THE BALLESTAS ISLANDS AND THE HUACACHINA OASIS

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Day 4: BALLESTAS ISLANDS - ICA - HUACACHINA - NAZCA

Today we do not need the alarm to get up and open our eyes sooner than expected. At 5.30 in the morning we are already putting the batteries and ordering everything at 7 to be having breakfast on the fourth floor of our hotel, with fantastic views. Today we have a complete day in which we will know the Ballestas Islands and the Oasis of Huacachina.
At 7.45 we will start with the tour of the Ballestas Islands that we hired yesterday with the hotel Brisas de la Bahía hotel for 35 soles per person. A good option is also to book the excursion in advance online.
So a little before that time and after breakfast, we went down to reception, we left our backpacks and everything paid and we sat for a while to wait for them to come find us.
The Ballestas Islands tour ends at 10 am and we have the bus from Paracas to Ica at 10.40, so on the way back we can't waste much time.

When the time comes that they have to come find us to go to the jetty and The Ballestas Islands and nobody comes, we ask the person at the reception and immediately call and by the conversation we see that he has, it is very clear that they have forgotten us.
They call a man from a store next to the hotel quickly and he brings us closer to the pier.
Upon arrival, we see that half Paracas is gathered in this small area of the jetty. It is clear that we could have come alone and even bought the tickets right here, since We see that there are people who hire a tour to the Ballestas Islands at the same pier.
Apart from what we had already paid for the tour at the hotel, we have to pay 2 soles per entrance to the jetty per person and then 10 more soles per person for fees. At this point, we imagine that you will have already realized that in Peru rates are common and that you cannot skip.
After a few minutes of queue, we arrive at what will be our boat. We go to the Ballestas Islands.
The Ballestas Islands tour lasts just over 2 hours and we advise you to sit on the left side of the boat, to have the best views and as far forward as possible. We say it from experience if you don't want to get dripping.
The perfect left side for views of the Candelabro and the Ballestas Islands and in front, because we received more than one soak back.

Approaching the Ballestas Islands

Despite being called "the Galapagos of the poor," the trip to the Ballestas Islands is highly recommended.
After just over 10 minutes of walking, we begin to see the first images that we associate with the Ballestas Islands and their fauna.

First wildlife views approaching the Candelabra

After this brief stop to see the fauna, we continue with the tour and we arrive at the famous trident-shaped geoglyph, which is known as the Candelabra, a huge figure engraved in the sandy hills that is over 150 meters high and 50 meters wide.
It is not known who made it, or when or what it means, but there are numerous theories. From the one that associates it with the also famous Nazca Lines, which we will visit tomorrow, others who consider that they could be old navigation lines and that are based on the Southern Cross, to those who believe that it is the work of the aliens.

The Candelabra in the Ballestas Islands

As we move forward we begin to see herds of sea lions lying on the rocks to which we are getting closer and closer.

Herds of sea lions on the rocks

We can also see the most common guano producing birds in the area, such as cormorants, from which we can observe colonies of thousands of members that live with Peruvian penguins, pelicans and birds.

Thousands of guano-producing birds in the upper part of the arch

Penguins in the Ballestas Islands

During the last part of the tour we cross stone arches, we approach caves and we can see more closely all the fauna that is concentrated in the Ballestas Islands Reserve.

Ballestas Islands

At 10.10 in the morning and after a tour that we will not forget, we disembark again at the Paracas jetty and return quickly to the hotel where we check out we pay for the accommodation and the Ballestas Islands tour and we go out to the road to go to Cruz del Sur station, from where at 10.45 our bus leaves to Ica.
As soon as we go out on the road, a car whistles and although we are almost next door, for not carrying the backpacks with the sun that is already starting to tighten, about to the station for 5 soles.
Here we make our exchange of the internet reservation for the tickets, we bill the backpacks and we still have a few minutes to buy water and Pepsi for 4 soles.

Book the best rated tours and excursions in Spanish from Peru by travelers:
- Buggy tour through the Huacachina desert
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This station of Cruz del Sur is quite rudimentary, because the previous one was destroyed by the earthquake and has not yet been rebuilt, but it has a lot of information, a little shop ...

Cruz del Sur Station in Paracas

We left with a little delay, about 11 in the morning and with a little heat we set off for the next destination of our trip to Peru, Ica.
After just over an hour crossing again arid landscapes and noticing that the heat begins to tighten more and more, we arrive at Ica, where after collecting our backpacks from the trunk, we leave the backpacks stored in the same station to enjoy the rest of the Ica day and the Oasis of Huacachina, which are the planned visits.

Here we make a brief paragraph and it is to explain why we will not sleep in the Oasis of Huacachina and go straight to Nazca tonight.
We have read that The best time to fly over the Nazca Lines is first thing in the morning, so we decided to go to the Oasis of Huacachina in the afternoon and take the bus from Cruz del Sur de Ica to Nazca from 19.10 in the afternoon and thus earn a few hours a day and tomorrow be early in the morning at the airfield.
With this "play" we do not lose anything to the itinerary, since at that time we would only stay in Huacachina and we have changed it to make the journey to Nazca.

In the same Ica bus station there are taxis to take you to the point you want from the city or to the outskirts and as we want to do several things today, the first thing we do is look at the prices that are pointed at a banner in the area of the taxis : to the Regional Museum of Ica 5 soles and 7 soles to the Oasis of Huacachina.
We want to go first to the Regional Museum and after the visit go to eat at the Olita de Juanita, a restaurant that we have recommended and then go to the Oasis of Huacachina, visit it, do the buggies tour through the dunes and sandboard and see The sunset in the oasis.
We had already said that the day was complete right?
We take a taxi at the same station and for 5 soles it takes us to the Regional Museum.
The idea is to ask him to wait for us and then take us to the Juanita Pot, but he begins to want to sell us a tour for a higher price of the references that we have in Huacachina and when we tell him that we think it is cheaper he starts saying discuss With a tone that we do not like too much, so in the end by big heads, we decided to stay in the museum and at the exit we will look for another taxi to take us to eat.

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To enter the Regional Museum we pay 15 soles and we have to say that it is a very interesting museum if you have time to visit it, since we can see the funeral bundles that Ricardo explained to us yesterday in the visit to the Paracas National Reserve, some mummies ...
We are very struck by a writing in the mummy room, which indicates that they are exposed in a human way, as an explanation to the history of the area, without hurting the sensibility.
The truth is that it is a recommended visit, as we said before, if you have time to spend a few hours in Ica.
At the exit we see many tuk tuk so we stop one and when we ask him for the price of taking us to the Juanita Pot, he tells us that he is a private individual and cannot take us, but he warns us to be careful when going on the road and that we better take a taxi as soon as possible and that we also keep the camera in our backpack, since we risk being pulled.
The truth is that these basic gestures to avoid problems, we often forget them, since in 99% of cases, we do not feel insecure when we travel.
But this puts us on alert, so we stop at the first yellow taxi we see (they are the officers) and for 10 soles it takes us to the Juanita Pot, the restaurant that has been recommended to us and is located just outside Ica.
Upon arrival we see that the site has enough people and after taking a look at the menu, we ordered a plate of grilled chicken and one of chicken rinds plus water and a lemonade and a coffee for 68.50 soles.

Eating at the Juanita Pot in Ica

It has not been bad, but the truth is that it is not to launch rockets, so we do not think it is worth traveling here just to eat if you do not want to tour the pisco tasting shops in the surroundings .
After dinner, in the same restaurant we ask for a taxi to take us to the Oasis of Huacachina for 15 soles.
We arrived there at 3 in the afternoon and as soon as we got off the taxi, a boy approached us and offered us a private tour to go with a buggy through the sandboard dunes for 60 soles or the possibility of going in a group for 40 soles.
This is when we started to see that the taxi boy who took us to the Regional Museum of Ica was right when he told us that this year, everyone had agreed with the tours in Huacachina and had raised prices, as they had had problems with several companies that had arrived new and offered the same tour at much cheaper prices with which the locals could not compete.
Another good option is to book the Buggy Tour through the Huacachina Desert in advance online.
As it is still early we decided to go for a walk around the oasis, which by the way is full of people bathing and enjoy a more collapsed environment than we initially thought.

Huacachina Oasis

And in the end that one lap translates into a lap as it is known and we completely surround the Huacachina Oasis.

Huacachina Oasis

The atmosphere of the Huacachina Oasis is much more touristy than in the other places we have visited so far, but we can also say that it is a sanote environment, which gives us a very good roll ...
About 4 in the afternoon, we are looking for an agency to hire the tour through the dunes and we met the boy we saw when leaving the taxi. When he sees us again, he tells us that for 55 soles per person, he drops us 5 soles per person, he makes us a private circuit. We do not doubt much more, since we want to make some stops to take pictures and we prefer to go alone and in the end time is coming over us.
The tour will start at 5 in the afternoon and confirms that we will be back in the center of Huacachina around 6.30 in the afternoon, time that seems perfect, since we have to take a taxi again that will take us back to Ica , to Cruz del Sur station to catch the bus that takes us from Ica to Nasca at 19.20 in the afternoon.

We are at 30 degrees and the heat starts to make a dent in us so we go to a terrace to have a little fresh after the return we have given to Huacachina Oasis and we ordered a large lemonade and a pineapple juice for 16 soles.
Here we can no longer say that prices are as cheap as we have been seeing so far.
A few minutes before 5 in the afternoon we go to the office of El Charapa, which is the agency with which we have hired the tour, which is right at the entrance of the Huacachina Oasis, but with another name Oversand Adventures and we ride in our buggie

Buggies in the Huacachina Oasis

The adventure begins. Although we are a little disappointed that the sky has covered a little and has cooled and makes us wonder that perhaps it would have been better to do the tour a little earlier, with more sun for the photos we want to take.
But as soon as you climb the first dune, clinging to the buggie as if we were living in them, the sun appears.
What a rush of experience and a small adrenaline rush.

Buggie in the Huacachina Oasis

Up, down ... on the sides and so a lot more times until we stop to try the sandboard in the oasis of Huacachina.
I was quite lively, until I saw the dune and cracked directly. I've had enough with the buggy roller coaster to throw myself in the dune table below.
But how could it be otherwise, Roger does not stop trying the experience and is not satisfied with only one, if not a good time, from dune to dune, increasingly high, until he decides to leave when he already has sand even in the eyelashes.

Here we go…

Roger between the dunes after throwing himself from above doing sandboarding

When there are a few minutes to 6 in the afternoon, we climb a dune high enough to see the sunset, but before we enjoy incredible views of the Huacachina Oasis.

Huacachina Oasis

Undoubtedly this is an experience that you have to have if you come from this area of Peru. Although it is very touristy, it is worth it and it is not only fun, but you have excellent views of the Oasis.

The Huacachina Oasis

Almost without realizing it, we begin to notice that the sun begins to go down and a colorful dance appears over the desert that makes us marvel.
After 6 pm we go back down to Huacachina Oasis, but we cannot leave without going back for a full turn, where we enjoy incredible views in the evening light.

Sunset over the dunes of Huacachina

The afternoon falls in the Oasis of Huacachina

And with almost fair time, we take a taxi that for 10 soles returns us to the Cruz del Sur station in Ica, where we collect our luggage to check back at the bus from Ica to Nazca, the next main course of trip to Peru.
The bus leaves 10 minutes late and as soon as we sit down, we place our seats in an almost lying position, raise our feet and entertain ourselves by consulting email and information with the Free Wi-Fi offered by Cruz del Sur buses.
After a few minutes using the internet we do not remember anything else, will we have fallen asleep?
We arrived in Nazca at 22.10 at night and just pick up the backpacks we have a representative of AlasPeruanas, the agency with which we hired the flyby for tomorrow, waiting for us at the door to take us to the hotel, since this is a service that includes the agency if you hire the flight with them.
When we made the reservation from home, for 100 dollars per person, they told us that they were coming to look for us at the station even if it wasn't the day of the overflight and the truth is that we hallucinated with the treatment received. 100% recommended this agency.
Before going to the hotel we are approached to the office, which is next door, to weigh us and fill out the forms and thus advance work for tomorrow.
We had stayed with them who would come to pick us up at 8 in the morning at the Casa Andina Nazca hotel where we will stay, but they tell us that for 3 days it is very cloudy at that time and we have to wait at the airport to clear the day . So they prefer to let us know and give us the option of having a quiet breakfast and staying at 9 in the morning, which is the time when they have foresight to clear the day.
After these procedures we are approached to our hotel, Casa Andina Nasca, which is a little further from the street of the office and when we realize it is 11 at night.
We can do nothing but fall in bed.
Today has been a most complete day.