Day 386 – Chachapoyas
New town, new civilisation
Our night bus pulled into Chachapoyas at 6:30am in the morning. We woke up and quickly checked our phones to make sure we were at the correct stop. As we were, we got off the bus and collected our backpacks.
We left the Movil bus terminal and walked to our accommodation, Chachapoyas Backpackers. It was a short walk, and we also discovered that another guy from the bus was also walking there. We went there to drop our bags off, but the friendly staff allowed us to check in at 7am! As we were checking in, all the other tourists from the bus also arrived. It’s a popular hostel.
We booked a tour for later today. Otherwise we would have just slept for the entire day. The tour was to the archaeological site of Kuelap (tour name was Fortaleza de Kuelap). The pick up time was 8.20am. The tour was all inclusive except for lunch and cost us 80 PEN ($35.31 AUD) per person (p/p).
We had a quick shower and headed a block away to a cafe called Cafe Cafe, for a small and quick breakfast. The street that the cafe was on is a walking street, which looks really cool with white colonial styled buildings all around. After which, we went back to the hostel to await the pick up.
Tour of Kuelap Archaeological Site
The guide arrived at 8.30am to pick us up. We had to walk a few streets down to the van. From here, our guide was explaining the details of the region and the Chachapoyas culture as we drove. We stopped at a restaurant, where we could order lunch for after the site. This was optional, but everyone ordered something. The average price was ~15 PEN ($6.62 AUD) p/p.
At 10am we arrived to the cable car ticket location. The guide purchased our tickets which allowed us to use the cable car at 10.30am. We waited around and enjoyed the views. There is an iPeru (official tourist information) here, that we decided to visit.
We were called at 10.30am to line up, which was actually to get into a van. This van drives up for 3km to the cable car. Then the cable car covers a distance of 4km and goes up 658m to an elevation of 2,930m above sea level. Inside the cable car, we met a group of locals from Cusco who were really friendly.
The cable car tickets typically cost 20.40 PEN p/p and the entrance to Kuelap is 30 PEN p/p so we really think the extra 29.60 PEN ($13.07 AUD) p/p for transport and guide was really good.
Kuelap
Due to the fact that Machu Picchu is the most famous archaeological site in Peru, the guide and signs at the site kept comparing the two sites. In short, Kuelap was made before Machu Picchu and at a higher altitude. Kuelap was an active city between 500 to 1570 CE. It’s believed to have been abandoned when the Spanish invaded the region.
After getting off the cable car there is a short 15 uphill section to the massive walls of Kuelap. The weather was cloudy and cold but the ruins looked so impressive. It looked like a castle in the sky.
The traditional style roof of Kuelap
We walked around the wall, and went up a staircase which cuts through the wall. From up here, you can see circular stone ruins everywhere. It was really impressive and interesting. The views from here are amazing.
The guide had to keep swapping from English to Spanish, so the pace was slow. But we still enjoyed the tour and the information. The touristic layout is a one way circuit through the site, which ensures you don’t miss anything.
Our favourite building was the main temple. It’s built with outward sloping walls! It’s really amazing to see.
We then walked down to the cable car station. As we waited for the rest of the group, we visited the small museum. It’s worth a look, for a cross section of the main temple and a model of the site.
We then went back into town and had lunch. After lunch we drove back for over an hour to Chachapoyas. We were dropped off at the van terminal. After the short walk to the hostel it was 5pm.
The town near Kuelap has the same symbols as the site
Back in Chachapoyas
We went out to the main square which was pretty. From here we purchased supplies for dinner from the mini market and the actual market. Back at the hostel, we had a nice home made meal.