Paracas is a small town on the coast, thriving off fishing and tourism. I was hoping for a quiet village feel and got accommodation next to a restaurant that liked loud music!
The Paracas Reserve was set up to protect the desert landscape. It is unique in that the dunes are multi-coloured. There are look outs around the reserve and we went to three of them. The first stop was at the Cathedral – however after a powerful 8.4 earthquake, the top of the Cathedral has fallen into the sea. The scenery is dramatic and stark- with a contrast of yellow sand and blue Pacific Ocean!
There is also a stop known as Red Beach due to the tiny red volcanic rocks that have washed up on the beach from past eruptions.
Ballestas Islands are the most popular reason for visiting the town. They are referred to as the Poor Man’s Galapagos. With that name I wasn’t sure what to expect so I was floored by the amount of birds, sea lions and even a few Humboldt Penguins. Seeing penguins in the bright hot sun is strange- but it helps to remember that this part of the Pacific is really cold due to a cold current passing past the coast here. There are many pelicans, turkey vultures, beautiful Incan terns- that have small white feathers that look like earrings, boobys, cormorants and more.
There is infrastructure on the island that is used for several months a year to collect guano (bird poo). It is literally a gold mine at a ridiculous 350 USD per kilogram! There was not much guano around when we were there but the smell was really potent and nasty! The ocean is actually really frothy due to the waves washing against the rock surface, washing off the guano and mixing it with the salty sea.
On the large island there are thousands of birds visible- and as they take off the sky fills with dark waves of hundreds of birds- it’s pretty amazing.
On the way to the island we get a view of the huge 170m long Candelabra pattern in the desert- no one knows why it is here or for what reason really.
There are a large amount of sea lions and pups on the beaches too!
One reply on “Paracas”
how can i book next season to make few $ ?