THE TOMAS CANYON, PERU A UNIQUE GEOLOGICAL MARVEL Text and photos by Victor Miguel Ponce

The alternate road to Huancayo There are two ways to reach Huancayo from Lima, Peru: (1) the established way, and (2) the adventurous way. The established way is through the Central Highway, which runs through the city of La Oroya. This highway is paved, with buses making the trip in about 6 hrs. For most people, this is the only way to get to Huancayo. A lesser known way is through Cañete and Yauyos provinces, via Lunahuaná, Magdalena, Alis, and Tomas. This road is now paved up to Magdalena. Yet, the trip from Lima to Huancayo through Yauyos is not for the faint of heart. It is an enduring and almost magical 10-hr trip, full of adventure and surprises. Photo by Victor Miguel Ponce The most pleasant surprise, about three-fourths of the way along, is a canyon so narrow that a tunnel had to be carved in one of its walls to make space for the road. Near Tomas, the Cañete river breaks through a near-vertical gorge about 3 m wide and close to 100 m high. For those in search of breathtaking experiences, this one certainly does it. One cannot help but wonder how such a narrow passage could have been formed. Here, geology married time to perform a natural marvel of hydraulic engineering. We can only admire the constancy with which water chiseled, one iota at a time, the massive batholith of the Andes to create the magnificent Tomas Canyon. Photo by Victor Miguel Ponce