Getting ready to go

Our three-year assignment here ends on Wednesday afternoon when the new mission president and his wife arrive at the Jauja International (joke!) Airport.  We have tried our hardest to get things done well in advance, and our "pack-out" of things being shipped home went well ten days ago.

However, the local Church O&M (Operations & Maintenance) waited a bit longer than perhaps they should have, and for the past six weeks, there has been frantic work going on around the house.

A good bit of which were things that we had mentioned (and re-mentioned) along the way, but have now become urgent.

We have notified the organizers of the work when we'd be out of town, but less advantage was taken than could have been, meaning we have been living here while a lot of the work gets done.

The original plan by O&M was that we would stay in a hotel for our last two weeks while they worked on the house.  Two weeks?!  As I said, they've been working for a solid six weeks.  Glad we didn't buy the original plan.
Paula has tidied up her gardens, wishing them well under new supervision

Meanwhile, there have been kind farewells and cool gifts,

and more meals than my weight-management plan had accounted for.  We have one more lunch today and a farewell meeting this evening.

We will dearly miss many people here, and the majestic scenery throughout the mission.

However, we will miss the missionaries the most; they have become our adopted sons and daughters from all points in the hemisphere.  We have come to love them and appreciate their desires and efforts to do good and help others, and we rejoice in their successes.  We're already mission 'grandparents,' as they begin to marry and have families.

This has been a rich time in our lives, and one in which we have grown closer, in part by necessity. We have learned a great deal alongside the missionaries, and while this has been a sacrifice, it has not been without it's compensating blessings.
Now, to take care of the last details and hand over the cell phone on Wednesday to the new president, and pass out of a tough, but sacred part of our lives.
Dave & Paula

One more time!

As previously noted, we are trying to stay in shape for the upcoming hike on the Inca Trail.  Knowing that we are leaving in only five more days, and that the last several days would be hectic, we decided to hike up to the Huaytapallana glacier at 16,100 feet one last time, which would be my tenth trip and Paula's fifth.  Somehow, the missionaries found out and wanted to come, so we said sure, and 51 signed up.

The alpacas were less than enthusiastic about the arrival of the crowd on the approach trail to the mountain.

The missionaries let Adventure Grandma® lead the pack.

For the first part of the day, the weather was gorgeous.

It got significantly colder and windier as we ascended, and folks started feeling the altitude.

AT the foot of the glacier, everyone stood still long enough for a picture, then we skedaddled down the hill to the bus.  

So, our final climb up Huaytapallana,  Our mission certainly has natural beauty, even if there is enough other stuff to keep us crazy.  

We hope your hikes are as scenic.

Dave & Paula.

It's Adventure Grandma®!

When I married her almost 39 years ago, Paula had just finished her undergraduate degree in Youth Leadership, which at the time required such classes as Water Skiing 101, Backpacking 203, Whitewater Canoeing 302, etc.  She has always been willing to try new things, and is an avid cyclist, has her scuba certification, windsurfs fast, and doesn't wimp out.

We were in the jungle part of the Mission recently, and decided to see a new set of waterfalls on a half-Preparation Day.  Jorge, the owner of the land, grinned and said, "Try the right side this time!" So we did.

The right side (we'd already done the left) turned out to be a bit wilder, but gorgeous.

It required a little more scrambling.

The trail was a bit more sketch.

But it was worth it.

We continue to climb the hills behind Huancayo when we have the chance, to stay in shape for the upcoming Inca Trail hike with friends and family.

We admit that we're not as fast as we used to be, but it's still fun at age ___ and ___ (actual figures redacted at the demand of Adventure Grandma®'s legal counsel).
We hope you're still trying new stuff!
Dave & Paula

Things we have learned - non-mission-related #3

As we may have mentioned, when we leave Huancayo, we are meeting up with 17 friends and family in Cusco, in order to hike the Inca Trail for four days, ending in Machu Picchu.  We figure that it will be a good way to leave South America after an extended stay.

We've been doing some warm-up hikes when we have the time, and did an epic one yesterday, gaining about 3,600 feet elevation, which is more and higher than the longest day on the trip.  This is a message I sent to our friends/fellow victims:

Dear Inca Trailers:  Yesterday we declared a Preparation Day and went on a hike out the front door. The weather was perfect, and we stuffed our packs with junk enough to match what we expect to be carrying.  Luckily, we live a couple of blocks from some significant mountains, and we start at 10,700 feet at the house.

1.  You can buy or rent better trekking poles than this beautiful model is demonstrating.  Actually, this is her stream-crossing stick that she hides in the bushes and uses every time we go on this hike.  It won't get stolen, but it's not carbon-fiber.

There is a road part of the way up, recently improved for the construction of towers for a new power line over the mountains.

2.  Having a friend along to talk to makes the hike easier.  This was Hayde, a nice 53-year-old lady on the way up the mountain to her potato patch, accompanied by her dogs, and followed by her husband with the three donkeys to carry the harvest back down.

3.  I don't think we're going to have phone coverage for text messages during the hike.

4.  One more evidence that Peruvians are a) immune to hard work or b) nuts or c) both.  This is an old corral, which would be fine, except that it's at about 13,800 feet up the side of the mountain.

5.  Don't trust barometric altimeters unless they are calibrated at a spot of known elevation.  Weather changes can significantly alter the readings, as any pilot will tell you.  This is approaching the top, but was reading several hundred feet lower.

6.  The climb is usually worth the pain of the climb.  We topped out a bit over 14,300 feet, with spectacular views.

7.  It's hard to get lost when you can see your house during the entire hike.

8.  Wear a wide-brimmed hat, use lots of sunscreen, and we're not kidding.  We slopped it on before the 8-hour hike, but still got moderately burned.  High altitude+full sun=burn, baby, burn.  Also, even though we weren't in snow fields or anything drastic, my eyes were a little scratchy last night.  

9.  We're probably going to survive the most difficult day on the trail.  I'm a bit sore this morning, but nothing too bad.  

10.  Go light.  'Nuff said.

We hope that your hikes are as rewarding, and use the hat.  Words of wisdom from the bald guy.

Dave & Paula