Pico de Loro
1:00 pm
We went on what was supposed to be an easy hike, but 90% of getting there was uphill, and I apparently have the knees of an old lady - so I got more than I bargained for.
For most of the hike we were in the forest, so there was no direct sunlight to make the journey sweatier [than it already was]. I was forced to seriously re-evaluate my fitness level during this hike - it was mildly torturous, so from that I gather that I really need to amp up my cardio.
We reached the base camp after 2 hours of hiking and took the time to take some pictures before we moved on.
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| View of the summit from basecamp |
The highlight of this hike is the view from the top of the summit and monolith but most of our group wanted to give up at this point. We'd finished all our water and only had crackers for food (we're clearly new to hiking). Anyway, the summit was only about 20 minutes away from the base camp even though it did look really far.. and really high up.
In adventure, backing down is not an option (not for me anyway) - so we powered through it. At this point there was no tree cover and it was almost noon so the sun was up, out and shining.
In adventure, backing down is not an option (not for me anyway) - so we powered through it. At this point there was no tree cover and it was almost noon so the sun was up, out and shining.
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| the last steep ascent before reaching the summit |
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| View of the monolith from the summit |
The summit had a neat little plateau for us to rest and admire the view before taking on the "dessert" of the hike. The cherry on top, so to speak. The monolith.
We passed a steep descent before we got to the base of the monolith, which held even more surprises than some of our group expected.
The base of the monolith was pretty freaking cool. We had to go around the base to get to the part we could climb. No pictures of this bit cause I was too busy trying not to fall to my death - the rocks were big and smooth and easy enough to traverse, but there was a sharp drop that guaranteed a broken something if you weren't careful.
The climbing part was ridiculous. The incline was at a 75-80 degree angle - not kidding. There were tiny niches where you could secure your foot but otherwise, you only had a rope to make sure you dont fall.
I eagerly went first and unfortunately scared off the others since I had a misstep and almost fell off (oops). Of the 6 in our group, only 2 of us braved the last ascent and were rewarded with the view and sense of accomplishment.
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| View of the basecamp from the top of the monolith |
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