The Andes of Peru
travel information

 The mountain or Andean zone is half the physical size of Peru's Amazon rainforest zone. They remain the most predominant feature of Peru's landscape. The region prevails in Peru's historical overviews because Spanish chroniclers focused on the conquest of the Inca in the highlands. To date the mountains remain strong contenders as the foundation for the countries early cultures but more evidence is also emerging about coastal and tropical forest contributions to Peru's early cultural history.
    One key point providing new evidence of tropical forest and Pacific coast cultural successes is work being done in the Chamaya region on the northern border with Ecuador. This point of the Andes is the narrowest and lowest between Tierra del Fuego and Colombia. its importance as corridor is coming into focus with increased excavation being made by numerous archeological teams. 
    Few cultures in the world have reveled in the recent publicity Sipan has produced. Dr.'s Walter and Suznna Alva Lambayeque discoveries to date may only be he beginning, with excavation of the tomb of the "King's" king may lie a few feet below their present excavation. However nothing rivals the attraction of the highland sites, Machu Picchu, Cusco or the Sacred Valley. 
    Popularity of cultural attraction outweigh all others combined and few indigenous landmarks around the world receive the attention Machu Picchu reflects in universal publicity. Someone working for Peru's public sector office of tourism once said that Machu Picchu's virtues were once heralded in more than sixty languages around the world in a single year following the release of the bestseller, "Celestine Prophecy".
    Success on that scale is like reaching the political pull of today's super power summits during a major peace initiative. Thousands have described the site, million have kept silent about their encounter on the mountain top. Its formative and at the same time spiritual, it makes even the most aggressive personalities a little more humble and for simple folk, a little more reverent about things that can't be explained. 
    Many of the greatest biological attraction along the Andes are over five thousand feet height, running intermittently along the eastern slopes called ceja's or cloud forest's. As these biodiversity slope become more accessible they will also become increasingly important to the attraction base or natural in fracture of the mountain zone.
    The mountain zone straddles an area between fifty three and one hundred and fifty five miles wide. Average altitude is over fourteen thousand feet with one hundred and seventy four peaks over sixteen thousand feet high and thirty nine in excess of nineteen thousand fees. 
    Peru's Andes around Cusco were the center of the earth for the Inca Empire at Cusco. Even today these mountains remain home to nearly eighty five percent of the current Inca Culture. And although these mountain probably contain less than one percent of the country's natural biomass over four hundred species of birds and animals, wild an domesticated reside there today.. 

ALTITUDE: The city of Cusco is at 11,150 feet above sea level. In order to speed acclimatization rest fo a couple hours after you arrival by plane from Lima. Avoid alcoholic beverages and eat lightly the first day. CLIMATE: April to September (winter) is usually sunny and dry with temperatures varying from freezing at night to comfortable during the day as long as you do not stay on the shade. January to March is known as the rainy season,  January and February are the wettest, with comfortable temperatures during the day and slightly cool at night. BEST TIME TO VISIT IS APRIL TO SEPTEMBER