Peru - Lonely Planet Publications [358]
The next town along toward San Luis or Huari, Piscobamba, has decent views of the mountains and that’s about it.
Pomabamba single-handedly dominates the Cordillera Blanca’s SBC (simple, basic, clean) hostal market. Hostal Pomabamba (45-1276; Huamachuco 338; r per person with/without bathroom S15/8), on the main plaza, is one of the more economical rudimentary alternatives. The genial Alojamiento Estrada (50-4615; Huaraz 209; r per person S10), by the church, has a small courtyard and just trumps the competition in the charm stakes. Albergue Turístico Via (44-1052; Primavera 323; r per person from S10) has typical shared-bathroom basics as well as nicer, newer rooms with bathrooms attached.
If you are a pollería connoisseur, as we have become on our travels in Peru, check out Mikey’s Pollería (Huamachuco 330; meals S5-10) on the plaza for some of the best darn grilled chicken south of the equator. Davis David (Huaraz 269; menús S5) has local regulars and a respectable daytime menú.
All buses to Huaraz and Lima leave from near the Plaza de Armas. Turismo Andino (45-1290) has buses to Huaraz at 7am and 7pm (S24, eight hours) via Yanama (S10, four hours), a 6am bus to Lima (S35, 18 hours) on Monday and Thursday via Huari (S11 four hours), and occasional buses to Sihuas (S9, three hours). Transporte Renzo (45-1088) has an early Huaraz bus at 5:30am on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday, as well as regular daily buses at noon and 7pm (S21). El Solitario (45-1133) has a 6:30am Lima bus (S41) via Huari (S9) on Sunday, Monday and Wednesday. Combis go to Sihuas and Piscobamba daily from the town center.
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Northern Highlands
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CAJAMARCA
AROUND CAJAMARCA
CAJABAMBA
HUAMACHUCO
CELENDÍN
CELENDÍN TO CHACHAPOYAS
CHICLAYO TO CHACHAPOYAS
CHACHAPOYAS
AROUND CHACHAPOYAS
KUÉLAP
LEIMEBAMBA
PEDRO RUÍZ
POMACOCHAS
MOYOBAMBA
TARAPOTO
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Vast tracts of unexplored jungle and mist-shrouded mountain ranges guard the secrets of the northern highlands like a suspicious custodian. Here, Andean peaks and a blanket of luxuriant forests stretch from the coast all the way to the deepest, darkest jungles of the Amazon. Interspersed with the relics of Inca kings and the jungle-encrusted ruins of cloud-forest-dwelling warriors, these outposts of Peru remain barely connected by disheveled and circuitous roads.
The cobbled streets of Cajamarca testify to the beginning of the end of the once-powerful Inca empire, and remnants of the work of these famed Andean masons still line the surrounding countryside. Meanwhile, the delicate colonial structures lining Cajamarca’s heart attest to the final outcome of the 16th-century battle of swords and wills.
The hazy forests of Chachapoyas have only recently revealed their archaeological bounty: the rarely seen yet staggering stone fortress of Kuélap, which clings for dear life to a craggy limestone peak. Hundreds of misplaced archaeological remnants from this mysterious alliance of city-states can be visited on a trek or by horse while meandering through pristine forgotten countryside. At Tarapoto, where the paved road reaches its conclusion, the jungle waits patiently, as it has for centuries, endowed with a cornucopia of wildlife and exquisite good looks.
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HIGHLIGHTS
Scramble through Kuélap (Click here), an immense citadel that rivals Machu Picchu in grandeur, but lacks its crowds
Hike through cloud forests to boldly (re)discover long-forgotten cities, Indiana Jones–style, in the region of Gran Vilaya (Click here) near Chachapoyas
Follow Inca footsteps to soak in Los Baños del Inca (Click here), outside Cajamarca, the steaming baths once used by kings
Get to within a hairbreadth of the fracas of the jungle at Tarapoto (Click