In 1536, Manco Inca, grandson of the last great Inca emperor, Huayna Capac, fled into this remote, inaccessible wilderness following rebellion against colonial rule. Retreating from a siege of Cusco, Manco and his followers established a sort of neo-Inca state in the remote Vilcabamba. Inca religion, traditions, ceremony and warfare with Spanish Peru continued until the capture and execution of the last Inca, Tupac Amaru, in 1572.
The Inca built a network of stone paved roads, settlements and shrines during the rein of Pachacuti in the mid 15th century. After the conquest, the last Incas reoccupied much of the region, modifying sites and adding new construction. Manco established his headquarters at Vitcos, while developing settlements at Espiritu Pampa (also called Vilcabamba), numerous smaller sites and a ceremonial center at Choquequirao, overlooking the Apurimac.
The mystery and legend surrounding Vilcabamba initiated a centuries old quest by treasure hunters, explorers and adventurers to locate and finally identify Manco's "lost cities." Modern explorers have contributed much toward unraveling the enigmas but the allure and mystery still beckon...
Early prospectors and treasure hunters must have probed the area before Hiram Bingham, discoverer of Machu Picchu, located Vitcos near the head waters of the Vilcabamba. More recently, Victor von Hagan, Robert von Kaupp, Stuart White, Vince Lee and Gene Savoy all explored here, generating maps and information that help our own investigations.
The Puncuyoc range is a rugged outcrop of craggy igneous peaks and steep, densely forested valleys bordering the Vilcabamba River canyon. To the north and east, high barren hills fall away to the hot jungle valleys of the upper Amazon Basin.
The range served as the last mountain barrier of the highland Inca Empire. Several Inca roads connecting to nearby Vitcos cross over to disappear in tropical tangle far below, testifying that the Incas had trade and traffic to the lowlands.
Armed with Stuart White's 1985 site survey, Vince's maps and his advice from a recent phone conversation, we launched our investigation around the principal ruins of Inca Wasi, which White describes as "A complex of a dozen or more structures... having a ceremonial character."
Ceremonial character...? What an understatement. We are overwhelmed by the staggering impact of the "Sacred Geography" accentuated by the location and placement of Inca construction.
Sharpened machetes in hand, we follow a well made stone stairway to a raised overlook at the crest of a knife edge ridge. Far below, the Vilcabamba valley appears emerald green and lush with the hill of Rosa Pata (Vitcos) rising like the hub of a wheel from the head of the intersecting canyons.
Beyond, the great ice peaks of the Pumasillo massif glisten and shimmer in the equatorial sun.
This would have been a most sacred location to the mountain worshiping Inca. Towering behind us is Cerro Idma and its rock pinnacle, Idma Qoya. Believed by local residents to be the stone imbodiment of the wife of the Inca and charged with great power, the mountain receives much contemporary ritual attention.
Proceeding up into a large glacier formed basin, we follow the stone walkway past more raised platforms and low walled structures to finally arrive at Puncuyoc's center piece, a unique two-story building in near perfect condition. Located at 3,900 meters, high on a knife edge ridge, Inca Wasi (Inca house) as it is now called, is carefully constructed with massive shaped and fitted stone doorjambs, windows and niches.
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