Salkantay

About this place

Salkantay is the highest peak of the Vilcabamba range in the Peruvian Andes, in the Cusco Region, about 60 km west-northwest of Cusco and about 19 km south of Machu Picchu in a straight line. It is the second most topographically prominent peak in Peru, after Huascarán. Its name comes from the Quechua word sallqa, meaning wild or invincible, so it is often translated as Savage Mountain; the name was recorded as early as 1583. Machu Picchu sits at the end of a ridge running north from the mountain, and the Incas counted it among the sacred peaks linked with rain and fertility. It was first climbed by a French-American team in 1952. The white, ice-covered summit rises above deep green valleys, with glaciers and snow cliffs spilling down its flanks and small turquoise lakes at its foot. Clouds drift between the peaks, so the mountain appears and vanishes within minutes. The area is famous for the Salkantay trek, which loops around the mountain to Machu Picchu as an alternative to the crowded Inca Trail and crosses a high mountain pass. The trek takes several days and the altitude is great, so acclimatise in Cusco first and go with a licensed operator.