From a distance Palcamayo had looked interesting. Close by was Cueva de Huagapo , Peru's "largest cave". My hotel owner, in Tarma, had spoken enthusiastically about the ruins and landscape in the area. The internet had suggested that hiking in the area was good.
Getting there was simple. An overnight bus from Lima had taken me up to Tarma. Tarma is the regional capital and a pleasant town. From Tarma travel agents offer a wide range of tours to the local attractions. Tours aren't my thing unless there offering something that I couldn't easily do myself. I much prefer going at my own pace.
I'd had a nice day's hike up to some minor mountain top ruins with spectacular views of the arid landscape and its numerous trails. The area is famous for flower production , but it was out of season so I missed the spectacular patch work of colour that results. However the desert landscape produces a fantastic range of yellows and browns . This contrasts nicely with the vivid greens from irrigated fields .
From Tarma a request to a Tuk tuk driver for "Una combi por Palcamayo" had transferred me to combi street. This is where all the "combi" operators had their offices. A combi is a shared taxi that runs along a fixed route.Fares are fixed and cheap. A 1 hour ride cost 4 soles (90p). Generally they leave when full or full enough to make the trip pay.They will pick up or drop off along the route.The driver of the car was waiting for 4 passengers but eventually got bored of waiting so we left with 3.
"Una combi for Palcamayo" Combi's or shared taxis are a staple for exploring the Peruvian Andes. They follow fixed routes linking up all the nearby towns and villages. They leave when economically viable i.e. enough passengers in the car or likely to be along the route to make it pay. In town they tend to leave from the plaza or maybe a street corner or office. Along the route they will stop anywhere to pick up or drop off passengers.
Palcamayo (alt 3200m) sits at the head of the an agricultural valley. The surrounding mountains rise to 4000m. The valley sides are covered in extensive inca terracing and irrigation systems which the locals still maintain and utilise today. Anyway my combi deposited me in the Plaza de Armas ( main square) and I headed over to the hotel.
It was locked with a phone number on the door. I don't bother with a local sim as I quite enjoy been disconnected when I travel. Obviously these days its very easy to pop a local sim in your phone . However its nice to starve your social media addiction , disconnect and enjoy the travel experience .
I found a local. He turned out to be Abel, the local alcalde ( mayor). Abel called the owner and eventually someone turned up and showed me a room. They then pointed out that tonight there was a big party in the hall under the hotel and sleep would be impossible. They directed me to another house that also operated as a hotel. The owner told me it was full. I headed back to Abel who returned with me. It turned out that the hotel wasn't full but there was some construction going on. The hotel was functional but in the owner eye's not ready for a foreign guest. Abel was quite well educated and obviously realised what my needs were ( a basic room) .
You might regard this as a hassle and stressful experience. Actually it was quite fun. The sun was beating down , the people I encountered where universally friendly, I practiced my spanish and as a result of this I had established a good local contact in Abel. Abel was a good source of info and really keen to promote his town as a tourist destination. He could also put me in contact with locals to guide me on trekking routes or provide pack animals . In these places you get to see "Peru profundo" as the locals call it. Sure Cusco's nice and a great experience but its a very different version of Peru. I travel a lot and have little interest in the gringo trail these days , having already been round it on my earlier South American excursions. Here I was the only gringo in the valley and the whole experience feels more exploratory. Also in these places the industry of massively overcharging foreigners doesn't really exist. Peru is covered in fascinating destinations and experiences and its well worth seeking them out.
View from my hotel room In Palcamayo. For 20 soles (£5) I got a room with a view and warm shower. Restaurants , shops and stalls around the Plazas de Armas provided snacks and food for about 15 soles a day.
Choquemarca had been mentioned by my hotel owner in Tarma as a must see so I set out to visit it. A road sign near the Plaza set me on the correct road. This took me up to the town cemetary a colourful and interesting destination in its own right. There was a fair bit of activity at the cemetary as it was a few days after the day of the dead festival . Around this time Peruvians visit the graves of their relatives to pay respect.
Looking down on Palcamayo from the road to Choquemarca. Cemetary to right of photo
Palacamayo cemetary
From the cemetery I continued along the road. After few hundred metres I encountered the old pre Inca road.It was easy to spot being flanked by huge Aloe Vera plants. This was a much more interesting and direct route than the modern bulldozed dirt road so I took it.
Above Palcamayo cemetary you will find the old pre Inca trail to Choquemarca . In many locations across Latin America you will find ancient trails flanked by giant aloe plants.
Views from this trail were fantastic. Looking back towards Palcamayo I could see locals working in the preparing unirrigated chakras (fields) for the rainy season. across the valley I had great views of the extensive system of ancient pre Inca andenes (irrigated agricultural terraces) that flank the Palcamayo valley. These ancient agricultural systems are still in use today .
Looking back towards Palcamayo from the trail to Choquemarca. The locals are working to get these unirrigated fields ready for the rainy season.
Looking across the Palcamayo valley.This system of irrigated terraces or "andenes" has been in constant use since pre Inca times.
The ancient trail rejoined the road for a bit then as the road went through a series of hairpins on the final climb up to a pass I left the road and rejoined the trail which again provided a more direct route. At the pass you find the ruins of Yaumanpata. Incredibly there were still people living amongst the ruins. I wandered through a system of animal enclosures and chatted with the residents. They were happy for me to explore the ruins. I asked how long they had been living there. The woman I spoke to stated that she, her mother and grandmother had all been born there. My Spanish didn't know the words for great grandmother but it wouldn't surprise me if they'd been born there too.
Pre Inca ruins of Yaumanpata. The ruins were still inhabited to this very day.There were 3 families living there.Most of the structures had more modern tin roofs but one building (bottom right) still had its traditional Ichu ( Andean grass) roof.
Yaumanpata. 3 families were still living in the ruins. I went over and introduced myself and asked for permission to explore which was given.
From Yaumanpata my route descended to the small settlement of Cucum. Here I encountered more friendly locals. They had obviously been educated about tourism and offered me camping space near the village. I didn't have a tent but asked them about an alternative trail that would take me back down into the valley via the village of Calca. They told me the route was fine . This would provide a nice alternative to retracing my steps . I then set of to the ruins of Choquemarca located about 1 km from the village. Choquemarca didn't disappoint. These ruins haven't been cleaned up restored by archaeologists. Just tumbledown remains of an ancient civilisation. Fragments of pottery could be found scattered around. Choquemarca is an ancient fortress on a spur with commanding views of the area.
The little visited but spectacular ruined fortress of Choquemarca
Looking back to Yaumanpata and the pass from Choquemarca
Pottery fragments amongst the ruins.
It would have been nice to camp at the ruins and experience the site at dusk and dawn. I had however skipped out on this option for a couple of reasons. Firstly I wasn't very well acclimatised to latitude having just arrived in Lima. The altitude here was about 4000m and while I was fine visiting if I slept here I would quite possibly suffer mild mountain sickness. Secondly rainy season was approaching and at times there were afternoon storms and thus a risk of lightening strike. My map however was showing an alternative route back to Palcamayo descending a steep sided valley and rejoining the main road back to Palcamayo near the settlement of Calca. From where I was stood it looked interesting and the locals had told me the trail was good so I took it.
It was indeed a fine route depending through yet more Inca terraces many abandoned but others still in use and maintained. Along this route I noticed several caves with curious walled up entrances. I asked a Peruvian couple who were working in one of the fields. They were tombs. I asked if it was ok to visit and yes it was. The ground was covered in cactus with 2 inch spines which meant the trail required some caution but it wasn't to hard. I was rewarded with interesting piles of bones. It looked like the tombs had been investigated for treasure but they were still very interesting.There are numerous tombs along this route down to Calca.
From Calca it was a short walk back to the main road were I hitched a lift back to Palcamayo.
Visiting the site
The route described is about 18km . It's fairly easy walking on good trails. These are easy to follow if you have a bit of trail sense. You will see lots of other more minor trails leading to fields but it's generally pretty clear where to go . I had a map IGN sheet 1748 . Maps in Peru are obtained by visiting the Institute Nacional Geographic , Avienda Andreas Aramburu 1184 in Lima .You need your passport to gain entry and buy maps. You can browse or buy a range of maps covering all of Peru. They cost about £10 . Or you could buy from Stamfords in London for £30.
You could do the walk without a map or using google maps satellite images and asking locals for directions . Or you could use a taxi or the occasional combi that connects Palcamayo and Cucum.
Or if you ask around in Palcamayo you should be able to find someone to guide you or take a tour from Tarma .