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Trip duration  1 day (approx. 10 hours)
Trip type  day hike
Grading   easy but long
Places visited   Lake Shallap
Highest point  Lake Shallap 4250m
Distance   17km return
Starting Point of Hike Jancu (3900m)
Finishing Point of Hike Jancu
Hike duration    6 ½ hours return
 
 
 
Lake Shallap is a beautiful, peculiarly bright green glacial lake located at 4250m at the foot of snow-capped Mount San Juan (5843m). It is one of the closest lakes to Huaraz, yet very few people make it to the lake, as the trailhead can only be reached by private transport.
This is what makes the hike so tranquil and worthwhile for those looking for complete wilderness. The lake boasts unique, splendid, vivid green coloured waters surrounded by orange coloured rocks, making a fantastic contrast of colours.
The hike to Lake Shallap is perfect for acclimatization, and although a bit longer, it is much easier than the more trodden hikes to Lake Churup and Lake 69, because it presents very little vertical ascent.
If you are looking for spectacular views in a peaceful setting, Lake Shallap will not disappoint.

 
   
     
     
   
     
 
We leave Huaraz at 8 am and travel east to the village of Jancu, the start of our hike located at the head of the Shallap Valley only an hour’s drive from Huaraz. It takes approximately three and a half hours to reach the lake from the trailhead along a gently sloping path that meanders through a boulder filled narrow canyon at first, then through the wide meadows of the Shallap valley. No wonder then that “shallap” is a Quechua word meaning “the place of rocks” as there is a rare abundance of leviathan sized boulders littered across the valley. Wonderful views of snow-capped peaks, scented lupins and friendly donkeys, make this hike most enjoyable. We have lunch at the peaceful lake, which is surrounded by the impressive icy peaks of Mount San Juan (5843m), Tumarinaraju (5668m) and Collapaco (5459m), before hiking the same way back to Jancu, where our vehicle is waiting to drive us back to Huaraz. We get back to town at around 6 pm.