1.

Quest for Paititi

http://www.paititi.com/index.html
The June 2004 Quest for Paititi exploration team followed the direction of the
Inca Road of Stone penetrating the northern reaches of Peru's Pantiacolla
region and documented the Incas presence in this mysterious land east of the
Andes. Explorer, Greg Deyermenjian and his Quechua-speaking native guides,
Paulino and Alberto Mamani, "Goyo" Toledo and the film crew of Producer,
Garrett Strang and Cinematographer, Erin Harvey slashed their way through
thickets and underbrush for over two weeks to uncover a number of significant
Inca ruins.
For nearly two decades, Deyermenjian and his crew have shed new insight into
Inca culture and unearthed archaeological sites that have added to the
understanding of its legendary empire, known as Antisuyu or Paititi. Based on
local word of mouth and the findings from the team's 1999 expedition, the
explorers believe their recent discoveries could be directly related to the
legend of Paititi, given their strategic location to the Road of Stone.
Facing extreme conditions of frigid cold at altitudes at to 14,000 feet to steady
heat under the Andean sun, the expedition team followed its course, despite
several setbacks and fatigue. They landed by helicopter north of the Lago de
Angel, an unmapped area until the last expedition (1999). They settled
south/southeast of Lago de Angel where they documented the ruins of a series
of caves with triangular monoliths to which the team wants to return.
Following a barely perceptible part of an unmapped Incan road between the Rio
Paucartamblo and Rio Timpia, the team faced the drudgery of long, grueling
treks into Peru's Pantiacolla region. While watching their footing, they looked
for evidences of Inca trails that would connect Lago de Angel with Ultimo
Punto- an area Paulino had become familiar with through local wisdom. They
traversed the highland range of Tambocancha and descended steep tributaries
of the Rio Mapacho. In the unexplored headwaters of the Rio Timpia that lie in
the heart of the Plateau of Pantiacolla, they faced their most arduous journey
so far.
Deemed a Flag Expedition by The Explorers Club, this expedition was
professionally acknowledged and chronicled as an impressive history of
courage and accomplishment as it furthers the cause of exploration and field
science. Follow-up articles on the science and historical significance of the
expedition are being published.
Maps of the discoveries, to include ceremonial platforms, tombs and an Incan
compound- are being scrupulously constructed from on-location GPS data and
from Greg's and Paulino's notes.

The expedition also followed another course - the making of a broadcast film.
Producer/Director, Garrett Strang and Cinematographer, Erin Scott Harvey have
done a superb job with filming each aspect of the expedition from the
meticulous preparation for survival, to the unforeseen dangers of trekking into
unknown territory, as well as the euphoria that drove them onward after each
discovery. The rough-cut version of Image Studios' film captures the
interminable passion and determination of this dedicated team and gives
viewers a first-hand look at expedition life in this mystical and perilous land.
2. The 2004 EXPEDITION
Since 1984, Greg Deyermenjian and his team have been making scientific
expeditions into the high and lower altitude jungle areas north and northeast of
Cusco, Peru. Sponsored over the years by The Explorers Club; a Shipton-Tilman
Grant from Gore Tex; and the Polartec Performance Challenge Award; the team
welcomed its 2004 Expedition sponsor, Eastern Mountain Sports. Support from
such prestigious sponsors is partly from the team's unquestionable reputation
for scientific integrity and ethical conduct in both the execution and
documentation of their findings- not to mention a passion beyond words.
"This expedition was the most ambitious and significant to date. We aimed to
unearth new, historical evidence of the presence of the last Incas in this regionwhich we did- but more importantly, to assert that the quest for Paititi must
continue- given the strategic location of these ruins along or near the Inca Road
of Stone so far north." -G. Deyermenjian.
THE QUEST
Cusco- direction Callanga
The team traveled by vehicle north of Cusco into the highland routes toward
the jungles east in altitudes that exceed 4,000 meters. Documented ruins.
Return to Cusco
Returned to Cusco for fresh supplies. To conserve time and energy, the team
hired a helicopter in Cusco to travel into the mountain jungle.
Inca Road of Stone and Lago de Angel
The helicopter dropped the team deep into the Pantiacolla area near the Lago
de Angel. The team attempted to follow and map forgotten parts of the Inca
Road of Stone up to an unexplored zone of the Pantiacolla Plateau- tracking
important milestones at the Lago de Angel. Ruins and caves documented.
Following the trail down into the nearly impenetrable cloud-forest, and then
climbing up to the highlands the team found the mysterious "8-shaped" lake

that is now known as "Lago de Angel." The stonework of an ancient Incan

presence around the lake seemed to continue on, ever northwestward.
Explore beyond Lago de Angel
GPS technology helped the team track their position along the way, while the
wisdom and expertise of their Machiguenga guide, Goyo, would lead them
toward the Rio Timpia.
At nearly 11,000 feet altitude, another platform of asymmetrical form, being
shaped like a pointed bullet, with five sides, its tip pointed northeast. Its
location offered a commanding view of two distinct river systems, that of the
Yavero far below to the west, and that of the Timpia and its uppermost
tributaries to the east.
Rio Timpia
They continued their journey around the headwaters of the Rio Ticumpinca
toward the Rio Timpia, the furthest northern exploration yet. Slashing their way
through thick, centuries-old vegetation, the team pushed ahead to an area
where their most important ruins to date were found. Platforms discovered.
Incan compound.
The location of the platform--at 12 degrees, 25.5 minutes south latitude, by 72
degrees, 11.5 minutes west longitude--mark it as the furthest Incan vestige to
be found directly north of Cusco, and the area as the furthest reach of the land
mass which makes up the Meseta de Pantiacolla. And those dark ranges
beyond constituted a blank space on the U.S. Department of Defense/ Peruvian
Instituto Geografico Nacional's satellite-generated maps, an area labeled
"DATOS INSUFICIENTES,"insufficient data, impenetrable as yet to the eye in the
sky. -Deyermenjian.
Lake of Suchi Cocha
These zones form a perimeter bearing strong evidence of Inca civilization,
extending along the Paucartombo cordillera in the south toward the Toporake
Plateau further north. Ruins found.
3. The QUEST FOR PAITITI Team
Expedition Crew
The expedition group moved forward in their 20th Anniversary year as part of
the Asociacion Cultural Exploraciones Antisuyu (ACEA), officially inscribed
within Peru. Explorer, Greg Deyermenjian is president of the ACEA to which all
the expeditionaries involved in this project belong.

Explorer, Greg Deyermenjian is a native Bostonian and a Fellow of The

Explorers Club. Greg is also Chairman of the club's New England Chapter.
Deemed The Explorers Club's foremost authority on the archaeology and
exploration of the high jungle areas of southeast Peru, Greg has written many
articles and presented to audiences of The Explorers Club, The Institute of
Andean Studies, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the American Rock
Art Research Association, and other settings within the USA and Peru. He is also
a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. When not in the mountains of Peru,
Greg works as a psychologist for the Massachusetts Department of Mental
Retardation.
Peruvian Explorer, Paulino Mamani is native to the highlands and subtropical
valleys of the Province of Calca. He is a member of the ACEA and a Fellow
International of The Explorers Club. Paulino has been with the Paititi exploration
project since its inception in 1984. He is considered among the foremost of
Peru's explorers of the southeast region.
Machiguenga Guide, Goyo Toledo belongs to the Machiguenga tribe and has
been serving as a key guide to Greg and his exploration crew since 1984.
Crew member, Alberto Mamani is a cousin of Paulino's and served as a guide.
Crew member, Monica Silva de Deyermenjian is Secretary of the ACEA and
joined the expedition group for the first time this year. She is native to Peru and
assisted the crew during the first portion of the journey.
Production/Expedition Crew
Producer/Director, Garrett Strang is an award-winning documentary filmmaker
whose work has been recognized by his peers with the New York's International
Film Festival Award; CINDY Award; Telly Award; Videographer Award of
Excellence:The Jade Award of Excellence; Columbia International Film & Video
Festival Award; Chris Award; among others. For more than 15 years, Garrett has
owned Image Studios, Inc. (ISI), a production house in Bethesda, Maryland.
Under his direction, Image Studios has produced a variety of compelling stories
from an hour long docu-drama on AIDS to a ten part series on cutting edge
advances in scientific research for international release. In addition, ISI has
created PSAs and spots for broadcast on Fox, ABC, CBS and cable affiliates in
the U.S. and abroad. Crews have filmed on location in all parts of the world to
include Africa; the Philippines; Pakistan, Southeast Asia, throughout Europe,
Central
America,
South
America,
Canada
and
the
U.S.
www.imagestudiosproductions.com
Garrett has traveled extensively to South America as a director and to
document one of his personal interests- the surviving cultures of its indigenous
peoples. He captured a variety of traditional medicine practices during several

visits to include the Qetchua Indians in Ecuador; the remotely located Guarani
in Bolivia and the Ayumara Indians surviving above LaPaz in the El Alto region;
and he filmed the culture of the people in the Altiplano.
Cinematographer, Erin Harvey is well recognized for his cinematography work
with National Geographic, to include Explorer, Ultimate Explorer and ChannelAsia, as well as PBS. Erin has established himself as a documentary filmmaker
with a unique and creative vision. He shot two award-winning PBS
documentaries, Harold Hitchcock: Life in Light and Ramadhan in Indonesia,
each won the coveted Golden Cine Eagle Award. As Producer /
Cinematographer / Editor for National Geographic Explorer, Erin took his work
from start to finish filming the fireboats of Venice in Venice Burning; chasing
cheetahs in Botswana and Namibia in Cheetah Chase; and filming tigers from
the back of an elephant in India in Tiger's Eye. As a Cinematographer whose at
home scouring jungles and islands in Belize (Snake Wranglers - Boa Episode) to
following snakes or trekking deep into Bolivia's Madidii rain forest (Maididi), Erin
was a welcome addition to the Quest for Paititi crew.
Project Participants
Project partner, Jean-Christophe Vanderhaegen is an attorney from Belgium
who is co-founder there of the "Centro Europeo de Informacion y Promocion
para America Latina" (CEIPAL). Mr. Vanderhaegen is a long-time student of
Incan and Andean history and was instrumental in the acquisition of and
analysis of satellite photography of the exploration zones. He is a member of
the ACEA.
Scientific Advisor, Professor Daniel Gade is Professor Emeritus of Geography at
the University of Vermont with a formidable writing history on the cultural,
historical geography, and ecology of the Andes. Author of Man and Culture in
the Andes, Professor Gade integrates the imagination of an expert geographer
with the research skills of a natural and cultural historian. He is also a member
of the ACEA.More about Daniel Gade... And even more...
Fernando Neuenschwander, son of Peru's foremost Andean explorer, the now
deceased Dr. Carlos Neuenschwander of Arequipa. Fernando joined the
exploration team on a couple of its journeys and continues to be a vital part of
the project's mission. He is also a member of the ACEA.
4. QUEST FOR PAITITI FIELD JOURNAL ::
The FIELD JOURNAL
The 2004 Expedition Team was built from the same experienced, well-skilled,
and dedicated group of explorers who began this journey twenty years ago,
and a few new faces. The success of this year's expedition came from blending

the best of traditional methods with useful, high-end technology. The crew
applied the wisdom of the team's indigenous hosts to traverse unfamiliar
territory and relied on mule power to carry a bounty of supplies and
environmental gear over Peru's perilous mountain terrain. GPS technology
guided their every move and documented the exact location of every
discovery.
Producer, Garrett Strang used an irdium satellite Motorola 9505 phone to report
important milestones along the way. While there were days of thickened cloud
forest cover that kept signals from reaching the U.S., the field journal notes
were scribed each day. Check out The Field Journal to see the mix of all these
elements come into play as you read through the actual notes taken at the end
of a hard day's journey (See The Quest). The objectives of this journal are to
allow you to share in this historical expedition and to experience daily life in the
remote jungles of the Pantiacolla region of Peru. You'll also get personal insights
first hand from team members; the wisdom of the machiguenga guides; and
the impending dangers that are an inherent part of this mysterious jungle.
The team came home with more than Incan discoveries, they brought back a
wealth of new data to include: plants and flora and plenty of natural sightings;
GPS coordinates which mean new areas will be charted on Peru's maps; and a
detailed account of the environmental and physical challenges in the
Pantiacolla region.

4.1. ENTRY ONE (June 6, 2004) "IN PERU"

The expedition is in that critical "in Peru" stage where the future success and
safety of the project depends on what we do and decide now. There are
logistical questions to be answered: What about the helicopter? How long will
the drive over rough jungle roads astride the Rio Alto Urubamba take in
bringing us to meet up with the helicopter? Do we have enough expedition
members to handle the increased load we have because of the filmmakers
equipment? Can horses be arranged for part of the return, to carry some of the
load over the last mountain ranges, with their interminable ascents, descents,
and more ascents, during that part of the expedition when we're likely to be the
most worn out? What is the best point at the very end of the most remote dirt
road that approaches the frontier that is accessible to wheeled vehicle, where
we should arrange for a vehicle to meet us when we emerge from the
wilderness? Etcetera and etcetera...
One aspect about which we have no questions is that of the ability of the
expedition members. Paulino Mamani, one of the only three Peruvian
"International Fellows" of The Explorers Club in New York, has been a major part
of our "Paititi" expeditions over the past 20 years, and is a master of all things

related to exploration, survival, and Incan history and lifeways. And Goyo
Toledo has emerged from the high-altitude jungles of Mameria, where he has
lived as a Machiguenga--the forest-dwelling Indians who are masters of their
domain--since 1980, to accompany us again. His mastery of the Machiguenga
language and lifeways will help greatly in establishing the rapport with native
peoples that is essential to any endeavor
that hopes to find answers to questions in the unknown and little-known areas
beyond the Andes...
4.2. ENTRY TWO (June 7, 2004) "GEARING UP "
Today, there arrived a young Quechua-speaking man, named Alberto, to round
out the team as an apprentice to Paulino and Goyo. Ignacio can't leave his post
as Park Guard for the Parque Nacional de Manu, so Alberto was picked to take
his place. We bought seven machetes this afternoon--three for the expedition,
and four as gifts for the Machiguenga. The long machetes fit Goyo's cutting
style, while the shorter suits better Paulino's swing. We also
bought tons of foodstuffs, from rice and "azucar rubia" (brown sugar) and
packaged soups to pasta and oatmeal and sardines, as well as antibacterial
soap in the "botica" (pharmacy) nearby. We look forward to wrapping up the
transport logistics on Tuesday. Let's see what Tuesday brings; down here, in the
most magical of cities, things can fall together quickly once it is deemed ready
to happen...
4.3. ENTRY THREE (June 8, 2004) "RED TAPE "
We are taking care of last minute red tape documentation issues concerning
our Peruvian expedition members. We have finally bought all our supplies,
including "costales" (the big tough sacks into which we stuff supplies that will
go on the backs of pack horses), rubber sandles for Goyo, coca leaves,
blankets, cooking pots, etc. We have changed the strategy to a more direct
plan that
will bring us more directly into the primary exploration zone.
We are hoping that the helicopter will arrive in Cusco this afternoon, and then
well be off.
4.4. ENTRY FOUR (June 9, 2004) "RADIO DAY"
Today we went to "Radio Tawantinsuyu", the radio station beamed in Spanish
and Quechua into the highlands and valleys and jungles to the north and east
of Cusco, with a large portion of its programming being that of messages read
aloud to people living out there, beyond the range of electricity and out of the
economic range of ever having a cell phone. Paulino put out a message to

those he knows way out there, who have horses and mules, for them to meet
us as close as possible to the exploration zone. The radio station human
dynamo, a Spanish and Quechua-speaking woman named Dolores, not only
took our message, but brought us all into the studio with her as she read the
message, and added her own kind words on air about her foreign guests, the
"cineastas norteamericanos" (American filmmakers), the North American and
Peruvian explorers there with her. She was a perfect example of the grace and
luck that comes out of the blue in this magical world to those with good
intention and some daring.
Before we meet the helicopter, we still have our work cut out for us in finishing
preparations, and in getting out: our street is totally full of stalls of beer and
food-sellers, and the street is blocked to vehicle traffic, because it is the
epicenter of the Corpus Cristi Festival. It will be a challenge pushing our way
through the crowds to try to meet our vehicle to the airport, loaded down with
gear--thanks to EMS--as we will be. Then, its off to the Pantiacolla Plateau...
4.5. ENTRY FIVE (June 10, 2004) "EMBARKING"
An early call came from HelSur this morning while the team was taking
breakfast and before they knew it, the sound of the helicopter buzzing Cusco
was heard overhead. With a rush, all moved to gather their belongings.
Cinematographer, Erin Harvey grabbed his digital camera to grab some footage
of this large bird overhead- the same one that would take them deep into the
Painticolla region within the hour. Paulino hurried to gather last minute food
supplies, and Evie, a local, made arrangements with the police to escort the
team through the city, since the Festival of Corpus Christi was still underway.
The team bid farewell to Monica Dermenjian whose assistance with
negotiations with HelSur were priceless. Pleased to make it effortlessly through
the airport, they found an old friend waiting for them on the tarmac- their
copilot from the 1999 expedition, Carlos Reategui, was to be their pilot on this
expedition. The team flew over the Incan ruins of Tambocancha and the Lago
de Negro. Hoping to stop to document the sites, conditions were too cloudy and
high winds would make landing the helicopter in this area too dangerous. On to
north of the Lago de Angel, an unmapped area until the last expedition (1999),
and the beginnings of this one.
Landing was precarious as they swiftly unloaded equipment, watching the
wheel of the helicopter begin to sink in the soft terrain. The wind was
thunderous and compounded by the whirling propellors overhead. Greg
reported a sense of calm and serenity once the helicopter left. All became so
peaceful and calm.
Paulino, Roberto, Goyo and Erin negotiated a difficult climb to scope out a base
camp. The team settled south/southeast of Lago de Angel where they will begin

their exploration and documentation of ruins and a cave with triangular

monoliths to which the team wants to return.
Weather in the 30's this evening, they report and all are donning EMS fleece
wear and are unaffected by the temperature. Paulino and Goyo prepare a soup
for dinner. The horses should arrive in a few days to carry them further and
deeper in the jungle.
4.6. ENTRY SIX (June 11, 2004) "FIRST STEPS "
Today, the expedition team climbed near Lago de Angel in areas they
approached in 1999, but had to wait until this trip to complete. Once they
reached the lake, the rain came in force, so they sought refuge in a cave with a
triangular-shaped entrance, a retaining wall outside and a stoned roof. Once
the elements subsided they climbed above the lake to an Incan platform used
for adoration of the sun coming from the east and the worship of the
Panchamama, the Mother Earth. The ascent was difficult and throughout the
day, they were ascending and descending throughout the day until they were
way above the table land at the Plateau of Toporake- where they could get a
view and strategy of where to head next. Guided by Paulino and Goyo, they
returned to base camp where Alberto had lunch of a soup made with rice,
potatoes, carrots and a chicken stock. It was 5:30PM. Though the showers were
cold rain, everyone reported to be comfortable and well protected -indifferent
to these climate changes.
4.7. ENTRY SEVEN (June 21, 2004) "REPORT"
Day 14
Contact by satellite phone ended on June 10th, hence our last entry of
Saturday, June 11th reflects the team's arrival to the Lago de Angel, the
beginning of their expedition into the deeper, northern Andes. It was exactly 8
days later that we received a broken message from Producer, Garrett Strang
that the team had trekked two days off course to reach a remote village- just to
regain contact with the outside world and let us know all was well and the team
was returning to the jungle for 3 more days. He related that not even the
emergency back-up system was available to them. We found out months
before the expedition was underway, that vast cloud and jungle vegetation
render satellite imagery useless, until there is a clearing and the timing of the
satellite's passing over is in tandem with this. One can only guess at this point
that it was this reason that kept their signal from reaching us.
Garrett reached us again yesterday from outside Cusco. He mentioned that
during the down time, the team followed vast tracts of unexplored areas,
finding ruins upon ruins along the way. They travelled on foot with a train of
pack mules carrying supplies and gear. Reaching neighboring ridges was long,

tiring and arduous but was necessary to move forward and to determine,
visually, a direction ( eyeing how steep the ascent/descent ) against the rough
sketch map that had been fashioned from the results of the 1999 expedition.
Unquestionably, we can say that locating ruins in such areas is limited to
ground exploration. Meticulous notes of each day were kept by Greg
Deyermenjian and we are eager to post these as soon as we receive them.
4.8. ENTRY EIGHT (June 12, 2004) "INCOMMUNICADO"
The following field notes were recorded on Saturday, the 12th of June, after
communication by satellite phone was lost. The repeated message "Emergency
calls only...Emergency calls only..." We wondered what was going on as
communication with Image Studios was going quite smoothly up unitl this
point. As we sat around the campfire that evening- not knowing what to thinkwe all began to imagine different scenarios. Was there some worldwide
emergency disrupting even the satellites, that we, in our total isolation, were
unaware of? What would those at home think, expecting our calls, and
receiving nothing? We were worried about those who would be worrying about
us.
And, back to the immediate circumstance, what about the horses?
Without them we were totally bogged down, with more equipment than we
could carry ourselves without making super-laborious double trips to carry
things from one point to the other, and then return for the rest of it. And so,
Saturday morning, Goyo and Paulino had headed off toward the west and
southwest, to try and reconnoiter with some "vaqueros" (cowboys) who would
have horses or mules to rent.
The weather had been bad for two days, lots of cold rain. In the afternoon,
however, Greg decided to climb up and cut a path through the cloud forest that
filled a pocket between two peaks, forming a pass high above us. He almost
reached the crest which would lay just after the cloud forest, but decided to
turn back at that point to avoid being caught up there by darkness.
4.9. ENTRY NINE (June 13, 2004) "SCOUTING"
Sunday was an intense day of scouting, looking for evidences for Inca trails
that would connect Lago de Angel with Ultimo Punto- an area Paulino had
become familiar through analyzing the direction of the Inca Road of Stone
combined with information gathered by local word of mouth. Some of the team,
Garrett, Erin, Greg and Alberto decided to climb up through the bosque, hoping
to find more definitive evidence of an Incan trail at the crest. When they
emerged from the forest's shade, they found a knife-edge ridge, with poor
visibility due to the inclement weather conditions. Greg and Alberto climbed
higher, up a nearby spire, to get an overview of the area, but all they could see

was grey--mist covered everything everywhere. Realizing nightfall was close at

hand, the team had planned to attempt another look from this area the next
day, however the attempt would be later thwarted by the arrival of Paulino and
Goyo with the announcement of the mules that would follow soon thereafter.
The return to base camp took some time as they decided to cut all the way
around to the next pass between the mountains, with Alberto wielding the
machete, and all pushing through thick multiple layers of moss, vines, and
other vegetation, forming a clingy soft covering that held them back, but the
outer protective raingear was able to keep them dry. Finally they emerged at
the top, where the pass was. They continued on over the top, to the other side,
to descend through the more alpine setting and down through the deep
enveloping mud below and arriving again at camp. The team went to bed very
early, to escape the extreme cold in the comfort of a sleeping bag inside a
secure tent.
4.10.ENTRY TEN (June 14, 2004) "ALONE"
Predawn was filled by a shared preoccupation- the team was caught in an
unexpected and total isolation. The possibility of not acquiring pack animals,
which were vital to the expedition's movement, was compounded by the
absence of Paulino and Goyo. Time was passing and all were eager to advance.
And then the morning brought unexpected and welcomed good weather: the
sun! By early afternoon, another miracle: Goyo and Paulino appeared! They
related how they had gone all the way to "Sacramento" in the valley of the Rio
Mapacho, a distance of biblical proportions. And, they announced, mules, and
"arrierros," mile drivers, would be arriving soon. And, sure enough, just before
the last flickers of the Andean sun sunk below the peaks, two mules and three
men arrived. The mules' owner stayed in camp that night, as the other two
campesinos went to sleep in a nearby lonely rickety cabin. The team was
crowded, with seven men in two tents, but that was fine. The expedition was on
its way again.
4.11.ENTRY ELEVEN (June 15, 2004) "LOADED"
The team broke camp and headed off to the west and northwest. Even with the
two mules, they had more equipment than they could really carry, and so
Paulino lashed two full backpacks together and hoisted them onto his back. The
loads on the mules had to be frequently rearranged. Caught in bright sunlight
meant removing layers to avoid the heat of an Andean mid-day. Finally they
found themselves within sight of the highest peak before them, They began to
climb, and at a spot just below the peak, they stopped to rest and share coca
leaf.
Paulino pointed out a strange shape beside them. With camera in hand,
shooting as the layers of moss and plants were peeled away, the production

team (Garrett and Erin) captured a rarely seen event- the unveiling of a large
Incan platform. It stood three feet high, with well fit together stones enclosing a
center of tapped earth. The platform was 42 feet long and 12 feet wide, and
had stone steps leading to it on one side, from the ground. It had obviously
been of great ceremonial significance, with those steps, the fine fit of the
stones, and its location just before the peak. Greg and his team noted that
here, now, was an Incan structure even further north than those platforms and
Incan retaining walls that he had documented at the Lago de Angel. They
filmed and photographed and measured the site, looking forward with
anticipation to what we would find at the peak, at the "Ultimate Point."
4.12.ENTRY TWELVE (June 16, 2004) "UP"
We renewed our climb. Affluents of the Rio Yavero, which flows west to the Alto
Urubamba, were to our left; while tributaries of the Rio Timpia, which flows
directly north then makes a great arc toward the west, entering the same Alto
Urubamba many many miles away, north of the entry of the Yavero, were
flowing away to our right. Behind us, to the south, were various snow peaks
piercing the clouds above the horizon. We pushed our way up, up to the
northwest, traversing the ridge. It rose precipitously, then leveled out onto a
narrow peak. The peak was topped by another Incan platform, the strangest we
had ever seen, as it was shaped like a pointed bullet, with five sides, and the
point facing directly northeast, in the direction of the Incan trail that we knew-from our expedition in 1999--runs along the jungled hillsides that overlook the
Timpia from the west. This was the platform of platforms, from its commanding
location. It commanded a view of all around it, all the river systems, and the
unexplored ranges that continued on in misty wave after wave to the north.
One wall was 30 feet long, with the opposite wall being 27 feet, while the
structure was 18 feet wide; the "bullets" asymmetrical point had one side that
was 15 feet long and another of 24 feet. Our altitude was almost 12,000 feet
above sea level. We filmed and photographed and pondered the significance of
this Incan vestige, furthest of any ever found directly to the north of Cusco,
here at the outer edge of the Incan world. We pondered, as well our next
move...
4.13.ENTRY THIRTEEN (June 17, 2004) "EXHAUSTED"
On Thursday, 17 June, Paulino left us in the morning to travel as fast as he
could to Quebrada, the nearest town, in the valley of the Rio Yanatile, where he
would be able to find a public phone and make a call to Cusco to let our vehicle
know where and when to come meet us. It would be a long trip, down to the
river, and then all the way over a mountain range. We knew he was the one
team member who was most able to do it, though. This was his territory. Later
that same day the rest of us headed off as soon as fresh mules arrived at Mario
s chacra. We loaded them up, three of them: it was a good thing we had the

extra mule now, as we no longer had Paulinos --two backpack--strength and

endurance with us.
We made a steep descent to a tributary of the Rio Mapacho, which we crossed
by way of a small rickety swaying bridge, and then we crossed the Mapacho
itself by way of a large rickety swaying bridge. We then began a descent via
tortuous mountain trails, following the mules, that never let up that whole day,
into the range known as the Cordillera de Lares-Lacco. The Andean sun cut
through the thin air to sap our strength and move us toward dehydration. Even
the nearly super-human Goyo was struggling under his heavy load, having
contracted some kind of illness. Finally, just after dark, we arrived at a
campesino settlement of two adjoined huts, and a patio of stone, where we
were graciously welcomed to make camp. There were giant cockroaches
aplenty, but for those of us who were dead-tired, it was a picture of luxury. The
place was called "Bellavista."
The next morning's spectacular find is even more testimony to the difficulty of
exploring for ruins in this terrain- while answering a call of nature, Greg noticed
that there was a rectangular form covered in vegetation, nearby. Upon further
observation, he realized that it was an Incan ruin, the stone walls of what had
been a moderately sized habitation. The stonework indicated that it was of
"rustic" Incan style. Back at Bellavista, the local folk told us of another ruina
that lay above us on the forested hillside. We climbed up, through some dense
underbrush, and found an above-ground tomb, a "chullpa," that was the finest
preserved such specimen that we had ever seen. It was exactly like the
"Chullpas de Ninamarka," on the road to Paucartambo, far to the southeast,
vestiges of the Lupaca culture that reached all the way there from its heartland
around Lake Titicaca. The tomb was of well-fitted fieldstone, and it was circular,
with a very low entrance-opening, and with a roof formed by overlapping
stones placed around one lintel stone that spanned the diameter. There was
nothing inside the tomb, but it was important testimony to how these remote,
now-forested areas were intensely habitated by not only the Incas but their
predecesors.
We moved on, to resume our climb over the Cordillera. The ascent was so
constant, at an altitude again approaching 12,000 feet, that the mules had to
be constantly goaded and threatened with gutteral shouts of "Mula carajo!" for
them to keep going. Our own loads became heavier and heavier, as well. At
around 4 P.M. a welcome sound greeted us- a shout from Paulino, who had
arrived at the destination of Quebrada. He had made his call and arrangements
and then headed back toward us. With his "animo" and help, we were able to
force ourselves up the final rise before emerging at "Abra Bellavista," a point at
which the end of a dirt road for trucks snaked its way into the forested
highland, twisting and turning all the way from Quebrada. We bade farewell
Mario and gladly made the bone-shaking three-hour ride to Quebrada.

More of the Paititi story would be ahead of us the next days...

4.14.ENTRY FOURTEEN (June 18, 2004) "ONWARD"
From Quebrada we headed south, following, in reverse, the course
of the Rio Yanatile. When we reached the town of Amparaes--almost entirely
built with stone from past Incan dwellings--we headed up a smaller dirt road,
up into the Cordillera de Lares to our northeast. Hours later we disembarked at
a campesino stone hut beside a lake. Here we stayed with Sr. Don German
Cardea, a gentleman most knowledgeable of local legend. His very house was
atop what had been an Incan living and burial area. And the lake here was the
famous "Puno Cocha," the place into which legend had the Incas themselves,
on their way through this place on their flight toward the east, throwing their
excess "chuo," dehydrated potatoes that in bulk were weighing them down
and impeding their flight towards the selvas, the jungles. Paulino himself
waded into its waters, bent down and extracted from the perpetually frigid
waters at lake-bottom the blackened skins of chuo still there.
The next morning we went further, on foot, toward the northeast, to the
ancient, and still-inhabited, town of Huaylla, where we enlisted the services of a
local man to accompany us, and, continuing onward, just before we came to
the Rio Mapacho, there we found ourselves in the midst of a complex of Incan
ruins. This was the site of Tambocancha. It was almost fully covered in thorny
"maleza," weeds and undergrowth. We carefully uncovered enough of the site
with expertly wielded machetes to be able to document through film and
photograph what had once been a major center, guarding the approaches to
the highlands from the jungles to the east. It could have well been a an
important regional center in the Inkanato, the Incan times, maybe a capital of
the Antisuyu, the eastern quarter of the Incan world. It had walls with many
niches, large and small, all well-built of well fitted-together stone. And its
location placed it right across the river from the Cordillera de Paucartambo,
upon which was the Incan "Camino de Piedra," the road of stone which
traversed the crests of that range. And it was this Incan road that went ever
northward, as had we, toward the jungles of Callanga and Mameria with their
ancient stone "masma" constructions and storehouses; through the Meseta of
Toporake, with its broad barracks-like structures, and onward toward the
Timpia, and the Lago de Angel, and the "plataformas" of Ultimo Punto, where
we would one day begin again our quest for "Paititi," for even further reaches
of the ancient Inca into territory still blank on the map...
http://www.granpaititi.com/paititi-localized-2007-2008-paititi-125.html
http://www.granpaititi.com/las-misteriosas-piramides-amazonicas-1998-2002paititi-122.html

Paititi: in search of ancient ruins east of the andes.

Following ancient Incan trails off the map to the easternmost edge of the
Andean world
Since our first expedition to the selva alta--the high altitude jungles--to the
northeast of Cusco in southeast Peru, we have been each year closer to solving
the centuries-old puzzle as to the existence, form, and location of PAITITI,
legendary site that remains hidden somewhere "east of the Andes."
The Paititi Expeditions
Our goal has been to investigate the furthest reaches of the Incas beyond the
Peruvian highlands, toward the Amazon basin, each year going further into
unknown territory.
July 1984, Expedition to Mameria
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *British photojournalist, Michael Mirecki, *Cusqueo
architect, Csar Vlchez, *Cusqueo businessman, Guido Vlchez (Csars
brother), *Explorador norteamericano, Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Amparaes, in valley of the Ro Yanatile--*Explorador peruano,
Paulino Mamani
--Leaving from Chakupangu, in Mameria--*Frontier settler/campesino, living
with the Machiguenga, Goyo Toledo
Leaving Cusco, we traveled to the north and northeast through Amparaes, in
the valley of the Ro Yanatile, then crossed the Cordillera de Lares to come to
Parobamba. Then we crossed the Ro Yavero, to traverse the Cordillera de
Paucartambo, following an Incan camino de piedra, road of stone, along the
crest of the mountain range, to the cold boggy area known as "San Martn",
overlooking the Amazon basin, from which we descended the eastern edge of
the Andes through the ceja de la montaa, the "eyebrow of the jungle", then
through cloud forest, to finally emerge at the small Ro San Martn. We followed
this river down into the selva alta, the high altitude jungle, then climbed up the
monte, the jungled hillside, to view below us to the northeast the Ro Sarhuato.
We descended to the Sarhuato, which we followed to the area known as
Mameria. Here, near the confluence of the Sarhuato and the Ro Mameria, lived
"Goyo" Toledo, at his chacra upon the hill known as "Chakupangu" with his two
Machiguenga Indian wives and Machiguenga children
Led by Goyo, we explored the "Ruinas de Mameria", finding the area
downstream and overlooking the Ro Mameria to be honey combed with the

remains of an ancient Incan habitation in the form of ruinas rsticas, walls,

kilns, artifacts of tumbaga (an alloy of copper and gold), ceramics, low terraces,
and wild coca trees. (this was the site to which the Machiguenga had led the
helicopter-borne Herbert and Nicole Cartagena in 1979.) We also explored the
site found directly atop Goyo's Chakuapngu; this was, we came to realize, the
same hilltop site that had been found and sacked four years before by the
Peruvian General Essenbanger, who had been accompanied by the invererate
Paititi-seeker, Padre Juan Carlos Polentini Wester.
July-August 1985, Expedition to Mameria
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *Cusqueo, Csar Medina (nephew of 1984s Vlchez
brothers), *Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Pukyopata, overlooking the Ro Paucartambo. *Campesino and
muleteer, Gavino Toledo, brother of Goyo
--Leaving from Chakupangu-- *Goyo Toledo, *Machiguenga, "Angel"
We returned to Mameria, this time going from Cusco to Paucartambo, then
through Challabamba and Acobamba to where we left the Ro Paucartambo far
below us and ascended to Pukyopata, the highland frontier home of Don Toms
Toledo, Goyos father. We picked up the same Incan road of stone that
traverses the cordillera and again descended the eastern edge of the Andes,
from San Martn, until we reached Chakupangu in Mameria. We soon found
ourselves again descending the Ro Mameria, accompanied by Goyo Toledo and
his Machiguenga neighbor, "Angel", where we uncovered other sites in areas
above and adjacent to the river, including that which has since become known
as "Arete Perdido," "Lost Earring," after the gold earring ripped out of my ear by
the tangled and bushy vegetation as we followed, on our knees, the very rough
trail cut by Angel. As in 1984, all the ruinas were of a "rustic", yet late Imperial
Incan, style. On our return upriver, we visited other Machiguenga chacras, such
as that of "Raimundo" and his wives, on the northern side of the Ro Mameria.
After our leaving the selva alta and having arrived again at San Martn, at the
edge of the highlands, the clouds covering the Amazon basin to the east
momentarily parted, and we caught a rare and brief glimpse of the distinctively
shaped peak, "Apu Catinti", which we had also been seeking because it
features prominently in legends concerning a Peruvian Paititi. We calculated its
location from afar, vowing to return the next year to climb it and see what may
actually be there.
June-July 1986, Expedition to Mameria, Attempt to Ascend Apu Catinti
Participants:

--Leaving From Cusco-- *Csar Medina, *Cusqueo, Renato Medina (Csar

Medinas brother), *North American author, David H. Childress, *Gregory
Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Pukyopata, overlooking the Ro Paucartambo-- *Gavino Toledo
--Leaving from Chakupangu in Mameria-- *Goyo Toledo, *Machiguenga,
"Raimundo"
We further explored various Incan sites in Mameria, including that of el horno,
"the Kiln", and then headed southeast toward the legendary twin peaked
massif of Apu Catinti. The going was long and tough, with the burly Goyo
himself getting sick on our expedition energy bars, but eventually we found
ourselves climbing the jungled hillside of the tropical mountain. Soon, however,
we realized that we had to turn back, at Goyos strong suggestion: it appeared
that conditions were becoming too difficult, with poisonous sap on trees,
supplies low (from too many big appetites too early on in the expedition), and
large holes in the mats of vegetation (these springy mats having been formed
by the decades of leafy debris that had fallen onto the branches and tops of
trees, with the trunks of these trees snaking their way up the precipitous
hillside such that we were actually walking along the tops of trees that had
their trunks and roots further down the hillside below us).
We returned to Goyo's Chakupangu, finding various archaeological remains,
including rough semicircular walls, some up to eight feet in height, in the areas
immediately below the Ro Choritia, an afluent of the Mameria that provides
water for Goyos chacra.
With time to kill before our return to the highlands--where we would, according
to previous arrangement, meet a campesino acquaintance with our pack
horses at a predetermined date a couple of weeks in the future--I spent much
time accompanying Goyo and Gavino and the Machiguenga on hunting trips,
where I gradually came to realize that the most primary reason for Goyos
insistence upon turning back had been interpersonal/intercultural friction
between the Peruvian country folk and the city folk within our group. I proposed
that after I return to Cusco I attain a good quantity of fresh supplies and then
we make another attempt upon Apu Catinti. Goyo agreed.
July-August 1986, Expedition to Mameria, Ascent of Apu Catinti
Participants:
--Leaving from San Martn, at edge of highlands-- *Goyo Toledo, *Gavino Toledo,
*Paulino , mamani, *"Angel", *Gregory Deyermenjian
We headed directly toward the area of Apu Catinti, rather than going to
Chakupangu. We camped by the Ro Niatene. Continuing on, we began our

ascent of the jungle-covered mountain. The massif was devoid of streams, and
so we suffered greatly from thirst, although surrounded by exuberant jungle
vegetation: to get any moisture in us at all we had to put out sheets of plastic
to collect hailstones, cut into bamboo to extract a bitter liquid, and squeeze a
gritty trickle of water directly into our mouths from jungle moss. And, unable to
cook our usual soups, we subsisted primarily on popcorn. We finally did reach
the highest of its twin peaks. There were no signs of past habitation anywhere
on Apu Catinti. I wanted to explore the second highest peak, as well, that lay
across a saddle in the middle of the massif, just to be absolutely sure; yet,
none of my companions wished to go, since it appeared that it would be a
wasted effort since it appeared the same as what we had already reached, and
the Incas would certainly have left remains on the highest peak if they were to
have left them anywhere.
We camped on the peak for one night, which got quite cold at 10,100 feet
altitude, facing the unimpeded winds and mist ever blowing from the east. We
finally were able to attain enough water for cooking from squeezing it from the
thick blanket of moss that covered the saddle between the two peaks. The next
morning we were greeted by a sight akin to that of Tres Cruces, with the sun
poking up through the clouds to our east, filling the sky with its yellow light, we
being at the highest point between here and the Atlantic thousands of miles
away.
Before leaving the peak, Angel related to Goyo how this place reminded him of
a high area called Toporake, through which he and his Machiguenga brethren
had passed on their flight from the near slavery that they had endured along
the Ro Yavero nearly 25 years before; he related their having seen casas de los
Inkas , and a "mummy encased in stone," there. He spoke as well of a strangely
shaped lake, at a high cold place where they almost died.
Returning toward Chakupangu, approaching the Ro Niatene, we uncovered
from jungle vegetation an Incan wall that was, although "rustic," quite wellmade from tightly fit stones.We determined that our next journey would be to
reach this Toporake.
November 1989, Expedition to Mameria, and to the Meseta de
Toporake
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *Paulino Mamani, *Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Pukyopata-- *Gavino Toledo
--Leaving from Chakupangu-- *Goyo Toledo, *"Angel"

Our goal this year was to investigate Angels report of three years before
concerning the "Incan houses" and "mummy encased in stone" at a plateau
called Toporake. Once again we followed the road of stone along the frigid
Cordillera de Paucartambo, then made camp at San Martn as we waited for the
weather to clear. We were hit with hailstorms and intense cold, yet eventually
we left in spite of the bad weather. We hid the supplies that we would not be
able to carry--in that we had had pack horses for our traverse of the alturas--15
minutes down into the thick vegetation of the "Eyebrow of the Jungle," and,
then down the monte below San Martn we went, cutting our usual route to
Mameria and Chakupangu.
Upon reaching Chakupangu, the hill in Mameria upon which Goyo's chacra had
been, we found ourselves at a different settlement, one that we had never
before seen, and that was relatively newly built, but deserted. Paulino went on
alone to seek Goyo and the Machis further downstream, down the Ro Mameria,
while Gavino and I gorged upon a cache of bananas found in one of the huts.
After a time, Paulino returned with Goyo and Angel, and we learned that the
Machis had all moved temporarily downriver to escape a local disease that
afflicted their yuca and pltano, two food crops without which a Machiguenga
cannot be happy.
Goyo and Angel began the long climb up toward San Martn in the highlands,
where the rest of us had hidden the extra supplies, in order to retrieve some.
Meanwhile Paulino, Gavino, and I headed east, down the Mameria, and past the
area we had explored in 1985 known as "Arete Perdido," to look for a structure
there that Goyo had described to us as a "mini-Saqsaywaman". After much
laborious struggle and cutting through dense dry vegetation, we came to a
stone structure, built of two levels, with walls about ten feet high. It was of a
rustic construction, but was the largest stone structure yet found east of the
Cordillera.
Back at Chakupangu we met Goyo and Angel, with the former having drunk a
good part of one of the bottles of rum that we had left at San Martn, "contra el
fro", as Goyo explained. They had a very hard time finding the supplies we had
left there because a thick layer of hailstones had covered and obscured
everything in the cloud forest.
Now came the initial goal of the expedition. Goyo led us down the Ro Choritia,
then through the dense, dark selva, headed in a direction that was to take us
out upstream along the Mameria. Along the way toward the Mameria we
encountered numerous low stone structures and disembodied walls. Here, far
from any river, were numerous stone structures in an area otherwise devoid of
stones (as opposed to the riverbanks, which are full of stones, but where the
Incas almost never built).

We came out at the Ro Mameria, at a spot further upstream than I had ever
previously been. Up the Mameria we went, over the course of the next two
days, feasting on monkey the first night and the next morning. Then up
numerous waterfalls we climbed, to reach the Mamerias headwaters, where it
became a mere narrow and shallow stream. We then turned to the steep
hillside to our left, and climbed through the mud of the monte to finally emerge
at the beginnings of the Plateau of Toporake.
Days later we came to broad, low-walled structures, perfectly rectangular in
shape, at an area at which numerous Incan roads seemed to converge. There
were skeletal remains in shallow caves, and platforms for Incan sun worship. It
appeared that the structures had been barracks, with one lone trail heading off
to the north, toward the unknown Plateau of Pantiacolla. This had been a far
outpost of the Inca, and it would be our furthest point reached as well. at least
for a few years. We debated following the lone trail that headed off, but the fact
that we had already been so long on the trail, with dwindling supplies,
necessitated our turning back. To follow that trail onto the unknown Pantiacolla
would have to wait.
Soon after beginning the trek back, we were caught by a sudden storm with
intense winds, sleet and hail, and sheets of rain. It lasted for hours, and during
this time Angel, unaccustomed to the altitude of the plateaus overlooking the
jungles, became disoriented; he soon found himself separated from us and lost.
With the storm threatening us all with hypothermia, it fell to Goyo to head back
in the direction of our last camp, to look for Angel. In the late afternoon, just as
the storm broke and a bright yellow sunset filled the sky, Goyo and Angel
appeared at the top of a hill, slowly but surely approaching us. The relief we felt
warranted a spontaneous shooting of a .22 into the air.
Our return from that point was made not by returning to Mameria, but, rather,
after bidding goodbye to Goyo and Angel--who would return to their lower
territory to the southeast--by our heading due southwest, down a ridiculously
steep, hours-long mule trail of unremitting mud. We passed an extensive patch
of sub-tropical forest covered with various stone ruins very akin to those of
Mameria, these being known as Las Ruinas de Miraflores. And eventually we
crossed the Ro Yavero (as the more northern extension of the Ro
Paucartambo/Mapacho is called), climbed over the frigid Cordillera de LaresLacco, then descended to the valley of the Ro Yanatile and the town of
Quebrada Honda, where we were able to attain passage back to Cusco in the
back of a creaky old freight truck.
October 1991, Expedition to the Petroglyphs of Pusharo
Participants:

--Leaving from Cusco-- *Cusqueo owner/operator of Southern Cross

Adventures, Hugo Paullo Alfaro, *Paulino Mamani, *Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Atalaya, astride the Ro Alto Madre de Dios-- *Cusqueo,
Entrepreneur, and Jungle Guide, Santiago Ybar Calvo, *Employee of Parque
Nacional de Manu, "Celso"
--Leaving from the Machiguenga Native Community, "Palatoa Tepa," along, the
Ro Palatoa-*Machiguenga, "Alejandro"
--Leaving from a temporary Machiguenga encampment further up the Ro.
Palatoa. *Machiguenga man and woman, "Pancho" and "Josefina"
From Cusco, we followed the traditional route to the selvas of the Amarumayu,
the jungles of Q'osipata, going through Paucartambo, then climbing over the
puna and plunging down through bosque de nubes, down to emerge onto the
sub-tropical plains around Patria, and the tropical lowland llanura of Pilcopata.
The distinctive landmark of the Cordillera de Paucartambo, the mysterious and
jagged-peaked Apu Caaguay, was seen off to our northwest. (We were
heading for the Manu area, rather than to our usual target, that of the
Cordillera and Toporake and the camino de piedra -- the road of stone that
leads into the unknown Pantiacolla -- because of the heightening of political
problems in the Provincia de Calca through which we would have had to pass;
access to the lower jungles of Manu would take us through no risky territory.)
We came to the village of Atalaya, astride the Ro Madre de Dios, the "Amaru
Mayu," the "Serpent River" of Incan times, where we were met by Santiago
Ybar. Then to the village of Salvacin, where there was a last government
outpost, where we attained a permit to enter the restricted archaeological zone
of the Manu. Then, back at Atalaya, where Hugo Paullo and the vehicle would
await us, as the rest boarded a motorized canoe conducted by Gustavo
Moscoso and his wife Marianna van Vlaardingen de Moscoso, and proceeded
down the Madre de Dios, then turned to the northwest, up the Ro Palatoa. At
the Machiguenga Native Community of Palotoa Tepa we began our traverse on
foot, led by the Machiguenga "Alejandro." We augmented our supplies by
gorging ourselves on bananas that Machiguenga peoples had cached under
piles of leaves astride the river. We came to a temporary Machiguenga fishing
encampment, but, after some interaction, we continued on up the Palotoa, only
to be overtaken and joined by a Machi couple, "Pancho" and "Josefina," from
the encampment we had just left. They later guided us further along the river,
the mysterious and misty range of jungle mountains, the Cordillera de
Pantiacolla, ever off to our north, until we came to the enormous rock face
upon which is to be found the Petroglyphs of Pusharo.

The carvings on this enormous rock face are quite unique. Most impressive are
the deeply incised, double bordered heart-shaped faces. Some glyphs are panAmazonian in style, while others are unclassifiable. They cover a rock face,
stretching for about 75 feet along the rock, up to a height of nine feet. The
Machiguenga with us admitted to having absolutely no knowledge as to the
glyphs' meaning or origin--the carvings had simply always been there.
After photographing and filming every square foot of the site, Santiago Ybar-who had come here previously by helicopter with Dr. Carlos Neuenschwander-directed us to a rock ledge in back of and above the main site. Here we saw a
series of strange cuneiform-like lines carved into the rock, in a manner and
style quite unlike any of the glyphs below.
After a time, we began our return, visiting other more substantial Machiguenga
chacras, including that of one Machi gentleman who seemed to know some
delicate secrets about the disappearance almost 20 years before of the Bob
Nichols party hereabouts. Later, at the Machiguenga fishing encampment, we
were caught by a deluge that began the rainy season in earnest. We could not
cross the swollen and turbulent river on foot. However, without even being
asked, our gracious Machiguenga hosts proceeded to build us a substantial
balsa wood raft, and, when we finally did leave, we made swift progress
downstream to the Native Community, then in motorized canoe to Atalaya, and
then in Hugo Paullo's vehicle to Cusco.
September-October 1993, Expedition beyond Toporake, onto the
Meseta de Pantiacolla
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *Paulino Mamani, *Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Zona de Lacco, *Local cattleman, German Condori Mendoza
The political problems in the highlands having been sufficiently lessened, we
headed back toward Toporake, our goal being that of following that lone trail
from there onto the Meseta de Pantiacolla. This time we traveled in vehicle
through Calca, and then down the valley of the Ro Yanatile from Amparaes to
Quebrada Honda, to the point at the end of a rougher dirt road extension from
Quebrada to "Punto Carretera," where we were met by campesinos with
packhorses for our equipment.
We headed through the sub-tropical regions of Lacco, then up that seemingly
unending and muddy mule trail, to the Meseta de Toporake. Soon thereafter we
left, to finally begin following that lone trail, the continuation of the camino de
piedra that begins way down toward Paucartambo, on our way toward the
Plateau of Pantiacolla.

The Pantiacolla offered us daily storms with heavy cold rains that caused brand
new streams and rivulets to flow over the rolling tall grasslands. We followed
the trail to a point at which it dipped into thick cloud forest, in the direction of
the Ro Timpa, as we frequently left the trail--because the accumulation of
centuries of fallen trunks and other debris from landslides and other ravages of
time had made it impassable--to descend to the headwaters of the Timpa,
below, to wade our way downstream. Before too long, however, we realized
that it was fruitless, that we were slowly wending our way down a suffocatingly
enclosed and dark valley, at a turtles pace that was getting us nowhere. We
decided to turn back, in the realization that the only way to make sufficiently
rapid progress to this point, and then further down this valley to whatever site
lay at the end of the trail that traversed the hillside above the river, would be
to come here by helicopter. That then, would be our goal for future expeditions.
August-September 1994, Expedition to Callanga
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *Paulino Mamani, *Gregory Deyermenjian, --Leaving
from Parobamba-*Ignacio Mamani (Paulinos brother),
--Leaving from Hacienda Callanga-- *Local young campesino/settler, "Juan"
We had not been able to attain the funds to allow us the services of a
helicopter, so we headed instead to the rain forests of Callanga, an affluent of
the Ro PiiPii, that lies to the southeast of Mameria. Callanga fits very much
into various of the Paititi legends, and so we would explore for ruins, as well as
investigate for Dr. Carlos Neuenschwander his observation, 20 years before, of
extensive terracing on hillsides overlooking the area down the Ro Callanga,
getting toward its confluence with the PiiPii.
We left the Cordillera de Paucartambo further south than had we been heading
to Mameria, and descended to the Ro Sihuas, which then becomes the
Callanga. At the lone structure in the Callanga zone, the house of settler Sr.
Rubn Mercado Ocampo, we set up base camp, from whence we were shown
various rough stone ruins thereabouts, as well as the particular sugar cane
press that had been used in manufacturing the over-proof liquor that had
become famous throughout the back areas of the highlands, from whence
came the generic term which is used in those remote areas to denote any very
strong drink: "Callanga".
With Juan accompanying us, we descended the Callanga to reach the point at
which it is joined by the Ro Yungaria, where it--technically, although not
popularly known--then becomes the PiiPii. Exploring the hillsides above, we

found a plethora of small but long terraces, which appeared to have been
reused, perhaps by Machiguenga, within the past 50 or so years. Closer to the
Ro Callanga, we found small conical structures. Much of this had a pre-Inca
appearance (long terraces, proximity to the river, conical structures that didnt
appear to be storehouses, etc.). After making a brief attempt to climb the
tropical peak that rises above and away from the southern bank of the
Callanga, known as "Llactapata," "the town above," we began our return to
Cusco.
August 1995, Expedition to Callanga, Ascent of Llactapata
Participants:
--Leaving from
Deyermenjian

Cusco--

*Paulino

Mamani,

*Ignacio

Mamani,

*Gregory

--Leaving from Hacienda Callanga, *"Juan"

In 1995 we returned to Callanga, and did reach the peak of Llactapata, where
local legend spoke of there being "una iglesia incaica", an Incan temple. We
found that, although the base of the mountain was littered with rough stone
ruins that included water channels, the long ridge at the peak, which was
covered with a maze of extremely dense bushes, vines, stunted trees and fallen
logs, had nothing at all to offer in the way of ruinas.
1996, Expedition to "Pyramids of Parotoari"
Participants:
--Leaving from Cusco-- *Paulino Mamani, *Ignacio Mamani, *Fernando
Neuenschwander, son of Dr. Carlos Neuenschwander, *Cusqueo, jungle guide,
Dante Nez del Prado, *Gregory Deyermenjian
--Leaving from Machiguenga Native Community of "Palatoa Tepa" along, the Ro
Palatoa-*Machiguenga, "Roberto", along with his wife, "Grenci" and infant daughter
"Reina"
Still lacking funds for a helicopter with which to penetrate the Meseta de
Pantiacolla, we headed off toward the jungles of Manu, to an area directly
southsoutheast of that of the Petroglyphs of Pusharo, in order to see once and
for all whether the formations that appear so uniform and symmetrical on a
NASA satellite photograph were in fact the "Pyramids of Pantiacolla"--otherwise
known as "the Dots" or the "Pyramids of Paratoari"--or natural features.
We descended the Ro Alto Madre de Dios in motorized canoe, then walked
overland--because of very low water level--to the Machiguenga Native

Community of Palotoa Tepa, where we attained the services of "Roberto" who

brought his wife and infant daughter along as well. We walked up the Palotoa,
to the point at which we suspected that the river that entered the Palotoa from
the southwest was the Yana Mayu, or the Ro Negro--and which was confirmed
as being so by our GPS and satellite photo we carried. We ascended the Ro
Negro towards its headwaters, then climbed steeply to then descend to the
area of the "Pyramids." The area was among the most uncomfortable weve
ever encountered, with extremely oppressive heat and insects, even lacking
any flat land for a decent campsite. Our investigation led us to believe that the
formations--which are in a distinctive area called "Parotoari" by the
Machiguenga--are natural features. For our return we continued on in a loop,
descending through and along the banks of the Ro Inchipiato, until we met,
once again, with the Alto Madre de Dios.
1999, Expedition to Meseta de Pantiacolla, Headwaters of Ro Timpa
Participants:
--Helicopter portion-- *Cusqueo, owner-operator of "Manuadventures", Marco
Rozas
*Film Photographer, from Lima, Pedro Neira, *Film Maker, from Germany, and
expedition sponsor, Heinz von Matthey, *Helicopter pilot, Pablo Luque F.,
*Helicopter co-pilot, Carlos Reategui W., *Crewmembers, Pedro Ramos S., David
Quintana, and one more
--Helicopter and on foot-- *Paulino Mamani, *Ignacio Mamani, *Gregory
Deyermenjian