Carl Trade: Overlanding

We have FULL OVERLAND SERVICE that is quite different from others companies were passengers havo to use their precious vacation time in several chores during the trip : cooking, washing dishes, setting up tent....etc. Our full service takes care of all these chores, we have specialized help that comes along to help with chores. Seldomly on long days you may be requested to help with someting like setting up your tent but the rest of the time you are free to roam around camp taking photos with the evening or morning light our just relaxing. We also have an experienced cook that takes care of most meals during the trip insuring hygiene and quality meals or Peruvian dishes for you to savor. Most important each trip is accompanied by well experienced trip leader the will coordinate any details to make your trip a fulflling experience.

At the beginning of the trip each passenger will receive a pre-labeled medium size bag to store their personal belongings and ussually enough clothes for the entire trip; thus, the identification of your property will not allow any mistakes. Any excess luggage not needed for daily use will be stored either in the containers under the cabin or at the roof rack, these two being accessible only at the half way hotel stop or at the end (any other time only if it is urgent).

Also at the beginning of the trip each passenger will be given a day by day detailed description sheet of the trip for a reference, here our passengers will find plenty of information about what we will see and the places we will visit. Our trip leader will review the sheet every night for planning purposes to know what to expect the next day and he will also be available for any inquiries you may want.

Our meals are carefully selected with an emphasis in Peruvian cuisine. The meals list will be presented to each passenger upon sign up, giving them time to request any changes (In case special diets are required).

We provide easy to assemble tents and pads in a double basis. We also provide sleeping bags with sheets upon request for small rental fee. In case a single tent is rquested then a small rental fee applies.

Our trips are designed to accomodate a maximum of 20 passengers, only in some cases we may accept one extra passenger to have a full cabin, otherwise there will be one empty seat in case of need, next to the trip leader seat. We recommend rotating seats during the trip to promote interaction amongst our passengers and for everyone to have a chence to ride in seveal different places during the trip.

OVERLAND SOUTHERN PERU
LIMA – PARACAS – NASCA – PUERTO INCA – COLCA CANYON
AREQUIPA – PUNO AND LAKE TITICACA – CUSCO
8 DAYS and 7 NIGHTS

We leave early in the morning heading south on the Panamericana Highway, crossing several coastal valleys separated by desert. We’ll reach the small artisanal port of EL CHACO by mid morning where we'll board small outboard powered boats to navigate to the BALLESTAS ISLANDS part of the PARACAS WILDLIFE RESERVE. This boat trip takes aproximately 2 hrs where you can enjoy seeing the fabulous variety of Sea Birds, Sea Lions and the rare Humboldt Pinguins. A fresh sea food lunch on a local restaurant awaits our return from our sea journey as a sample of the coastal cuisine. After lunch we continue on the Panamericana Highway for abour 3 hours until we reach the town of NASCA, well know for the misterious lines drawn on the desert land than can only be identified from up high in the air. Camp in a small local farm. Dinner will be based on a typical "pachamanca".

The morning after breakfast we will overflight the NASCA LINES in a small aircraft to fully appreciate this famous and mysterious drawings. We’ll have lunch at our campsite and later continue on the road south to Puerto Inca. We will learn about fishing, drying and storing seafood during the Inca empire. We will have time to freely visit the Inca ruins while camp and dinner are prepared.

This will be a long day, therefore we’ll depart early (5 a.m.) and have our breakfast on the way. We will travel south on the coast about 3 hours and then turn east towards the Andes mountains and the Colca Canyon. Impressive views of the formation of the Colca, snow peaks mountain and volcanos (the Sabancaya volcano still active and smoking) will gradually appear as we gain altitude on the way to our next campsite "THE CROSS OF THE CONDOR". A picnic lunch on the way will be served at a stopover. The campsite will be reached late in the afternoon and the water supply will be limited to what we bring with us in the vehicle; this partial inconvinience will be rewarded with spectacular views of the depth of the canyon and the following morning, if nature provides, the spectacular views of the flying Condors over our campsite as they fly out of their nesting places on the cliffs of the canyon.

This morning we take our time to have breakfast and watch for the Condors flying nearby our campsite, also enjoy the beautiful views of the canyon. Later in the morning we’ll depart for a ride following the Colca to the town of CHIVAY where we’ll have the opportunity to purchase some of the handicrafts made in the area. We’ll have a picnic lunch nearby and continue going over some higher lands towards Arequipa. In a section of the road, we’ll have a chance to observe wild Vicuñas (endangered species relative to the Llama and Alpaca) and also a population of water birds that inhabit on a nearby lagoon. Later in the afternoon we’ll descend to the city of AREQUIPA where we will lodge in a small hotel for the following two nights. Dinner on your own. Arequipa's cusine is just excellent.

Free day in Arequipa for touring this colonial city and visit it’s famous convent of Santa Catalina. Lunch and dinner on your own with suggestion to try the delicious local cuisine. Overnight at the hotel.

Early departure (6 a.m.) eastward with our final destination our campsite on the shores of LAKE TITICACA (the highest navigable lake in the world). We gain altitude quickly on a warding road crossing between two volcanoes, the MISTI and the URBINAS, till we reach the high plateau of the Andes or "Altiplano" where again may meet some wild Vicuñas feeding on the "Ichu" grass of this rugged or the Andean Flamingo or "Parihuana". Our highest point on this road is at the Toroya pass 4,690 meters above sea level.

Alfter breakfast we’ll board local boats to navigate the lake visiting the floating islands of the UROS and the island of TAQUILE where we’ll have lunch at a local restaurant. The island of Taquile in inhabited by "Quechua" (the native language of the Incas) speaking people in the midst of "Aymara" speaking communities that live in and near the lake. This people preserve much of the high quality of their weaving and knitting; there will be time for shopping at the local cooperative store. In the late afternoon, we’ll arrive back at camp for dinner.

This day we’ll travel to Cusco on an all day jurney heading north on the Altiplano road. As we leave Puno, we’ll visit the SILLUSTANI burial site of the per-Incan time with several funeral towers in a spectacular setting next to a small lake. Later we pass by the town of Juliaca a rather busy commercial town that supplies goods to many nearby communities and the eastern side of the mountains that lead to Amazon basin areas populated by farmers gold miners. We’ll see several colonial churches in small towns along the way as we gain altitude and reach the pass of LA RAYA at 4,690 meters above the sea level to later begin our gradual descend toward the valley fo Cusco. You’ll notice the change as we enter the world of the quechuas alive with Inca traditions, colorful hats and ponchos in a land agriculturally wealthy. We’ll reach Cusco in the late afternoon and accomodation at the hotel. Overnight at the hotel.
End of our service. You will be able to connect with our Inca Trail (four or five day) programs, extension programs to include your visit to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley, or just to stay in the city of Cusco, the oldest and most continuouly inhabited city in the Americas. BOOK NOW.

PERU OVERLAND NORTH
TRUJILLO – CHICLAYO – CHACHAPOYAS – KUELAP
LEYMEBAMBA – CELENDIN – CAJAMARCA
8 DAYS and 7 NIGHTS

Northen Perú is ideally visited by overland when you want to experience a land of warm people, excellent food, archaeological, weather and contrasting views. The northen cultures in Perú are probably the most important predecessors to the formation of the Inca empire that ruled the Tawantinsuyo (Perú, Ecuador, Bolivia and parts of Chile, Colombia and Argentina) territory in the 13th and 14th centuries.

Early depature from Lima to head north on the Pan American Highway. As we leave the city, we will encounter arid desert land mixed with sporadic river valleys adding a touch of green scenery, beautiful open beaches with rich blue waters. On the way we will stop for a visit at the archaeological site of SECHIN an important per-Inca remain that shows adobe walls with interesting colorful designs. We’ll reach the fisherman village of Huanchaco in the late afternoon where we’ll stay at a small hotel at the beachfront. B,D.

After breakfast we’ll visit CHAN CHAN the largest abode city in the world that corresponds to the CHIMU per-Inca culture; later we’ll visit the sites of HUACA DEL SOL and HUACA DE LA LUNA as we continue northbound to the city of CHICLAYO. After a sea food lunch we’ll have a guided visit to the BRUNING MUSEUM where you can view the outside gold jewelry and objects from the remains of the tomb of the LORD OF SIPAN. We stay at a hotel for the night, dinner on your own. B,L.

Early departure (5 a.m.) after breakfast. We’ll head north on the Pan American Highway until the town of Olmos where we turn east towards to the Andes mountains. We’ll go over the pass of PORCULLA at 2,150 meters above the sea level and after a long descent we’ll cross the MARAÑON RIVER at the town of Corral Quemado. We continue on the road across what is known as TROPICAL DRY FOREST, an ecological zone with a variety of unique flora and fauna, until we reach the town of Bagua Grande. At this point the road turns south following the Uctubamba river towards it’s headwaters. The variety of ecological zones and scenery makes this an interesting journey. Late in the afternoon we’ll reach the HACIENDA EL CHILLO, a traditional farmhouse turned hotel where we’ll have dinner and spend the night. B,L,D.

After breakfast we travel for two hours on a small raod to KUELAP the famous archaeological site of the CHACHAPUYU civilization. Considered a fortress this citadel is located on top of a mountain and surrounded by 50-foot stone walls. Inside you find round building adorned with various geometrical designs in the stone walls. Varieties of orchids and other flowers are also a striking element in the citadel plus colorful birds of many species fill the air with their songs. We’ll have lunch in our camp nearby and have the afternoon to continue exploring the ruins before return for a dinner next to our campsite if conditions are adequated. B,L,D.

Early rise to have breakfast and break camp to later hike down to the valley (2 hours), an enjoyable walk on a trail passing by homes of local peasant families, intense bird life and wonderful scenery. You can also ride in the bus if you do not wish to walk. The bus will meet the group by the Uctubamba River to travel upriver on the road to the village of Puente, here we cross the river and later begin a two hours hike to the REVASH sarcophagi, that are replicas of the homes of the Revash people contemporary to the Chuchupuyu. Picnic lunches and return to the bus to continue on the road until we reach the town of Leymebamba. Camp nearby. B,L,D.

On this day we will cross the impressive MARAÑON CANYON. Early departure to climb on the road to the Chanchillo pass at 3,500 meters above the sea level from where we view the impressive site of the Marañon Canyon. We begin our long descent to the town of Balsas at 500 meters above the sea level, cross the Marañon River and begin our climb to the other side at 4,000 mts above sea level. We continue on the high plains and later come to the town of Celendin. Camp nearby. B,L.D.

A 4-hour bus ride will take us to the northen capital of the Incas CAJAMARCA, after lunch we will have a tour of the City and places of interest. Dinner on your own. B,L.

Early departure for a non stop bus ride from Cajamarca to Lima (16 hours). B,L.
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CODE LIMA TO CUSCO CODE CUSCO TO LIMA
LC 199	DEC 26-1998 TO JAN 05	CL 299	JAN 09 TO JAN 16
LC 599	FEB 09 TO FEB 16	CL 699	FEB 20 TO FEB 27
LC 799	MAR 02 TO MAR 09	CL 899	MAR 13 TO MAR 20
		CL 1099	APR 03 TO APR 10
LC 1199	APR 13 TO APR 20	CL 1299	APR 26 TO MAY 03
		CL 1399	MAY 16 TO MAY 23
LC 1499	MAY 26 TO JUNE 02	CL 1499	JUN 06 TO JUN 13
		CL 1799	JUN 26 TO JUL 03
LC 1899	JUL 17 TO JUL 24	CL 1999	JUL 28 TO AUG 04
LC 2099	AUG 18 TO AUG 25	CL 2199	AUG 29 TO SEP 05
		CL 2399	SEP 19 TO SEP 26
LC 2499	SEP 29 TO OCT 06	CL 2599	OCT 14 TO OCT 21
LC 2699	OCT 20 TO OCT 27	CL 2799	OCT 31 TO NOV 07
LC 2899	NOV 10 TO NOV 17	CL 2999	NOV 21 TO NOV 28
LC 3099	DEC 01 DEC 08	CL 3199	DEC 12 TO DEC 19
Milenium	DEC 30 TO JAN 06
CODE KUELAP OVERLAND
KLP 199	JUL 06 TO JUL 13
KLP 299	AUG 07 TO AUG 14