Peru Adventure Guide (Adventure Guides Series)

We have the only all-color guide and the most extensive one to Peru. Larger than Spain, France and Germany combined, Peru offers astonishing variety in its landscape, from the endless desert coastline, to the cool mountain waters of Lake Titicaca, the glaciered pinnacles of the Andes or the rainforests filled with wildlife. The author shows how to explore them all, through guided tours or on your own, on brief excursions or week-long treks. Peru was home to the Inca empire 500 years ago, but this was just the last of a succession of pre-Columbian civilizations going back thousands of years. Inumerable ancient monuments remain from these early cultures. See many of them by trekking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu; observe the Nazca Lines, vast designs made by ancient peoples and best seen from the air. Cuzco, Lima, Lake Titicaca, the Amazon Basin are here to discover as well. The tallest mountains outside the Himalayas are here, as are the world's two deepest canyons. Hike the Cordillera Blanca - with 50 peaks exceeding 17,000 feet. Venture into the rainforests to see the birds and animals. We tell you how to do it all. Wildlife and plants are amazingly abundant, with 3,000-plus species of orchids, plus macaws, jaguars, parakeets, tapirs, alpacas, even South America's only species of bear. Offshore islands are home to penguins and sea lions. Cultural adventures include sampling what is perhaps South America's best cuisine, touring the highlands and meeting the Quechua-speaking Indians, joining in the ancient Andean festivals or the shamanic ceremonies and sampling hallucinogenic potions used since long before the Incas. The author shows you how to experience the country more intensely and directly than most travelers know how to do - seeing the place close-up, through walks, fishing, rafting, horseback excursions, culinary adventures, meeting the people.