Camino del Inca Altiplano

The Camino del Inca follows 500-year-old stone pathways through Chile’s northern altiplano, connecting sacred sites the Incas used to move gold and silver from highland mines to coastal ports. This isn’t some tourist interpretation—you’ll drive actual sections of pre-Columbian road where massive stone blocks still hold the grade above 4,000 meters elevation. The route threads between Volcán Parinacota and Lago Chungará, passing through Putre and the abandoned village of Socoroma, where llama caravans once rested.

Moderate to difficult depending on weather, requiring high-clearance 4WD with spare fuel for the 240-kilometer loop through roadless sections. Best driven April through November when summer rains don’t turn clay sections into impassable bogs. Permits needed for Lauca National Park, and you’ll want emergency gear for sudden weather changes at altitude. This is living archaeology—driving the actual infrastructure of a collapsed empire through landscapes that haven’t changed since Pizarro arrived.