I sit on the balcony of my room in the Hostal Huankarute and watch the surfers, the frantic paddling and leaping into a standing position as they glide down the surface of the wave with ease. They do 360s and launches into the air, making it all look so easy and demonstrating their skills.

The backdrop of the blue sky meeting the grey-blue of the pacific seems endless. People sit on the beach enjoying the sun. Small groups of friends, families with small children and the lone Rastafarian plus many more make up an interesting collection of humanity.

I am in Huanchaco, a small quiet beach town just north of Trujillo. It sits on the inner curve of a bay, which makes perfect waves for the surfing crowd. Rows of long waves with the perfect break line up to give long rides.

This is the place to come, relax, enjoy the sun, take long walks on the beach or rent a caballito de totora (a type of kayak made with reeds) and paddle along the shore. A southerly breeze cools the body and the smell of the clean salt air invigorates the soul. At night the sound of ocean waves breaking on the shore will lull you into a peaceful sleep.

The beaches get busy about mid-day. People come out of Trujillo by taxi or combi and tourists trek across the street from their hotels and hostals to lay and worship the sun. Vendors line the beach selling cold drinks, snow cones, sandwiches and souvenirs. As you wander along the sandy cove you can enjoy jugglers practicing their trade. You can have your photo taken with a monkey or a paso horse or watch a pickup game of soccer. Surfing lessons are available for the adventurous.

At the town center, a pier extends into the ocean. The price to walk the wooden planks is 50 centimos. Once on the pier you can buy a string with a hook and weight with some bait for fishing or you can watch others try to haul in the catch of the day. It’s a great place to pull out your camera and take some photos also.

Restaurants and menús line the main street running along the beach. You can get a good meal from S/.10 (about $4) to S/.100 (about $38) depending on your taste and budget. Hostals and hotels are the same. I saw hostals with rooms for S/.10 a night and hotels that ran $70 - $100 a night. Pools, WiFi, free breakfasts and a wide range of other amenities were available depending on your wants or needs.

The five restaurants, in order, that I enjoyed the most while eating in Huanchaco were Club Colonial (Dinner with 2 glasses of wine ≈ S/.50), the Chocolate Café (Lunch ≈ S/. 30), The Lighthouse (a menú = S/.12), El Kero (Dinner ≈ S/.80), and the Green House (a menú = S/.10).

A walk through the streets off the beach will provide you with a better insight on how the people of Huanchaco live. The town and streets are clean and well kept. An early morning walk is best. The people haven’t come out yet and the streets are fairly empty. Take the time to visit the church you will see on top of the hill overlooking the town. Its name is “Iglesia Virgen del Socorro” and it is the second oldest church in Peru. It was built between 1535 and 1540. A long staircase lined with terraced gardens leading up to the white plastered church trimmed in purple make for a beautiful climb. The adjacent cemetery is fascinating as well.

Sunsets are spectacular. The sky turns a golden hue as the red orange orb of the sun drops into the ocean. Surfers sit on their boards waiting for that last perfect wave to bring them into shore. Couples sit huddled together and stare out to sea, a romantic moment spent alone before heading back to their hotel. The nights in Huanchaco are quiet. The traffic is gone, vendors have packed up and the restaurant’s lights come on, luring you in with the sweet smells of their fare. There are bars, but no real discos. The people are friendly and helpful.

Huanchaco is a short taxi ride from the airport in Trujillo (≈ S/.6 – 8). I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the fact that you can tour the spectacular archaeological sites of Chan Chan and the Huacas de la Luna and del Sol outside of Trujillo. There are plenty of other sites to visit in the area also, the Huacas Arco Iris and El Brujo, the Plaza de Armas and Cathedral in Trujillo just to mention a few.

This is another of Peru’s spectacular places to visit, whether you are a tourist or you live here.
 

Since 2009, Rodney has been living in Peru and writing about travel, archaeology and more. He is a true Lima enthusiast. He chronicles many of his experiences in Lima on his blog. You can read his fiction at the Peru Writer's Group. He is also the co-author, with Larry Pitman, of the forthcoming book The Prince Charming Murders.

 

 

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