Aracari’s Weekly Insight #15: Apu Salkantay

By Simon

Question:
Why do local people in the Cusco region refer to Mount Salkantay as “Apu Salkantay”?

Answer:
Many locals of the Cusco region refer to Salkantay as “Apu Salkantay” as this is a term of reverence and worship. “Apu” literally means “Spirit of the mountain” or “mountain god”.

This was an important part of the religion of the Inca Empire: the Incas had great respect for mountains such as Salkantay and Ausangate as they towered towards the skies – home of the “Inti” Sun god – and the stars. They believed that a spirit or god resided within these mountains that protected their culture .

Today I walked right past Salkantay, here’s some photos:

Aracari’s Weekly Insight #15: Apu Salkantay, Aracari Travel
Aracari’s Weekly Insight #15: Apu Salkantay, Aracari Travel

You can read my day by day account of the lodge to lodge Salkantay Trek here.

Related Post
 Aracari in the Financial Times – The Last Word: How Peru’s... Aracari's very own Marisol Mosquera was quoted in today's Financial Times, found at the following link. The article speaks about how Peru coped when i...
 Peruvian Artist Puchi Noriega Debuts Sculptures in Lima Last Thursday evening the Centro Colich in Barranco, Lima was abuzz with people milling through the gallery to see the works of artist Puchi Noriega, ...
 Marisol’s insider guide to booking a trip to the Galapagos Islands For almost 25 years, Aracari has coordinated tailormade itineraries to the Galapagos Islands. This quarter century worth of experience makes Marisol a...
 Horse Riding Sacred Valley A few months ago, while visiting Cusco, I had the opportunity to go horseback riding at Hacienda Huayoccari, a lovely, traditional hacienda owned by t...
 Visit Lima’s secret garden: Another close friend will soon be delighte... Following a recent visit to the house of Naguib Ciurlizza, the Aracari team was delighted to learn that the distinguished host will soon receive our g...
 New Welcome Package for Guests As Aracari  has evolved, so has our brand. Last year in August, we launched our new brand with three pillars that define us: Aracari Travel: Inspirin...