From Arequipa, I traveled by van to Chivay at the entrance to Colca Canyon. After a trek into the canyon, I took another van to Puno. All of this area is part of the Altiplano or High Plain that extends into Bolivia, Chile, Argentina and Ecuador. It rivals Tibet in size and its average height at 12,300′ is only slightly less.
For a Google map of the area, click here.
Some examples of the terrain:
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- Volcanic barrens
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- Peruvian hoodoos
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- Ice fields along the road
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- High peaks and low valleys
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- The road had few straight stretches
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- A volcano is never far away