Things to see and do Northern Cordillera

As it is difficult to find maps in the area, it is important to plan your trip in advance with a GPS. It is easy to leave directly from the Plaza de Armas de Chachapoyas on foot (1h to reach the start of the Inca Trail at the main road), but you can also ask a taxi to drop you off.

The first step is to reach Levanto(7 to 8 hours walk). The path is well marked and you can take the trail that leads to the ruins of Yalape (although a bit difficult to find). Once past Collacruz, be careful, as the Inca Trail is less obvious to follow. Spend the night in Levanto or bring a tent (at about 2,300 m, a mountain pasture awaits you; you will sleep in the meadows among the cows, with water nearby).

The next day, the destination to reach is Tingo (between 6 and 8 hours of walking). You have to go down to the bottom of the valley, cross the stream and then follow the track going up a bit, before going to the right side of the mountain. After a viewpoint, you go down again and pass in front of ruins buried in the vegetation. Once you arrive at the bottom of the main valley that goes to Tingo, you have to go up a bit until you find a cable to cross the river in a small cart! Finally, follow the road to the bottom of the valley and you will find Tingo.

The last day is dedicated to the ascent to the magnificent siteof Kuélapand to its discovery. Everything is signposted and it will take you about 4 hours.

This symbolic square where the meeting between Atahualpa and Pizarro took place, followed by the cowardly execution of the former, is nevertheless one of the most harmonious in the country. At that time, this place was a fortified monument 400 meters long and 200 meters wide and a fortress-like structure called Ushnu. From here began the road between the city of Cajamarca and Baños del Inca. Today, lined with its churches, colonial houses and a small stone fountain from the 18th century, it exudes a quiet and peaceful elegance.

The 18th century complex is made up of the Church of Belén and the old men's and women's hospitals. The church is singular, its façade is worked in the form of an altarpiece composed of three sections. Its ceilings, painted with polychrome figures, show particularly curious cherubs. In the highest part, on an undulating cornice, are three sculptures representing the three theological virtues: faith, in the centre, blindfolded and holding a chalice; hope, on the left, symbolised by the anchor; and finally charity, on the right, with a child in her arms.

The men's hospital, built in the 18th century, with thick stone walls and a vaulted ceiling, is surrounded by small niches in which the patients waited to receive extreme unction. A reconstruction of the position of the patients shows them facing the altar to follow the celebration of the mass. Today, the hospital houses a museum of medicine. In the rooms to the right of the entrance is an art gallery dedicated to the painter Andrés Zevallos.

Finally, we enter the women's hospital, on the other side of the street, through a heavy door of carved stone in the mestizo style, whose lintel supported by two four-breasted caryatids is a sign of fecundity. Inside, the Museo Etnologico displays objects representative of pre-Incan cultures, such as these three children's mummies. The walls still show traces of the polychrome paint that once covered them.

The cell where Atahualpa was detained, this room that he had to fill once with gold and twice with silver to regain his freedom, is the only Inca vestige in Cajamarca. Note the polish and the adjustment of the stones as well as the line drawn on the wall, at the height of the raised arm of the Inca. The ransom took nine months to be collected and was not enough to save the Inca. The place is moving, but very small. The visit is anecdotal, but full of history, go there especially since it is included with the very interesting and complete Conjunto Monumental de Belén.

This institution is dedicated to archaeological and anthropological research on ancient Peruvian cultures. In addition to the mummies and objects found in the Laguna de los Condores, the museum also exhibits textiles and ceramics found in the surrounding area. A modern museum, very well thought out, rich. An essential visit. Don't forget to visit KentiCafé, in a garden on the heights, in front of the hummingbird museum. The museum also offers rooms in the house, in the building on the road opposite, Casa Mallqui.

Family atmosphere and totally local! We bathe in a beautiful place, under the trees, and next to a small river with raging rapids. To get there: the paradero is located Jr. Amazonas 833 (in Chachapoyas); jump in a car and head for Mendoza, 2.5 hours away (S/ 20). Then hail a taxi (S/ 7 per person) to Tocuya. From the tiny village square, retrace your steps a bit to take the wide dirt road on the right: 15 minutes walk.

For those who have the time, this is without doubt the most extraordinary trek and landscape in the region.

Take a Zeta Bus, a kind of 4x4 combi that leaves around 2-3 am. They pass in front of the Huaylla Belen and can leave you there.

First walk of 5 hours. We start from the sublime valley of Belén, where the river flows like a silver snake. From Belén, we join La Pirquilla to the top of La Escalera. Then we go back down towards Congon. Here you can buy food, find local guides and horses.

We advise you to reach Kuélap in 2 days-1 night. From Congon, we follow the Vilaya river for 2 hours, then there are 2 more hours of climbing to Lanche. Finally, from Lanche, 3 hours and a half in the middle of the orchid forest to Punta Yumal (3,800 meters) before descending to Choctomal and the access to Kuélap. All along, we oscillate between 2 000 and 3 000 meters of altitude.

Note that most of the sites are covered with vegetation and you might miss them and therefore not see much if you go without a guide. The trek is not well marked and it is dangerous to attempt it alone. Peru Nativo is a good agency to accompany you. Count 5 days and 4 nights to do it quietly with the visit of the archaeological site. All along the way, you will cross mystical ruins and zigzag among the misty forest with twisted trees covered with moss.

One of the natural wonders of the region, this 771 meter waterfall that rises from the vegetation. It shares the spotlight with Yumbilla, which is even more impressive, but more difficult to access. Here is how to get there easily:

From Cocachimba: from the village you can see Gocta clearly on the mountain in front of you, but the objective is to reach the foot of the waterfall. Count 2 hours of walking downhill (5 km) rather easy. The hardest part is then to go back up. The locals offer horses for rent and they are welcome (count about S/40). The owners pull the horses with a light step, so you don't need to be an expert in horse riding.

If you are doing it alone, take the opportunity to leave early before the many agency groups that start at 9am.

From San Pablo, wemakes a loop. You walk from San Pablo to the birth of the first waterfall (flat path, about 2 hours), you follow the waterfall downhill (about 2 hours and a half downhill), then you arrive at the foot of the waterfall like everyone else and you go back up to Cocachimba. In the village of San Pablo, there are also local guides available to accompany you. This loop will take you all day. You can also do the last part on horseback since you will be following the same path as those who left Cocachimba.

Agencies sell "full day "packages with transportation to and from Chachapoyas and Cocachimba, a "self-paced" ride and lunch.

Gocta had barely achieved fame and recognition when another name was whispered: Yumbilla. At 896 metres, it is one of the top five highest waterfalls in the world according to the World Waterfall Database. And it is located further north, near the village of Cuispes, about 30 minutes by motorcycle taxi from Pedro Ruiz. Which one to see? Both would be ideal. Even though Gocta is not as high and only consists of two waterfalls, the panoramic view from the Cocachimba viewpoint makes for a beautiful and unique picture. But Yumbilla does not lack assets, less known, wilder and more impressive. A muddy but flat path of 4 km (1h30-2h) leads to the bottom of the^first jump and to the beginning of the^second one, not without having seen two smaller waterfalls on the way. Another trek leads to the foot of the beautiful one where a natural cave has formed, amazing. And a^third one at the top of the mountain where it originates, at the bottom of a cave and a stream lined with white sand. And this is without mentioning Pavilion and Chinata, the twin sisters of Yumbilla, other waterfalls that can be seen from the road and that can also be approached... In short, Yumbilla is a series of adventures and explorations, in the heart of the cloud forest, also pleasing for the flora (orchids, bromeliads, trees covered with moss, ferns) and the large number of birds seen on the way. It is not one but several waterfalls, in the heart of what is now known as El valle de las cataratas.