FarWayOut

Ruta 106, the second part of the Huascarán Loop.

Arriving at the top of the pass and seeing the winding road dropping away beneath us, with towering mountains all around and ominous-looking clouds hanging just low enough to add some drama, left us completely speechless.

Unlike Ruta 107 from our previous post, Ruta 106 is completely unpaved. It’s not technically difficult, but there is some loose gravel and a few rocky sections in the sharp corners. Take it slow, stay focused, and you’ll be alright.

The hardest part is not getting distracted by the views😅

Huascarán Loop, also known as Roads 107 & 106, is an absolute must-do ride while in Peru. 🏔️🏍️

📸 These photos and videos are from Ruta 107, the paved section of the loop that passes through the iconic Punta Olímpica Tunnel. Opened in August 2013, it’s one of the highest motorable tunnels in the world, surpassed only slightly by a few tunnels on the Tibetan Plateau.

⛰️ The road climbs from the town of Carhuaz at 2,600 m / 8,800 ft, gaining more than 2,000 m / 6,500 ft as it winds its way up into the Andes. The highest point is at the tunnel entrance at 4,735 m / 15,535 ft.

🎟️ To ride this route, you’ll need a valid ticket for Huascarán National Park, which costs about 30 PEN / 8 USD per day.

After finishing the southern section of the Peru Great Divide Trail (PGDT), we entered the Cordillera Blanca and the legendary Huascarán National Park.

The area is full of snowy peaks, turquoise lagunas, glaciers, and views that make you wonder if you haven’t accidentally crossed into some high-fantasy realm. It also has plenty of side quests (aka day trips) to complete, and this one led us to Laguna Llaca. 🏔️🏍️

Pastoruri Glacier Road (or AN-1251) is an absolute must when riding through northern Peru. Make sure to ride the whole stretch as the views are amazing from start to finish. You can also hike up to over 5,000 m to see the glacier up close. The walk is less than 2km, but doing it in our motorcycle gear was quite a workout.

Another unreal mountain pass on the Peru Great Divide Trail. Does this kind of epicness ever end? And could one ever get tired of it? 😂🏔️🏍️

-
-
-

More of Peru’s mountain roads. Unbelievable colors and shapes all around us, and an empty winding road ahead. This is probably as close to total freedom as it gets. 🏍️🌄

Torres de Vichaycocha and the surrounding landscape are a true masterpiece of nature and time. Jagged stone towers and waves of rock rise right beside the road as you slowly traverse the Peruvian highlands.

Mountain roads in Peru are definitely one of the best we've had the pleasure of riding through. Endless zigzags carved into massive landscapes, the mix of colours and textures, the thin air, and wandering llamas make for an unforgettable ride.

-
-
-

The Peru Great Divide Trail photo dump continues😅

-
-
-

A scenic detour in the mountains near Huancayo, Peru.
The main road was unexpectedly blocked by a massive truck that clearly miscalculated a tight turn. No way around it, the road was so narrow we couldn’t even squeeze our small motos through. So we pulled up the map, and as luck would have it, found an alternative route through the mountains. A bit rough in places, but way more scenic than anything we had planned.

-
-
-

One of the best mountain passes on the PGDT trail, this time from a more human perspective.

If you’re curious how this looks from the sky, and how tiny we can be against these vast landscapes, check one of the previous posts.