The Huayllay National Sanctuary also known as “Huayllay Stone Forest” or “Rock Forest of Huayllay” is located in the Bombon Plateau in the Peruvian region of Pasco at the center of the country. This ecological sanctuary has many peculiar and beautiful natural formations of rocks, which are the reason of its denominations.
The Huayllay Stone Forest looks like an immense petrified oasis in middle of a large desolate plateau. This amazing place usually is compared to the “Shilin Stone Forest” in China and the “Garden of the Gods“in USA.
In Huayllay, it can find many bizarre shapes of all sizes that resemble human, animal and vegetal, such as human faces, elephants, beasts, towers, sphinxes, dinosaurs, warriors, amongst others. There are also peculiar doorways and arches that defy the laws of gravity.
In addition to the marvelous stone formations, the Huayllay Sanctuary host also an impressive variety of flora and fauna, which is typical of the Andes; since, the sanctuary is located about 4310 meters (14 140 feet) above sea level; therefore, the climate of the zone is very dry and cold almost all the year.
Amongst the most representative species that inhabited this zone are: deer, vicuñas (vicugna vicugna), vizcachas (Lagidum peruanum), wildcats, skunks, hawks, fox and partridges. Besides, the flora of the sanctuary is composed mainly by pastureland, bushes, humanpinta (Chuquiraga spinosa), mata mata (Tafalla thujoides) and queuñas (Polylepis sp.,a very special tree that only exist in the Andes above 3000 meters above sea level).
Near the Stone Forest, there are also some fountains of thermal waters, such as “La Calera“, “Gosphi” and “Yanahuato”, which are around 60º C (140ºF). It believes that these thermal waters have curative properties; therefore, they are very popular amongst the local population.
The Huayllay Sanctuary contains also an archeological zone known as Bombomarca; where it can find several cave paintings.
This wonderful place is located to 45 Km (27.9 miles) from the city of Cerro de Pasco and 312 Km (193.44 miles) from Lima (around 8 hours by car). The Huayllay Sanctuary can be visited by tourists, everyday from 8:00 to 17:00.
The stone formations of Huayllay were originated in the Cenozoic age, when this zone was part of the seabed (around 70 millions years ago). Since then the rain, the glacier movements and the wind have molded the peculiar stone shapes that we can see today. Therefore, the Huayllay Stone Forest is considered one of the largest geologic museums of the world.
The National Sanctuary of Huayllay was established by Law (D.S.) N 0750-74-AG on August 7, 1974 by the Peruvian government to protect the ecosystem and the almost 4000 geological formations of this marvelous zone. The Sanctuary covers around 6815 hectares (16833 acres).
Tourists started to arrive to Huayllay since 7 years ago, because of the rumor of UFO’s sightings and because local authorities decided to organize every September a tourist festival called “Rural Tour”.
Therefore, the zone doesn’t have still a great tourist infrastructure; nevertheless, it is a nice place to spend the time admiring the nature away from the hectic lifestyle of cities. It is also a great opportunity to know the Andean reality of this marvelous country.
Recently some tourist operators have created several routes through the Huayllay Sanctuary. The shorter routes can be covered in 3 or 4 hours. Besides, the region is an ideal place to practice most adventure sports.
The Huayllay Stone Forest was declared National Zone of Tourist Interest in 1997 and Cultural National Patrimony in 2001. It is one of the most impressive natural wonders of Peru.