Peru

2200 miles

From the border town of Macara we wind our way through the northern highlands past small villages like Ayabaca, Tabaconas and Bellavista before reaching the laid-back town of Chachapoyas “people of the clouds”.
We keep climbing and falling as we ride along the Andes to the colonial city of Cajamarca. The biggest and most important city for trade in the northern highlands.
Continuing on along this impressive mountain range we try not to get altitude sickness and end up in Huaraz which nearly disappeared in a 1970 earthquake. Now re-built but not famous for its looks, Huraz is known as the heart of Andean adventures.
We start to work our way off the mountain range and head towards the coastal town of Supe Puerto. From here we stay on the coast all the way to the hustle and bustle of Lima. Not exactly a tourist haven, it’s a good spot to fill our supplies and continue on out of this desert city.
Leaving Lima we begin climbing straight away through La Oroya and on to Huancayo. Huancayo is the centre of activity for the central highlands.
Heading south we pass Huancavelica and Ica, before reaching Nazca the home of the Nazca Lines. An hour plane ride will give us the best vantage point to see the lines and make our own opinion as to how they were formed.
We now ride inland and up, as we head for Cuzco, the Inca ruins at Machu Pichu and the sacred valley. There is a lot to see in this area so I can imagine that a few days will be spent exploring.
The port of Puno will be our next stop at Lake Titicaca where we hope to visit the Uros people on their reed island villages.
Its only a short distance form here to the border town of Desaguadero.