Ica & Haucachina

Desert Guide

Roberto Penny Cabrera

• We’ve had two amazing experiences with Roberto in the desert. He’s one of a kind, and the desert is amazing.
• You can contact Roberto through his website or the Hostería Suiza. His trips are 2-3 nights long and cost a flat rate of $300, regardless of how many people or how long.

Accommodation

Hostería Suiza
Address

• Guide books imply that this hotel is out of the way from the rest of the action in Huacachina, which isn’t the case. Huacachina is tiny. This hotel just so happens to be situated at one end, which is a benefit in my opinion.
• Nice pool, very comfortable rooms, friendly staff. Breakfast (with eggs!) included.
• $10/night rooms with simple single beds and a shared bathroom upon request. Breakfast not included with this deal.

Restaurants

Hostal Desert Nights
Boulevard Principal, facing the Oasis (opposite corner from Hostería Suiza)

• Great Americanized comfort food. Be prepared the share their banana pancake for breakfast… or order it as a group desert! It’s huge and awesome.

Trattoría
Boulevard Principal, facing the Oasis

• There are a few places that have Italian food on their menu in Huacachina… if in the mood for pasta/pizza, look for the Trattoría. Their menu is solely Italian food and decent.

Bananas
Boulevard Principal, facing the Oasis, next door to Hostería Suiza

• Good fruit drinks and bar food. Outdoor seating, great for lunch.

La Candela (Ica)
Avenida Tupac Amaru F-5 Urb. San José, Ica

• A traditional (but very tourist friendly) cevichería, covered outdoor seating, live music!

Sandboarding

• Pretty much any company will do for sandboarding. Trip leaves in the early evening to avoid the midday sun. Huacachinero and Hostal Desert Nights seems to run the most trips.

Schmilas Family Reunion: Desert Trip with the Maestro

We got to the desert at maybe 1am after making our way through the strike blockages on Wednesday. The moon was practically full that night, and we were able to set up our mattresses and sleeping bags without any flashlights.

Over the next three days we scoured different areas of the desert in search of megalodon teeth. We were in less “open” areas and the sun wasn’t as cooperative this time around, so we only found tiny little teeth the first two days. Jeremy had the biggest find of the trip, finally, on the third day. He snagged a very large, black Mako shark tooth. Scott was the big loser of the trip, and found nothing. Actually, I didn’t find anything either, but that was because I spent most of trip napping in Hermalinda or back at the camp site!

It was really nice to see our friend Roberto Penny Cabrera again. He was just as contradictory and complex as our first trip. Since he’s not a fan of the “shaman” title, we came up with a new label… the maestro, or teacher. I think it’s very fitting given how enthusiastic he is about sharing his knowledge of the desert with others. I enjoyed getting to know him even better, and we promised to come back for another visit once we have some little kiddies.

Schmilas Family Reunion: Transportation Strike

Our cuñados, Autumn and Jeremy, have been visiting us for the last few days. We met up with them in Lima last week, and then headed down to Ica to go out to the desert (again) with Roberto Penny Cabrera. I like to call the adventure the “Schmilas Family Reunion”, even though it didn’t include everybody in the fam.

Transportation Strike

Our first big adventure of the trip was traveling to Ica. It is normally an easy 5-hour bus ride from Lima, however the morning we were supposed to travel we found out that there was a nation-wide transportation strike happening.

I looked online for more information about the strike, but didn’t find much. From what our local friend Sergio said, people were upset that the government increased fines for traffic tickets, and made a law that would indefinitely suspend the licenses of drivers with more than 5 infractions. Mmm, I would venture that most Peruvians have more than 5 traffic violations. We were also told that Peruvians are paid to strike by Hugo Chavez, which I find unlikely, but intriguing.

We ended up running into just one major road block on the Panamerican Highway on our way to Ica. As we were pulling up to the blockage a whole bus load of riot police were also arriving. The staff on the Cruz del Sur bus had everyone close their window shades “for our protection”, which was somewhat unnerving. We spent maybe 15 minutes watching the smoke billow up ahead while the police cleared the way, and then slowly drove through the streets lined with onlookers, burning tires and piles of rocks.

We met Roberto immediately upon arriving in Ica. He had decided to leave for the desert immediately to avoid any problems on the road the next day. After buying food and some other supplies at a small market, we set off for the Ocucaje desert.

We hit another small road block outside of Ica. Roberto’s truck is painted black and looks pretty much like a military vehicle, so I was sure that the locals would end up throwing rocks at us as we drove through the blockage. We got through the burning tires and onlookers safely though. It was a relief to be able to sleep in the tranquil desert that night.

Allison & Scott’s First 111 Days

I missed the 100 day mark of our trip! We’re pretty much on the same schedule as President Obama… We were just barely able to see his inauguration before we left.

Here’s our official press release. (I’d hold a press conference via webcam, but my internet connection is too slow.)

Allison & Scott’s First 111 Days in Peru

Desert Shaman Trip Day 3: "Tourist" Sites

Thursday, March 26th

After finding the remnant of the megaladon tooth, Scott was hooked to shark tooth hunting. So we went out again the morning of Day 3. The sky was cloudy though, and we had no luck.

We broke down the tent and packed out gear back at camp, and then headed out. On the ride back, Roberto stopped for us to see three “tourist” sites, including an amazing canyon, a cemetery of Nazca people (“raped” by paleontologists and others looking for treasures) and the fossil of an ancient whale (also “raped” by paleontologists who opened it up from the ground and then left it to be destroyed by the wind).

Roberto’s stance on what should be done with the fossils in the Ocucaje desert is confusing at first. It wasn’t until a conversation the day after our trip that it started to make sense to me. “It’s like a chess game.” For the most part, he thinks that fossils should be left in the ground. He evokes an ancient goddess Pachamama when talking about this, noting that if you take something from the earth, Pachamama will take something from you.

He also understands “losing some pieces”, or extracting and preserving ancient marine fossils found in the Ocucaje desert, so we can learn from them. Specifically he says that he knows where to find the fossils of the extinct and elusive megalodon sharks. (The only remnants of the megalodon shark that have been found to this date are a piece of a jaw bone and teeth, like the one Scott found.) But he will not guide paleontologists to find megalodon fossils because they are not protected under Peruvian law. The law currently protect fossils only from mankind, and not from animals. So paleontologists have free reign to extract whatever animal fossils they may find and take them out of the country.

The ideal situation for Roberto would be a stalemate of sorts between Pachamama and preservation. He would like to see a museum in Ica under a partnership between the Peruvian government and international authorities.

Driving back into civilization was another surreal experience after having been so isolated for 3 days. Suddenly there were people, and we were covered in sand riding in the back in a very obtrusive truck.

At one point during the trip we had asked Roberto what he thought about the controversial ex-president of Peru, Furjimori. Fujimori has been on trial over the last few months for overseeing the slaying and “disappearing” of innocent people during his fight against the domestic Shining Path terrorist organization. He is a very controversial figure here in Peru.

So our last stop on our way back into Ica was at the cemetary of Ocucaje, a town of maybe 2,000 people.

Roberto pointed out that the huge wall of above ground tombs that we were looking at consisted only of children. Each grave had the name, age and birth date of a child that had been maybe 2, 4, 7 years old. “Before Fujimori 30 children would die each year here.” No doctors, medicine, healthcare, sanitation. “That is enough for a revolution.” Fujimori built hospitals, brought doctors. There was a newer looking wall of maybe 20 tombs stacked on top of each other. “That new wall is for the new president [Alan Garcia].”

So, the Desert Shaman. I think this quote from him sums up the entire trip:

“Maybe it’s just the desert you learned. I don’t think so.”

Desert Shaman Trip Day 1: Intro to Ocucaje

We are just getting back from our adventure with Roberto Penny Cabrera, aka “Desert Man”, in Peru’s Ocucaje desert.

I like to call Roberto the shaman of the desert. When I first told him that, he was amused. He quickly refuted the statement, however, saying that what he shows us in the desert is real, and what he knows about the desert is based on fact. This is generally true.

Roberto also offers a chance to spend time in a completely isolated world, where your ears ring with the silence, and where the only remnants of life you see are fox tracks (right), the occasional vulture, and insects that are dying of thirst. It was difficult not to contemplate my life in this surreal world of sand and nothingness. 

I could go on and on about our trip. I’m going to try to keep it to three short installments for the blog.

Tuesday, March 24

We met up with Robert at 7am on Tuesday morning. We arrived in Ica an hour early to eat some breakfast, but no restaurants were open. So we called Roberto, who we knew had been up since at least 5am. He was ready to go and happy to see us ahead of schedule. We made a couple of stops for peanut butter (a very important staple) and a weather report over coffee at a rundown cafe outside of town. From there we headed into the Ocucaje desert.

Roberto came prepared in every way to give us the adventure of our lives. His truck, affectionately named Hermalinda, was equipped with all of our gear. The only thing we had to bring were a change of clothes, food and water. He has an “upside down dune” tent that he made specifically for the desert, sleeping bags, chairs and tables. He also brought some supplies for us (a jacket, gloves, and a hat) for the cold, lest we become “annoying” or “patetic”.

At our first stop at a whale fossil (below left) on our way into the desert, I was frantically looking for my sunglasses in my bag to help shade my eyes from the dust that was being kicked up by the truck as we drove. “You are worrying me,” he said as he handed me his sunglasses/ goggles. “Eyes are important in the desert. And I don’t want you to get patetic.” I used the goggles for the rest of the trip.

After setting up our base camp and napping, we went farther into the desert to search for shark teeth. The entire Ocucaje desert used to be the bottom of the ocean in ancient times. So you are constantly seeing bones from marine animals, petrified shells, plants as you walk around. The dirt is soft and crunches under your feet, leaving deep footprints. In that way it’s kind of like walking around on the moon.

There are very specific conditions needed for shark teeth hunting. Roberto explained that it’s a matter of wind opening and closing certain areas in the desert. (He had been studying the gulls of wind carefully as we slept that afternoon.) We also needed to see the bones of other animals and have a certain color of brown/orange sand in the area.

The sun wasn’t out that afternoon, so we only found hollowed out remnants of teeth. I went back to camp feeling a bit skeptical about the huge teeth we had seen in his room the day before.

We watched the sunset that evening from the camp.

Roberto wouldn’t admit it, but around the camp fire is where he really lets his desert shaman powers flow. He has a very different approach to life that he is happy to explain to you. Honestly, someone should write a book called “The Dao of the Desert Shaman.” There were too many stories and quips to write down that first night. We were put to sleep by his chatter.

Huacachina Oasis & Meeting "Desert Man"

This is my last post for our visit with Casey and Kyle. They leave tomorrow for Lima, and we’re headed to the very isolated desert through Thursday. (Note: I’m writing this ahead of time. So if you check my blog every day as you should, I’ll be back from the desert on Friday, which is your tomorrow.)

Anyway…

Saturday, March 21

Saturday was a travel day from Puerto Moldonado to Lima, and then from Lima to Ica and the Huacachina Oasis. We had some problems with the bus tickets that I booked, and once we arrive our hotel (Casa de Arena) was noisy and run down. Kind of a bummer day for me, but we made it.

Sunday, March 22

We started the morning off with an awesome breakfast from Desert Adventures. Real coffee. Real orange juice. It was great.

Second, we switched hotels to Hosteria Suiza. So much nicer. Quiet… Most guide books insinuate that this hotel is inconveniently out of the way. In reality, it’s on the far side of the lagoon, which is about a 2 minute walk from the other side of the lagoon. That small distance though puts you away from the party hostels… a very good thing. I’m getting tired of backpackers.

Next we booked our bus tickets our dune buggy/sand boarding tour with Huacachinero. I just went along for the ride in the buggy, which was awesome in and of itself. The rest of the crew threw themselves down the dunes on sandboards. Everyone got back to the hotel covered in sand. Some of us worse than others, ahem, meaning Scott who had decided to lay down on the top of a dune to watch the sunset.

Back at the hotel, we met up with a local guide known as “Desert Man”, aka Roberto Penny Cabrera. We were looking for a 6-7 hour tour of the surrounding desert to look at marine fossils. Scott and I ended up booking a 3 day, 2 night tour with him on a whim. Honestly, this guy is a gem. And we have the time. Unfortunately, Casey and Kyle are headed back to Lima, and could not be convinced even when Roberto called Casey “shiny”.

I agree with this American Airways magazine’s article saying Roberto’s passion about “fossil hunting”is addictive. (Here is a New York Time’s article about him as well.) He promises to awake our inner explorer child. I like to think of him as a desert shaman, because he’s going to take us into the deepest, most isolated desert to see amazing fossils, rock formations and sunsets, which will probably blow our mind.

Monday, March 23

Roberto asked that we come to his house the next morning to see some of the fossils he has collected from the desert. For the most part, he insists that fossils be left in the land. However, he does take a few precious items out because he “likes things that are beautiful”. So, after another breakfast at Desert Adventures, we headed to Ica.

Roberto’s family own a huge colonial house on the corner of the Plaza de Armas. The house is pretty much in ruins, probably both from sheer age (with what looked like very little upkeep) and from the earthquake that devastated this area in 2007.

Roberto (showing his truck to us in this photo) has his collection set up in one of the rooms, which is also the room he sleeps in when he’s not at his girlfriend’s house.

The room could literally be out of an Indiana Jones movie. He has shark teeth and other fossils set up in display cases, and a particularly interesting rock formation that looks like Munk’s Scream. The walls are plastered with maps of the Ocucaje desert. One corner has a desk strewn with papers, shark teeth remnants and diagrams of a pyramid that he is planning on building. There is a mattress in the other corner with camouflage bedding.

After a full inspection of the room, Roberto treated us to coffee at the club next door. We were wearing shorts and sandals, so Roberto had to talk the guard into letting us in. Actually, now that I mention that, Roberto almost never stops talking. He’s incredibly engaging, and after about almost two hours we had to cut him short. It was time for us to hit the supermarket for water and other supplies.

We spent the rest of the day lounging by the pool and relaxing. I was torn with feeling excited for our next adventure with “Desert Man” and sad that Casey and Kyle would be leaving the next day! It has been great to travel with them down here. (Not to mention, they brought me Hot Tamales!)