The jagged peaks and crystalline glaciers of Peru’s Andes sprout magically out of the pea-green high plains, a remarkable sight considering the country’s subtropical latitude and the sunny, dry months May–August. Glaciers sprawl across more than a dozen ranges where the Andes rise above 5,000 meters (16,400 feet) and freeze Amazon humidity carried west by the jet stream. Most of these ranges are rarely visited because they are very remote (such as the Cordillera Yauyos east of Lima), very small (the snowcapped volcanoes around Arequipa), or very technical (the Urubamba and Vilcanota ranges around Cusco).

The exception is the Cordillera Blanca, the highest mountain range in the world outside of the Himalayas. This extravagant collection of jagged pyramids, glacier domes, and knife-edge ridges runs north–south for 180 kilometers but is only 20 kilometers wide. To its west lies the Cordillera Negra, a humble, snowless range that reaches 5,200 meters before petering out onto the coast. Between the two ranges runs the Río Santa Valley, also known as the Callejón de Huaylas.

The highway from the coast drops into this valley near Huaraz, at the top of the valley, and leads through a string of villages before reaching the city of Caraz. At this point the Río Santa jags toward the coast, and the road somehow follows it, through a spectacularly steep canyon known as the Cañon de Pato.

The Cordillera Blanca contains 34 peaks over 6,000 meters (19,685 feet), including the world-famous snow pyramids of Artesonraju, Chopicalqui, and Tocllaraju. Some of the peaks, such as Pisco and Ishinca, are accessible to first-time climbers with experienced guides, and there are even a few gentler trekker peaks, such as Urus and Maparaju. The area’s most postcard-perfect peak is Alpamayo, a peak at 5,947 meters that lures climbers to its 70-degree face.

The mountain that dominates the entire valley, however, is Huascarán. At 6,768 meters (22,204 feet), Huascarán looms over Huaraz much like Mount Blanc towers over Chamonix, France.

During the climbing season May–August, when the weather is dry and sunny, Huaraz’s streets are flooded with rough-shaven adventurers in fluorescent parkas and trekking boots. The area is a world-class mountain destination, in league with the Himalaya or the Alaska Range.

Farther south is the Cordillera Huayhuash, a stunning range that is an increasingly popular option for treks ranging from five days to two weeks. Whereas the gradual, glaciated valleys of the Cordillera Blanca allow trekkers to walk over the range, the Huayhuash is an odd island range fortified with jagged peaks and serrated ridges—your only choice is to circle.

Besides trekking and climbing, there are plenty of other adventure sports around Huaraz. There are excellent {node:32516 link mountain-bike circuits] in the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Negra, beginning rafting down the Río Santa, horseback riding, and excellent rock climbing, ranging from sport routes to 1,000-meter granite walls.

This area of Peru gave birth to one to the first advanced cultures of the Andes, the Chavín. Their carved stone capital of this more than 9,000-year-old empire, Chavín de Huántar, can be visited from Huaraz in a day, or overnight, and is worth a look. Right outside Huaraz there are also the Huari ruins of Wilcawaín.

Huaraz itself is an unappealing city, but it offers the best range of hostels, restaurants, guides, and equipment rental shops. An increasing number of travelers, especially those who have done their research and made reservations ahead of time, are basing themselves out of the more pleasant small towns farther down the valley, including Monterrey, Carhuaz, and especially Caraz.

The Best of the Cordillera Blanca

• Chavín de Huántar
• Lagunas Llanganuco
• Trekking the Cordillera Blanca
• Trekking the Cordillera Huayhuash
• Trekking the Cordillera Negra