Salcantay

Salcantay from SW

The Salcantay or Salkantay is the highest mountain in the Cordillera Vilcabamba region (part of the Peruvian Andes).

It is located in the Cusco region, about 60 km north-west of the city of Cusco. The Salcantay is the 38th highest mountain in the Andes and the zwölfthöchste mountain in Peru. The first ascent was a French expedition in 1952. The standard way today goes beyond the northeast ridge to the summit. The name Salkantay is derived from salka, quechua for wild, uncivilized

The Salcantay is usually translated as " wild mountain ". The Incas are said to have believed that the mountain was a god of fertility and weather in the region who controlled the area west of Cusco.