Huaraz

A turquoise glacial lake at around 4,600 metres, with the Chacraraju glacier hanging right above it. It is a day hike up from Cebollapampa, and the final climb punishes anyone unacclimatised, so spend two days or so in Huaraz first.

The national park around Huascaran, Peru's highest peak, on UNESCO's list since 1985. Many summits above 6,000 metres line up here, and tickets are checked at the gates on the way in to its lakes and trails.

A pair of lakes in a deep gorge below Huascaran, Orconcocha above and Chinancocha below. They sit on the road to Laguna 69, so tour buses pause here, and the quenua woods along the shore stand out for red bark peeling like paper.

A glacier reached by driving close to 5,000 metres and walking the rest. It has shrunk dramatically in a few decades and is now presented along a trail called the Route of Climate Change, and on the way the road passes stands of towering Puya raimondii.

Ruins of a temple that was a hub of Andean religion around 1000 BC, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985. A dark underground gallery ends at the Lanzon, a blade-shaped carved stone. The mountain drive from Huaraz takes three to four hours; closed Mondays.

A Wari-era stone temple about 7 kilometres north of town, its 3 storeys hiding narrow chambers and ventilation shafts. Few visitors come, so it is quiet, and a mountain path leads back down to town through villages.

A lake in the 4,400-metre range reached from Pitec, east of Huaraz, a favourite acclimatisation hike. The final section means clambering up rock on fixed cables, and since cloud often gathers in the afternoon, leave early in the morning.

A four-day trek across the Cordillera Blanca, facing glacier peaks from the Punta Union pass above 4,700 metres. Donkeys carry the loads, and with no huts on the route people go with a tour that supplies camping gear.

A central market where potatoes, corn, cheese and guinea pigs down from the mountains each have their own section. Trekkers buy dried fruit and coca leaves here the day before setting off, and upstairs food stalls serve cheap soups and meat in the morning.

Hot springs just north of town, a few kilometres out, their water tinted yellow by iron. Trekkers come to soak tired legs, and with local families crowding in at weekends, weekday mornings are quieter.

The Cordillera Blanca's biggest lake, filling the top of a valley above Caraz. The pyramid peak of Artesonraju rises beyond the water and makes the photo. It lies well north of Huaraz, so day tours roll out with the morning light.

Where ice and debris from Huascaran's north peak buried the town in the 1970 earthquake. Only a few palms from the old square and a broken church wall still show. It is now a memorial park, and the Christ statue atop the cemetery hill overlooks the site.

A small lake reached on foot through hillside villages south of Huaraz. The snowy Cordillera Blanca range is mirrored across it. It is a good half-day acclimatisation walk before the big treks, and children wave from farmhouses along the way.

A small museum beside the Plaza de Armas gathering stone figures of the Recuay culture. Carved warriors and animals line up across the back garden. It suits a rainy afternoon or an easy first day of acclimatising.