Tourist Attractions of Pasco

Bosque de Piedras de Huayllay National Sanctuary, located at 40 kilometers from Cerro de Pasco. It is characterized for rocks of different sizes and shapes (human profiles and animals)spread out inside the forest. There is a thermal water fountain known for its curative properties.

The plateau of Bombon, extense plain-land surrounded by a varied flora and fauna. It is located at 35 kilometers from the city of Cerro de Pasco.

Thermal Baths of Calera, located at 43 kilometers of Cerro de Pasco. Baths rich in calcium, potassium, sodium and magnesium. It is very popular for its curative properties.

The Snow Mountain of Huaguruncho, located at 66 kilometers from Cerro de Pasco. It reaches an altitude of 5.730 m.a.s.l., and is surrounded by four important glaciers: The Jacahuay, the Ranrajanca, the Carhuaraj and the Incatama. At its foot there are several lagoons among which the following stand out: The Huaguruncho, the Leche Cocha, the Suyro Cocha and the Pacchapata. Ideal for mountain climbing.

Yanachaga-Chemillen National Park, with 122.000 hectares, it is located in the region of Oxapampa, at 25 kilometers from the town Oxapampa. The park comprises the Forest of San Matias San Carlos and the Comunal Reservation Ashaninka or Campa. (more…)

Tourism in Pasco

In the jungle area, tourists can visit Oxapampa, the valleys of Palcazu, Pichis and Pachitea, as well as the Reserva de Yanachaga.

In the Andean zone, one of the main attractions is the Punta Marca ruins, with their stone buildings and irrigation canals. Other sights to see include the ruins of Yarus, Huancho, Bambamarca and Huarautambo ruins (where remains of the Inca Roads can be seen.)

Pasco has pretty lagoons such as Punrun, Huaracocha and Shegue. Hunting is popular here. The thermal baths of Villo, Chinche and Rabi are also in this area.

The Rock Woods of Huayllay are in this department. It is one of the most exotic places in the world. Erosion has given shape to strange figures such as the “the turtle”.

Geography of Pasco

Pasco’s territory, located on the limit with Lima, is rough because it corresponds to the eastern side of the Western Cordillera. To the western side, it has high plateaus and becomes less rough. The near jungle area is very abrupt with deep narrow valleys confined by high-sloped hills. The high jungle has wide valleys and is confined by hills of varied altitude.

There is a transition sector between the high jungle and the low jungle with an irregular relief because of the “half-orange” shaped hills. Ravines separate them from one another. They remain dry or carry little water in winter and flood during the rainy summer season. On the banks of the rivers of the high jungle and the low jungle there are stepped terraces. People have built homes and towns here, where they farm and raise cattle.

Rivers crossing the department belong to the Amazon hydrographic system. The most important is the Huallaga River that sheds its waters into the Maranon River after going through the departments of Huanuco, San Martin and Loreto.

The capital of Pasco is Cerro de Pasco. It is located on the Bombon Plateau. This is a large plateau that extends into the Junin department.

Geography of Pasco

Pasco’s territory, located on the limit with Lima, is rough because it corresponds to the eastern side of the Western Cordillera. To the western side, it has high plateaus and becomes less rough. The near jungle area is very abrupt with deep narrow valleys confined by high-sloped hills. The high jungle has wide valleys and is confined by hills of varied altitude.

There is a transition sector between the high jungle and the low jungle with an irregular relief because of the “half-orange” shaped hills. Ravines separate them from one another. They remain dry or carry little water in winter and flood during the rainy summer season. On the banks of the rivers of the high jungle and the low jungle there are stepped terraces. People have built homes and towns here, where they farm and raise cattle.

Rivers crossing the department belong to the Amazon hydrographic system. The most important is the Huallaga River that sheds its waters into the Maranon River after going through the departments of Huanuco, San Martin and Loreto.

The capital of Pasco is Cerro de Pasco. It is located on the Bombon Plateau. This is a large plateau that extends into the Junin department.

History of Pasco

The first inhabitants of the region were the Pumpos. When the Incas conquered the Pasco region they focused on the gold and silver mines. Among the Pumpos’ settlements of those times, there was one called Yauri near the Yauricocha Lagoon. This population held its ground under the Inca domination and it is this settlement that eventually became the city of Cerro de Pasco.

The Spanish population made a large mining camp in Pasco. The ore was abundant and much of it was gathered for the Spanish Crown. The city of Cerro de Pasco was given the title of “Wealthy Fortune”.

In 1824, Bolivar went through Pasco with its army marching to meet Canterac in Junin. In 1841, during the temporary presidency of Manuel Melendez, the missionary Manuel Plaza obtained authorization to begin catechizing, thus clearing the way for Christianity from Pasco to Pozuzo.

The martyr of Peruvian medicine, Daniel Alcides Carrion, was from Cerro de Pasco.

Introducatio of Pasco

Pasco is a region in central Peru. Its capital is Cerro de Pasco.One of the highest cities in Peru, Cerro de Pasco, capital of the department of Pasco, in the central highlands, is also one of the most extraordinary places in the area. Its rough climate and high altitude contrast with the placid surrounding highland countryside. Shortly after the Spanish Conquest in the sixteenth century, groups of explorers and missionaries settled in the region alongside the local chieftains, digging gold and silver out of the rich mines in the area.

News of the mineral wealth of the area drew hundreds of adventurers and fortune hunters, who wasted little time in setting up operations in the area, staking out mines and establishing residences. This flurry of activity gave Cerro de Pasco its reputation as a mining town, a reputation which it still enjoys today. Many buildings, however, date back to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, a valuable heritage of the colonial era.

On the outskirts of the city lies the Huayllay National Sanctuary, a set of natural stone formations shaped like animals and humans, which appear to change constantly depending on the position of the sun, a work of art of Nature. Other places worth visiting include Oxapampa, a picturesque town with German influences in its architecture and local dress, and the waterfalls of El Incanto and El Velo Azul.

Here, visitors can taste the delicious and traditional pachamanca (meat and vegetables cooked over hot stones underground) to the strains of the Chonguinada (a local festive dance) or witness in May the time-honored Festival of Las Cruces, the main religious celebration in the region and which involves the city’s neighborhoods.

Shortly after the Spanish Conquest in the sixteenth century, groups of explorers and missionaries settled in the region alongside the local chieftains, digging gold and silver out of the rich mines in the area. News of the mineral wealth of the area drew hundreds of adventurers and fortune hunters, who wasted little time in setting up operations in the area, staking out mines and establishing residences.
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