HUASCARAN NATIONAL PARK Located in the department of Ancash, the Huascaran National Park is wedged in the Cordillera Blanca, the world's highest tropical mountain chain. It was created in 1975 over a surface of 340,000 hectares and included in UNESCO's list of Mankinds's Natural Heritage in 1985. The park protects on of the world's most surprising high mountain ecosystems, featuring 663 glaciers, 269 lakes and 41 rivers, as well as dozens of mountains, 26 of which tower above 6,000 meters. It is home to plentiful and diverse plant and animal wildlife including some 800 plant species and several dozen types of animals. Additionally, the park includes 33 pre-inca archaeological sites like Wilcahuaín and is home to dozens of quechua-speaking peasant communities that still practice their traditional farming and livestock herding techniques. CLIMATE The Andean mountain climate depends heavily on 2 critical factors: humid and warm winds from the Amazon basin that originate heavy rainfall from December to March, and sudden changes in temperature. In the dry season from May to October, the temperature on a sunny day can rise to 25ºC, followed by intensely cold nights with temperatures plunging below freezing.