bus rolled along, and soon it was dark. I slept for a few hours and then woke up when we started through the mountains. The route is extremely twisty, and I didn't expect to sleep while swaying from one side to the other, but the next thing I knew it was 6am and we were driving through an amazing river valley. The Utcabamba river flows at the bottom of a deep and narrow gorge, with steep cliffs decorated with small deciduous trees, which were dotted with bromiliads and flowers. It was gorgeous.

We arrived in Pedro Ruìz, reclaimed all of our luggage, and set out to find a way to Chachapoyas. Meanwhile, the bus had apparently used up all it had to give, because it took another 3 hours and much banging around by mechanics before the remaining passengers could get back underway. We were glad to have arrived without incident! It was a bit surprising that the hostal in Chachapoyas hadn't sent a ride for us as had been arranged, but we soon found out why - the road was closed until 12:30. It was only 8am or so, so we had several hours to wander in the little town, have a bit of breakfast, and generally enjoy the respite from travel. At noon the taxis arrived to take us to Chachapoyas, and at 12:30 the road opened as scheduled, so we hurtled our way the remaining 2 hours or so over occasionally paved roads past more amazing scenery. The cliffs are mixed sandstone and limestone, and are dotted with bromiliads and speckled with caves. The river was beautiful and flowed through the valley floor as our caravan of three taxis packed with gear made its way up to the town of Chachapoyas.

We arrived at our hotel here to learn that there was a mix-up and the very friendly and apologetic hotel owner didn't expect us until tomorrow. There is apparently going to be a fiesta in town in the coming days, and all the rooms in town are booked. However, the hotel has a courtyard which we were offered as a camping area, so we'll be camping tonight at the hotel! There was never a group more prepared for impromptu camping, so we're actually very happy with the accommodations. Tomorrow morning we should have actual rooms.

We have heard absolutely nothing from the Peruvian archaeologists, which is a wee small problem. We're not sure how many are coming, when they will be ready to go, what the plan is, or basically anything at all about their intentions. And it has become my responsibility to figure this out. So, I need to run and find a phone and see if I can locate anyone in Leymebamba (the site of the museum, which is about 4 hours away from here). I expect to travel down to meet with them either tomorrow or the next day. I'll let you know. It's never dull. Oh, and we still haven't heard if we even have permits to be doing this work. Meanwhile, plans continue between the cavers and the History Channel folks, who are expecting to arrive in 2 weeks to film our progress. Fabulous!

I've got to run. Hope everyone is well back home!

Take care,

Karen