El Misti - Peru

[stuckiniowa]

I have been a lurker on this site for some time now, but now that my wife and I have moved back to CO i figured I might throw my hat in the ring. So here goes.

My wife an I have booked a trip to Peru in September with the main goal to hike the inca trail and see Machu Picchu. We are flying into Arequipa with the original thought to see the Colca Canyon. After looking into it more I would rather hike El Misti but I am not sure if our time frame will allow it. We will be arriving in Arequipa at 7:00am on Wednesday and need to be on the bus to Cusco on Saturday or Saturday night. So it looks like our best bet would be to hike Thursday, camp on Thursday night and be back in Arequipa Friday night? Do you think this is enough time to acclimatize? We have both hiked 14er's in Colorado and one in Borneo and have camped at treeline multiple times and have had no issues with altitude but this will be a big jump. We will both be in good shape and she is doing three triathlons this summer and I am doing one. I understand it will very for everyone but we have a good idea what our limits are and if we don't make it to the top it so be it, it won't make or break the trip. Any thoughts? Also if you have any recommended guides or contacts it would help.

Thank you in advance for the help!

[Scott P]

Do you think this is enough time to acclimatize?

No. You would be asking for trouble.

Is it possible to do the Inca Trail and visit Cusco first? By then you would be better acclimatized.

Also if you have any recommended guides or contacts it would help.

Carlos Zarate runs the most reliable or at least longest running company down that way. Highly recommended.

[MountainHiker]

When we climbed Chachani back in 1998 we used Carlos Zarate. That was before everybody had a webpage, but this appears to be the same person:
http://www.zarateadventures.pe/page/mountains
If we were to go back to climb El Misti we would contact him again.
Agree on more time, not just for acclimation, but after peeling yourself out of the airplane.

[Boggy B]

... or after peeling yourself out of the 4x4. I'd recommend camping at the TH (it was 17400' on Chachani, not sure about Misti) for an afternoon to recover from the drive up.

[stuckiniowa]

Thanks everyone. Looks like we will just hit Colca canyon and hit the mountains next time. We are meeting someone to hike the inca trail and they have very limited time and plane tickets have been bought. Thanks again.

[MountainHiker]

The Inca Trail is worth the trip itself. Plus there are a lot of attractions in Peru for an extra days. City to city bus rides can be guided tours of historic sites.

[jsdratm]

I'm doing the Inca Trail May 18-26 through REI and will try to get in a 14er beforehand. I was thinking of Cerro Picol since it is right on the edge of town. Does anyone know of any good hiking trails in the area?