The department of Amazonas is one of the least known, but at the same time one of the most beautiful regions of Peru. More than 500 archeological remains- rock paintings, fortresses, sarcophagi and citadels- confer its landscape a mysterious and intriguing halo. It was the scene for the discovery of tens of “lost cities” in the second half of the twentieth century. Chachapoyas (2 334 masl) –the capital of the department- is 1 191 km from Lima and can be reached by car from Chiclayo. Always hot, with an average annual temperature of around 25ºC, Amazonas is the best visited between May and September to avoid excessive rain and enjoy the lush vegetation.

The most impressive tourist attraction in the North East of Peru is Kuélap, a gigantic monument of 400 million cubic feet of construction material, three times the volume of Egypt’s Great Pyramid.The archeological compound is located on a rocky slope 3 000 masl and sits on two huge overlying artificial platforms built stone by stone. Most impressive in Kuélap are the huge defense walls (30 meters high by 600 meters long) around the so-called “lower town” and “upper town”.

Thousands of bromeliads render especial beauty to a construction entirely carved in limestone showing a variety of finishings, the best of which are definitely found in the sacred rooms.

These ruins –584 by 110 meters at the base- are often compared to Saqsaywaman and Machu Picchu, because of their size and characteristics.

Three entrances to the fortress, two to the East and one to the West, are designed as huge funnel-like hallways ending in a small opening to allow the entrance of just one person at time. Crags and precipices on three of its four sides make the fortress effectively impregnable.

Inside, the citadel is divided in quarters at different elevations, each comprising several dozen circular buildings of great artistic and esthetic inspiration. Stones are distributed precisely, complemented by rhomboidal friezes and high-reliefs figures, mostly anthropomorphic.

Seemingly reserved to the Chachapoya chiefs, the quarters in the upper town have façades decorated with friezes in geometric fretwork. Curiously enough, the houses and buildings lack windows. Instead, they are protected by watertight stone roofs from the abundant rainfall, (frequent in this area).

The visitors’ attention is called to an extraordinary circular construction that stands out in the southern end. Known as the “ink well”, this structures is almost 6 meters high and shaped as an inverted cone. Most probably it was destined to ceremonial use.

Since the Gran Pajatén was discovered in the neighboring department of San Martín, many explorers have headed to this northeastern region to look for lost cities in the depth of the jungle. Later, the discovery of the Karajía sarcophagi, the expeditions by American explorer Gene Savoy to the Gran Vilaya and the finding of almost one hundred mummies in Los Cóndores lagoon attracted world’s attention to Chachapoyas.

The language they used was forever lost in the first year of the Spanish conquest, but linguistic research has found that there may have been a linguistic relationship between Inca place names typical of this area and the Chibcha of Colombia.

Although their pottery is undoubtedly related to certain types of ceramics in the lower Amazon, the more sophisticated monuments basically follow a clear Andean pattern. Apparently, the Chanchapoyas ethnic group migrated from the Andes to settle in the steep mountain jungle, successfully repelling attack from neighboring groups.

This civilization’s natural borders were the Marañón River to the West, the Huallaga River to the East, Bagua to the North and the Abiseo River to the South, in the present departments of Amazonas and San Martín.

Although the Sachapuyas (from sacha: mountain and puyo: fog, after the constant cloud cover hanging over the area) settled in intricate jungles, the central artery of this civilization is undoubtedly the Utcumbamba River. Exquisitely green, the river flows amidst a jungle landscaper of reeds, and molle and tara trees. After passing under two remarkable colonial bridges near its headwaters in Leimebamba, the river’s course narrows to run flanked by towering mountains, until it reaches the broad plains around tropical Bagua, where its waters merge with the Marañón.

Since the valley is so narrow, the Sachapuyas built their main villages on mountain ridges, strategically controlling the main affluents to the Utcubamba River. Exceptionally conserved buildings still show us their exquisite architecture, including La Petaca, La Congona, Cerro Olán, Macro, Ollape, Gran Vilaya, Gran Pajatén, Kuélap, Karajía, Levanto and many others built between 900 and 1 450 AD. that were still in use at the beginning of the Colonial period.