La Sierra Railroad station at an extreme altitude. Image © Heinz Buehler Peru's central highland is dominated by the Cordillera de los Andes. The Andes range, together with its foothills, forms the part of Peru that is called La Sierra. Some of the worlds highest mountains can be found here, like the Huascaran (6768 m) and the Yerupaja (6634 m). View over Lake Titicaca. Image © Erich Henry Kuball The Andes range is a vast mountain area covering not only Peru but also parts of Bolivia, Chile and Ecuador. Peru's Andes is divided into some cordilleras. One of the most impressive are the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Huayhuash. The Andes seen from the coastal plain in Piura, Northern Peru. Image © Erich Henry Kuball In the southern mountains of Peru lies the mysterious lost Inca city Machu Picchu. Close to Machu Picchu is the city of Cuzco and the beautiful Valle Sagrado, the Sacred Valley. Deeper south is the Colca Canyon. Though not world-famous like the Grand Canyon in Arizona, USA, the Colca Canyon is twice as deep, making it the deepest canyon on earth. In the same region is the beautiful city of Arequipa. River valley outside Arequipa. Image © Heinz Buehler The most important cities in La Sierra are Arequipa, the beautiful white city, and Cuzco, the city of the Incas. Other important Andean cities are Ayacucho, Cajamarca, Huancayo, Huaraz, Juliaca and Puno at the shores of the spectacular Lago Titicaca. The Northern Sierra near Balsas (Amazonas). Image © Marta Mojzuk Pictures of La Sierra Pictures of Cordillera Blanca Pictures of Cordillera Huayhuash Pictures of Lake Titicaca