A challenging 8 day mountain bike tour in the Cordillera Blanca that offers some of the most stunning mountain panoramas in the Andes of Peru.

This adventure is one of the finest mountain regions in the world.

Outline itinerary

We start in the bustling town of Huaraz which lies amid the unsurpassed scenic splendour of the Callejón de Huaylas. This is the ideal base from which to explore the region. This is one of the finest areas of South America for its superb mountain panoramas.

The Callejón is bordered to the east by the Cordillera Blanca, a mountain range with the greatest number of peaks over 6000 metres outside the Himalayas. From Huaraz itself there is an awe-inspiring vista of Mount Tocllaraju, Mounts Palcaraju (6034 metres) and Ranrapalca (6162 metres) towering over the city and, to the north, the gigantic forms of Huascarán (6768 metres) and Huandoy (6395 metres).

Into the saddle

We pedal south along the Callejón de Huaylas to Carhuaz (2650m). We spend the night at a hotel before getting on the bikes to ride out of the Callejón into the Ulta Valley. This is the start of a 250 km loop (accompanied throughout by our support vehicle), which will take us to the heart of the Cordillera and some of its most spectacular panoramas.

We head up the Ulta Valley (3700m) to the base of the Punta Olimpica pass and several towering snowpeaks, among them Contrahierbas (5960m) and Ulta (5875m).

The magical landscapes continue to unfold as, gear down, we ascend to the Punta Olimpica pass (4890m). After the pass come 15km of thrilling downhill! We camp in the Cancaraca Grande Valley at 3800m, then proceed with several downhills and gentle climbs as we pass through the farming communities of the eastern Cordillera foothills.

Yurma valley

Our next ascent takes us up the Yurma Valley back towards the Cordillera, and then up into the heart of the mountains again as we approach the glaciated flanks of Yanapaqcha and Chopicalqui. A good climb takes us to the high pass of Llanganuco (4767m).

This pass offers outstanding views of awesome snowpeaks on all sides including Huandoy (6395), Chacraraju (6112m) and the towering walls of Huascarán. From here it's a blast all the way back to the Callejón de Huaylas and the city of Yungay (2500m).

Here our bikes go back into the support vehicle, and we return to Huaraz for a well deserved shower and cold beer.

Included

All meals while on the biking expedition, all breakfasts elsewhere, support vehicle, mechanic, cook, camping equipment (tents, cutlery etc), bikes and helmet, English speaking guide.

Not included

International flights (we can look for these for you), insurance, other meals, snacks and drinks, personal items and expenses, airport taxes, extra entrance fees, tips, laundry etc.

You could extend your trip by trekking the Inca Trail or visiting the Amazon.

Check out our Peru group trips, or our many tailor made Peru options. You can always contact the office for more information on tailor made and group options.