Province of Puno
Geography and Climate
The department of Puno is mainly flat since the immense Collao Plateau constitutes most of its territory. Two mountain ranges, the Carabaya Cordillera (north) and the Maritime or Volcanic Cordillera (south) complete the territory.
The city of Puno is located on the shores of Lake Titicaca and its climate is cold and semi-dry. The rainy season starts in October and ends in April.
The annual average maximum temperature is 14ºC (58ºF) and the minimum is 3ºC (37ºF).
The cathedral was built in the seventeenth century and the Peruvian architect Simon de Asto sculpted its façade. This Spanish Baroque church includes Andean elements that give the monument its mixed character.
Built around 1668, it is said that Conde de Lemos was lodged in this house when he arrived to stamp out the rebellion. Toda, it is the cultural complex of the National Culture Institute of the Department of Puno and it contains and art gallery.
Carlos Dreyer Museum
On exhibit there are pieces of pottery, silver, gold, jewels from bishopric of the Cathedral of de Dioceses of Puno, textiles and pre-Incan and Incan stone sculpture. Futhermore, they alos keep a numismatic and document collection that dates from the Spanish founding of the city of Puno. Museum is composed of five rooms: the Inca, the Lithic, the Colonial, the Picture Gallery and the Hall of the Dead, where they exhibit gold pieces from the Sillustani treasure.
Constructed with cobblestones, it was erected by the people of Puno in memory of the patriots who fought for the independence of Peru.
Huajsapata means “witness of my love”. It is a natural lookout dominating the city and Lake Titicaca. At the top, there is a monument to Manco Capac, founder of the Inca Empire. They say that there are caverns and subterranean pathways in the hill that connect Puno to the Koricancha Temple in the city Cusco.
Chief Magistrate’s House(La Casa del Corregidor)
It is a seventeenth century Colonial mansion where Puno art exhibitions take place. There is a coffee bar, a library and an Internet and video club. Cultural activities are organized and information on rural tourism is also available there.
Kuntur Wasi means “house of the condor” and offers an unsurpassed view of Puno and Lake Titicaca. You must climb a large flight of steps to get there.
3 km / 2 miles northwest of Puno (20 minutes by Car)
The park features a Puma shaped stone monument – Symbol of the lookout since this animal is a guardian related to the protection of the Andes – built on a fountain that symbolizes Lake Titicaca. There are many recreational areas.
Bahia de los Incas Ecotourism Seawall
It is a pedestrian walkway offering a beautiful view of Lake Titicaca where you find the solar clocks and calendars called Sukankas or Intihuatanas. The pre-Inca cultures used them to determine where the ceremonial and sacrificial rituals were going to take place. They also used them to establish the territorial boundaries of the communities.
It is an iron ship built in Great Britain in the 1860’s that was transported from the Pacific coast to the High Plateau in pieces – 2766 in total, Inside, different accessories of the ship compartments are exhibited as well as documents, archives, historical maps and models of that time.
This Protected Natural Area was created in 1978 in order to preserve the natural resources characteristic of Lake Titicaca and the highland ecosystem. It covers an area of 36.180 hectares.
In the reserve, dozens of birds, fish, and amphibious species have been registered like flamingos or parihuanas, Andean geese, seagulls, Titicaca grebes, chullumpis and Andean lapwings as well as numerous endangered species. You will find twelve varieties of aquatic plants representative of the lake flora, the most remarkable being the totora reeds and algae.
This lake is very important in Andean mythology since, according to legend, Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, children of the sun god and founders of the Inca Empire, emerged from its waters.
Peru and Bolivia share sovereignty over this navigable lake, the highest in the world (3810 masl / 12.497 fasl). It covers an area of 8559 km2 (3305 miles2), a maximum depth of 283 meters (928 feet),. And the average water temperature varies from October to May between 9ºC (48ºF) and 11ºC (52ºF) and from June to September between -7ºC (19ºF) and -10ºC(14ºF). Moreover, the lake tempers the area since without is presence, there would not be life at that altitude.
On the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca, there are several islands; the natural islands include Amantani, Taquile, Soto and Anapia and the artificial islands are the ones that the Uros people have built, each one offering different attractions.
Along the shores of the lake, totora reeds grow where different birds and fish like the carachis, ispis, bogas, umantos, suches (and endanger species), silverfish and trout call home. All there species are native of the area and are prized for their high nutritional value.
The Uros Island (3810 masl / 12.497 fasl) number around 20 and are located in the Bay of Puno. Three to ten Uro-Aymaras families live on each one. They roof their houses with totora reed carpets, although some families have replaced their traditional roofs by metal ones. the largest islands are Tupiri, Santa Maria, tribuna, Toranipata, Chumi, Paraiso, Kapi, Titino, Tinajero and Negrone.
The Uros call themselves Kotsuña, “the lake people” and their origins go back to eras before the Incas. They hunt wild birds and maintain traditional fishing methods, especially those used for the carachi and the silverfish. The men are skillful handlers of the totora reed boats, and the women are expert knitters. The characteristic cold and dry weather of the region is tempered in this area thanks to the constantly evaporating water of the large lake.
36 km / 22 miles northeast of the Puno harbor (3 hours and 30 minutes by boat)
Located at 3187 masl (10.453 fasl). Amantani covers some 9 km2 (3.2 miles2). The flora is characterized by the presence of bushes like the muña, the kantuta, the sgae, the tola and the patamuña. Eight communities live on the island and make their living from growing potatoes, corn, oca, quinoa, lima beans, and green peas, and their most repsentative handcrafts are textiles and stones carving. Among its natural attractions, there are two lookouts on the highest part offering a view of the entire lake, some pre-Hispanic remains, ceremonial centers and a mummy cemetery.
35 km / 22 miles east of the Puno port (3 hours by boat)
Its approximate size is of 6 km2 (miles2) and the altitude between the port and the town varies slightly from 3810 to 3950 masl (12.497 to 12.956 fasl). The maximum temperature there is 23ºC (66ºF) and the minimum is 7ºC (37ºF). Pre-Inca vestiges are found in the highest part of the island. During the Colonial period and up to the first years of the twentieth century, it was used as a political prison, until the island became property of the Taquile people in 970. The town of the same name, Taquile, is characterized by its friendly inhabitants, who maintain their customs and traditional clothing. They distinguish themselves by their detailed, fine and colorful textiles with symmetrical decorations and symbols that reflect thwir way of life, customs and Andean beliefs.
18 km / 11 miles south f Puno (15 minutes by car)
It is also known as the Royal Treasury City because it used to be the tax collection center during the Colonial era. It features a main square and the Renaissance churches of Santo Domingo (sixteenth century) and La Asuncion (seventeenth century). Also you can find the Inca Uyo Archeological site, which name means “house of the inca” in aymara language.
The turnoff to the complex is located near kilometer maker 17 of the Puno-Moquegua Highway, south of Puno (20 minutes by car).
It is a pre-Hispanic cemetery that belonged to the Luaca and Colla Lordships. Although there is evidence of 8000 years old rock-art, the main structures date from 1100 A.D. to 1450 A.D. There are also Inca archeological remnants. The chullpas or pucullos, large fortified burial towers, overlook the landscape.
Sillustani Archeological Complex
34 km / 21 miles north of Puno (35 minutes by car)
Thus complex stands on the shore of Lake Umayo. It is famous for its chulpas, larga circular fortified burial towers for the main leaders of the early villages of the Collao plateau. Some are 12 meters high (39 feet) and remarkable for their shape, thinner at the base and wider at the top. Close to the archeological complex is the site museum where different pieces from the Colla, Tiahuanaco and Inca cultures are preserved.
74 km / 46 miles northeast of Puno, on the shores of Lake Titicaca (2 hours by car)
This community of around 1300 inhabitants still maintains its customs and native cultural manifestation and its main activities are farming, cattle breeding, fishing and from the Islands of Taquile and Amantani or by land from Puno or Juliaca. The place offers experimental tourism, “living tourism”, and allowing visitors to stay with families of the community.