Our Laguna Parón Day Hike: a Missing Bus and Alpine Magic

We had booked a day hike to Laguna Parón, a large alpine lake sitting at 4,200 meters, from the mountain town of Huaraz. The deep blue waters of the lake are surrounded by jagged, icy peaks—one of which may or may not be the inspiration for the Paramount Pictures logo.

This would be our first hike in the Cordillera Blanca range. Although the lake sits at very high elevation, a Laguna Parón Day Hike makes a great acclimation hike because the “hike” is quite easy. Once you arrive at the parking lot—situated just a short walk from the lake—you make a simple choice: take the easy, mostly flat trail around the edge of the lake, or huff and puff your way up to a viewpoint above it.

At sea level, the climb to the viewpoint would be a cakewalk. At over 4,000 meters, nothing is a cakewalk. So “easy” is a relative term. But as far as hikes in the high Andes go? Laguna Parón is “easy”.

But for us, the real challenge wasn’t the hiking. It was getting to the trailhead.

Left Behind!

We had booked a tour through a local agency. The day before, they sent us a WhatsApp message confirming they would pick us up from our hotel early the next morning.

So, just before dawn, we rolled out of bed, popped our Diamox, donned our daypacks, and staggered out into the street to wait. Still half-asleep, we didn’t even notice when our pickup time came and went.

After 30 minutes, we murmured to each other how guides are always a little late. At an hour, I messaged the company.

They had forgotten us.

Catching Up

In the bus!

The bus carrying the other hikers was long gone.

But to their credit, a woman from the tour agency jumped in a taxi and came to fetch us herself. It wasn’t quite as dramatic as jumping into a cab and yelling “Follow that bus!”—but it was close enough to make me feel like I was in a low-budget, slow-burn action film.

Eventually, the taxi pulled into a colectivo depot. There were vans lined up in every direction, all waiting to be full before heading off. We got shuffled into a nearly full van, rode it to another depot, switched to another colectivo, and finally, about an hour after leaving Huaraz, we caught up with the tour bus—idling patiently on the side of a mountain road.

We hopped in. Off we went.

Laguna Parón Day Hike

After a couple more hours of winding dirt road, we arrived at the trailhead. A few hundred meters from the bus, the trail split.

My wife, who hates high elevation with the heat of a thousand suns, opted for the flatter lakeside trail. I, because I evidently hate myself, headed up the steep slope toward the viewpoint.

Both trails are easy to follow and well marked. But even a gentle incline at 4,200 meters feels like Everest. And the path to the viewpoint was not a gentle incline.

I plodded uphill, breathing like a bellows, wondering why I make the choices I do.

The switchbacks eventually gave way to boulder-hopping. And then—finally—there was no more up. I’d reached the top. It only took about 30 minutes, but in that thin air, it felt like days.

Don’t expect solitude at the summit. Half our bus was already up there, and at least two other tour groups were crowding the area too. But there’s enough space to spread out. It’s easy to frame shots without a dozen strangers photobombing your mountain majesty.

A small boat out on the lake. Shot from the viewpoint

Laguna Parón in All Its Glory

And what a view.

The color of the lake shifts with the light—from deep sapphire to shocking turquoise. Snowcapped peaks stand like icy sentinels at the water’s edge. It’s one of the most cinematic scenes I’ve ever laid eyes on. I launched my drone to get shots from an even higher vantage point.

I spent the better part of an hour up there, taking it all in.

Then came the descent. Down is good. Down is easy. I like down.

I still had time before the bus, so I joined my wife at the shore of the lake, where we soaked in the views together. It was our first alpine lake in the Andes—and it was the most beautiful of the lakes we saw in Peru (eat your heart out, Laguna 69!).

Eventually, it was time to leave. The bus wobbled and creaked down the dirt road back down to a tiny shack where we ate the lunches we’d ordered on the way in. The food was fine. I mean, everything tastes good when you’ve been hiking at altitude. Because travel by foot at high elevation builds up an appetite.

Laguna Parón selfie