Chachapoyas, Pedro Ruiz , Tarapoto and the road to Yurimaguas

We only stayed one night in Chachapoyas, and left Chachapoyas for Pedro Ruiz after our visit to Kuelap. There are no direct busses to Tarapoto, our next stop, and given road closures, it was best to leave at night. For a small town, I have spent more time in Pedro Ruiz than in larger, more well known towns, such as Nasca.

The intention was to take shared taxis (collectivos) all the way to Tarapoto, but we discovered that was a rather expensive option. So we took a chance, and bought a bus ticket from an "agent" for 28 Soles to Tarapoto. It turned out to be one of the best purchases - as we got effectively a first class seat (bed like seats) for the 7 hour trip.

Tarapoto, also known as the "City of Palms" is not much to write about. It is the first forray into the jungle - a welcome relief from the mountains into the heat and humidity of the jungle. After spending the night in the city, we took another collectivo to Yurimaguas - from where we were to take a boat down to the Amazon city of Iquitos.

The road between Tarapoto and Yurimaguas is still under construction, but once completed it will be one of the most spectacular roads in Peru, if not the world. Winding over the last remnants of the Andes, with some spectacular waterfalls (Cataratas de Ahuashiyacu) and some spectacular views of the jungle below. Right now though, the road is still muddy in large parts and quite difficult to drive through in places.