Aypate looks for Budget to become worthy

By Nelson Peñaherrera Castillo

AYABACA, Peru – What are the conditions that the Aypate [pronounce Iappahteh] Archaeological Complex offers to receive the tourism? None at the moment because the Inca-origin building is not officially open for the tourism yet, although it does receive visitors who are allowed to enter for free under strict conditions like to keep clean the whole circled area, not to vandalize the building, and not to put on the walls, as it happened before.

At the moment, Peru’s Ministry of Culture  and Lagunas de Canly Community are doing maintenance works like weeding, but it still remains to continue the restoration of monolithic walls those could be built after 1470 AD, when the armny commanded by emperor Túpac Inca Yupanqui devastated the settlement of Ayawaka tribe as he expanded the Tawantinsooyo Empire toward the north, what are the highlands of actual Ecuador.

It is supposed that Aypate was for the Ayawakas as their main administrative, religious, and military center, but more information is not available because the research has been making slowly since it was found in 1971 by the Italian anthropologist Mario Polia and the local guide Celso Acuña, funded by the University of Piura. Then up to today, the only relatively safe data are the brought by the chronicles of the first Spanish conquerors, who entered the actual Peru in 1532 AD.

Although the Ministry of Culture is already intervening about 100 hectares or 250 acres, including the citadel built by the Incas and part of the Royal Trail or Cápac Ñan, that came from Cusco or Qosq’o, the imperial capital city. It still remains many rrestoration Workss like rehabilitating walls deteriorated by the time, which must be numbered, undone, and done again to avoid they fall down in the long term.

FACTORTIERRA.NET learned that the people in charge of the Aypate’s restoration project already sent a budget request to Lima-based Ministry of Culture beginning 2019, but it was not assisted until the deadline of this post yet. Employees in Aypate assured that once the restoration Works end, the place could become worthy at least, that would include signs and specialized services to the tourism. However, part of the access path to the citadel already has three little sheds working as resting points for the actual visitors. Also, trash cans were placed just before the main gate.

Despite, Aypate is considered as one of the wonders of Piura Region due to its architecture, its location where you can look at almost all nascents of Quiroz River, a tributary of Chira River, and the surrounding clody forest where native species highlight as lanches, achoopayas, ferns, and even orchids. As it is part of the Cápac-Ñan, it is included into the list of Humankind Patrimony managed by UNESCO, and its more enthusiastic advocates rrank it as the Machupichu of Peruvian Northern.

To get to Aypate, you can start in the cities of Piura or Sullana, and climb up to Ayabaca City, more than 200 km or 150 miles distance (about 5 hours by car), and 2716 meters or 8911 feet altitude. Right there, you can take vehicles those, after 90 minutes, arrive to its watch post where you have to register, then walking uphill for about 20 to 30 minutes. The visit to the citadel can last 30 minutes to one hour, depending on the interest and curiosity of the visitor.

Aypate is about 2500 meters or 8200 feet altitude. . It is a mostly tempered weather along the most of year, 15°C or 59°F in average, although the best time of the year to visit it runs from May to November, when it doesn’t rain. It is recommended to go with a guide. If you need to hire one, or further information about the site, write at factortierra@gmail.com or through our Facebook or Twitter accounts.