After Nazca, I make a detour towards the mountains before going back to the coast. I want to see a fairly rare species of animal; the guanaco.
Pampas Galeras National Reserve
I visited this reserve in order to find some guanacos, one of the four species of camelids in South America. In other parts of the world, the dromedary and camel are also members of this animal family.
I saw some guanacos in a fenced enclosure, but in nature, I only saw vicuñas.
− | common domesticated species |
− | the biggest of the four |
− | it can carry a weight of 50 kg over a distance of 10 km |
− | its wool is relatively rough |
− | wild species similar to the llama in size |
− | more slender and graceful than the llama |
− | its wool is less thick than the llama |
− | domesticated species |
− | smaller than the llama |
− | its coat is very thick |
− | its wool is very soft, and of great quality |
− | its wool is warmer than the sheep |
− | clothes made of alpaca wool are generally very costly |
− | wild species |
− | the smallest of the four camelids of South America |
− | graceful and slender silhouette |
− | shearing of alpacas is authorized once a year |
− | its wool is even better than the alpaca |
− | clothes made of vicuña wool are worth gold (it's the most expensive) |
Driving down to the coast
In the space of a few hours, I went from an altitude of 4000 metres to the sea level (almost).
Back on the coat, before reaching the town of Yauca.