Internet research had drawn me to Huagapo cave. Actually the internet had made numerous claims about Huagapo cave; Longest cave in South America, 2000m deep, dangerous, only possible to enter with specialist equipment , deep cave tours only possible from a lima tour agency and so on. Looking at the more reliable sources had led me to believe that most of these claims were untrue.
Anyway I headed up to investigate . Arriving at the complex a large cave could be seen with a stream flowing out of the entrance .The entrance sign displayed the legend "Gruta mas grande de Sudamerica" ( biggest cave in South America) Well it was one of the first South American caves to be investigated by speleologists back in 1969. At this point it was the biggest cave recorded . Now many more caves have been investigated and currently it is the 4th longest in Peru at 2800m.
At the kiosk there were a variety of entrance options . I payed a pound for entrance without a guide. You could also go with a guide on a short , medium or long excursion. The long excursion was about £25. Just inside the complex a puppy playfighting with a lamb provided entertainment.
I chatted with the guides about the longer trip into the cave. They were happy to chat about it. Basically it was pretty straight forward , well, straight forward for someone with caving experience. There were a couple of sections of waist deep water to pass. In order to do this I was going to need to waterproof my camera and wear some warmer clothes.
Reconnaissance completed I did the short excursion which involved walking along a manmade pathway and climbing up to a point where you could see the large cave passage disappearing off into the blackness. At this point you were a hundred meters or so into the cave . It was fairly interesting but a bit short. During this excursion I made friends with a Peruvian family by helping them up and down the short climbs that we encountered. They were originally from Palcamayo but lived in Lima now. Anyway they were friendly so we went for a beer then I joined them on a slightly random tour taking in a few local sites and a religious shrine down the valley. This was fine and is all part of the fun of Peruvian travel as the locals are super friendly and enjoy hanging out with other tourists.
A couple of days later knowing what to expect I headed back to the cave. I paid my basic entrance fee and told them I was speleologist . They didn't seem to mind me going in the cave without a guide.
I had a copy of the cave survey or map. I had found this online at http://cuevasdelperu.org/junin-tarma/cueva-de-huagapo/ The aforementioned site provides an excellent resource detailing all the explored caves in Peru. In order to stay warm I bought a hat and wore my thermals and waterproof overtrousers along with a fleece. In case of emergency I had some spare warm clothes . I had three headlamps as without light you would never get out of the cave.
The Peruvian tourists in the cave were entertained as I stepped of the concrete walkway into the stream. The water went to thigh deep for about 5 meters then became an ankle deep stream. The rift passage was 3-4m wide and about 20-30m high. Although the water wasn't exactly warm it wasn't freezing cold either. I wouldn't want to do it in shorts and a tshirt but with my current outfit it was fine. After 300m or so i came to another deep water section. Here the water was about chest deep but it was possible to stay dry and climb round the edge of the pool.
About 200m in. Nice easy caving in large passage. Nothing to be scared of here apart from the dark. But I have three headlamps so not an issue....
Easy walking along this large passage continued for 700m to a spectacular area of the cave known as Wonderland. Here the passage is 10m wide or so and 30m+ high. Huge stalagmites and calcite flows decorate this section. Its possible to climb up out of the stream and get a better view of the formations.
There followed a slightly intimidating section. The passage was now 6 meters wide but only 1.5m high and half full of water. I paused for a few minutes contemplating this bit. Heavy rain might cause this section to flood to the roof. A quick chat with myself later and I decided that I was sure enough about the forecast to proceed. This low section continued for 150m and I was somewhat relieved when the roof began to rise and my light revealed a stunning bank of flowstone and stalactites .
Looking back downstream after the low section
After this slightly claustrophobic section the cave once more felt roomy and spacious. The passage was now square in cross-section. The stream flows noisily over rocks and easy progress is made for another 150m or so to the sump. Here the water flows out of an underwater section of passage. Divers have passed this sump and explored a few hundred metres more of passage and discovered several more sumps. There is more of this cave system that awaits discovery.
The final section of passage before the cave sumps and diving gear is required to progress
Just before the sump the passage features a jumble of flowstone
encrusted boulders. This point is 1km from the entrance.
Having reached the end of the cave I paused for a bite to eat and a quick photo. Other than been 1km from the entrance and with my life been totally dependent on the torches I carried the trip had been pretty straightforward. It had taken me about 45mins to get here . Although I was wet up to the to my thighs I was warm and comfortable and getting here had involved straightforward walking along the streamway. No difficult sections had been encountered , and the route had been spectacular. It was now time to start heading out. The cave survey had shown a side passage so I set off with the aim of locating it.
A short distance from the sump I located the side passage. It was easy to get to involving a very simple climb up out of the stream way. This section of fossil passage, Known as Wilderland proved to be utterly spectacular. Fossil passages are older cave passages that no longer have permanent streams flowing through them. They often contain the best formations and this one didn't disappoint . It was festooned with stalactites, column and crystal pools. I spent some time admiring and photographing the formations. The trip back went smoothly with a brief pause to explore Wonderland a bit more.
The entrance to Wilderland, a spectacular fossil series
Fossil series means dry passages and numerous formations
Amongst the stalactites
Abandoned streamway in Wilderland. The main drainage now follows an alternative
route. It is likely that this passage contains a small stream in times of flood.
Visiting the cave
From Lima take a 5 hour bus to Tarma . This is a spectacular route crossing a high pass at 4800m. During rainy season ( December to March) it may become blocked with landslides and the cave may well not be accessible at this time.From Tarma take a combi heading to San Pedro de Cajas and get off at the cave.The drivers will know it. This combi will pass through the small village of Palcamayo where I stayed. Palcamayo is a nice little village with several interesting hikes to ruins . I went in the cave on my own but unless your an experienced caver I wouldn't recommend this option. The guides at the cave offer this trip deep into the cave for about £25 . They also offer a slightly shorter trip that goes in as far as Wonderland. This would still make an excellent caving experience . The most basic option available only goes in about 100m and is a bit short and if you choose this option you are really missing out on the wonders of this place. I also found a tour agency on the Plaza de Armas in Tarma that could arrange these tours.