Cocachacra-Santiago de Tuna Road

Cocachacra-Santiago de Tuna Road

Peru, south-america

Length

19.9 km

Elevation

1.426 m

Difficulty

extreme

Best Season

Year-round

Okay, adventure seekers, listen up! If you're headed to the Huarochirí province in Peru and you're craving a serious adrenaline rush, the Cocachacra-Santiago de Tuna road is calling your name. This isn't your Sunday drive; it's a true test of skill and nerve.

Connecting the villages of Cocachacra and Santiago de Tuna, this roughly 20-kilometer stretch of gravel is narrow. Think one-car-at-a-time narrow. And did I mention the sheer drops of hundreds of meters? Yeah, those are there, and they're totally unprotected.

Nestled in the Andes, the views are stunning, assuming you can peel your eyes off the road long enough to enjoy them. Expect over 20 hairpin turns on a seriously steep climb. We're talking about an elevation gain of nearly 1,500 meters from Cocachacra. Vertigo sufferers, beware! Landslides are a possibility, and one wrong move could send you tumbling. This isn't for the faint of heart (or lungs, or legs!). Trust me, this road is an experience, and photos just don't capture the full intensity of it.

Where is it?

Cocachacra-Santiago de Tuna Road is located in Peru (south-america). Coordinates: -11.7024, -73.1563

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Road Details

Country
Peru
Continent
south-america
Length
19.9 km
Max Elevation
1.426 m
Difficulty
extreme
Coordinates
-11.7024, -73.1563

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