Peru has no resorts or even a basic ski area but it does have snow and glaciers at the tops of the high Andes and a long history of skiing centred on the town of Huaraz, north of capital Lima and close to Huascaran, the country’s highest peak at 6768m (22,056 feet).

Huascaran can be skied by exceptional ski mountaineers, able to cope with the altitude among the many other challenges (which also include a long trek up to the snowline), and was the subject of a race between skiers from Canada and France in 1979 battling to be the first to ski from the top. Extreme skiing pioneer Patrick Vallencant was the first up and his descent cab be seen in the DVD ‘Ski Peru’ and on YouTube.

Extreme skiers do still come here and sadly die here, most recently (at time of writing) Arne Backstrom a 29 year old professional skier from Squaw Valley, California in 2010 while attempting to ski from a 5999m peak.

For the less extreme, but still very serious skiers able to cope with the high altitude, a Peruvian ski festival takes place each July on the slopes at Pastoruri in the southern Cordillera Blanca about two hours from Huaraz, where the Peruvian National Ski championships take place and a temporary rope tow is set up.