A memorable road trip to Pastoruri glacier in the Andes
Pastoruri glacier is a cirque glacier at an elevation of 4.955m (16,256ft) above the sea level, located in the Andes mountain range, in Northern Peru in the Ancash region.
The road to the glacier, located in the Huascaran National Park, is pretty steep. It’s called Carretera a Pastoruri. The road is unpaved, and the weather can be extremely challenging. On the summit there’s a big parking and a restaurant area. The last part to the glacier, around 500m, is impassable for vehicles. Watch out for sudden loose-gravel breaks. And that pavement can ripple like a roller coaster track in places where “frost heaves” are caused by seasonal freezing and thawing of the ground. It’s one of the few glaciers left in the tropical areas of South America. It was a popular tourist destination in the past, but now climate change has caused substantial melting.Twenty-two percent of the surface area of Peruvian glaciers has disappeared over the past 30 years.
Due its unique location and the climb in elevation over thousands of feet, and passing through remote areas, it is important when driving in these conditions to be prepared. After rain, even a single rainfall, conditions of the road can be challenging. Avalanches, heavy snowfalls and landslides can occur anytime and can sometimes block some sections of the road, being extremely dangerous due to frequent patches of ice.