Peru - Lonely Planet Publications [371]
The road climbs over a 3085m pass before plummeting steeply to the Río Marañón at the shabby and infernally hot village of Balsas (975m), 55km from Celendín. A scruffy guesthouse here rents a barely passable room for S5 per night, but camping should be possible if you ask locals for a good spot (and offer them a few nuevo soles). The road climbs again, through gorgeous cloud forests and countryside swathed in a lush quilt a million shades of green. It emerges 57km later at Abra de Barro Negro (Black Mud Pass, 3678m), which offers the highest viewing point of the drive, over the Río Marañon, more than 3.5 vertical kilometers below. Ghostly low-level clouds and mists hug the dispersed communities in this part of the trip and creep eerily amongst the hills. The road then drops for 32km to Leimebamba at the head of the Río Utcubamba valley and follows the river as it descends past Tingo and on to Chachapoyas. The final 20km approach into Chachapoyas is freshly paved. Travelers should carry water and food, as the few restaurants en route are poor and unhygienic.
The normal route to Chachapoyas is from Chiclayo via Bagua Grande; it’s a faster, but considerably less spectacular, route.
Return to beginning of chapter
CHICLAYO TO CHACHAPOYAS
This is the usual route for travelers to Chachapoyas. From the old Panamericana 100km north of Chiclayo, a paved road heads east over the Andes via the 2145m Porculla Pass, the lowest Peruvian pass going over the Andean continental divide. The route then tumbles to the Río Marañón valley. About 190km from the Panamericana turnoff, you reach the town of Jaén, the beginning of a newly opened route to Ecuador (Click here). Continuing east, a short side road reaches the town of Bagua Chica in a low, enclosed valley (elevation about 500m), which Peruvians claim is the hottest town in the country. The bus usually goes through Bagua Grande (population 28,830) on the main road, and follows the Río Utcubamba valley to the crossroads town of Pedro Ruíz, about 90 minutes from Bagua Grande. From here, a newly paved southbound road branches to Chachapoyas, 54km and about 1¼ hours away.
Return to beginning of chapter
CHACHAPOYAS
041 / pop 22,900 / elev 2335 m
Also known as Chachas, Chachapoyas is a laid-back town insulated by a buffer of rough unpaved roads and high-altitude cloud forests. The town was an important junction on jungle-coast trade routes until a paved road was built in the 1940s through nearby Pedro Ruíz, bypassing Chachapoyas altogether. The unlikely capital of the department of Amazonas, this pleasant colonial settlement is now a busy market town and makes an excellent base for exploring the awesome ancient ruins left behind by the fierce civilization of the Chachapoyas (‘People of the Clouds’).
* * *
BORDER CROSSING: ECUADOR VIA JAÉN
If your next port of call is Ecuador, remember that you don’t have to spend days on winding roads to get back to the Peruvian coast. From Jaén, a good northbound road heads 107km to San Ignacio (population 10,720) near the Ecuadorian border. Since the peace treaty was signed with Ecuador in late 1998, it has become possible to cross into Ecuador at this remote outpost.
Begin at the fast-growing agricultural center of Jaén (population 70,690), which has a couple of banks and more than a dozen hotels. Good ones include the budget Hostal Jaén (076-43-1333; San Martín 1528; s/d S14/7.50), with friendly staff and cold showers, and the family-run Hostal Diana Gris (076-43-2127; Urreta 1136, 2nd fl; s/d S25/35), which has hot showers, fans, cable TVs and a restaurant. Also try the recommended Prim’s Hotel (076-43-2970;