An illustrated talk on Peru’s Cordillera Blanca, spanning the years 1973 to 2015, plus an exploration of the little known pre-Inca ruins and natural wonders of the Chachapoyas region.

Hilary Bradt first visited Peru in 1969. Returning in 1973 she and her then-husband George set out to explore the ancient trails that linked Andean villages, thus setting the scene for organised trekking and the first Bradt travel guide. Over 40 years later she returned for a last look at the magnificent Cordillera Blanca, and to fulfil a long-held wish to see the seldom-visited ‘Machu Picchu of the North’, the pre-Inca ruins of Kuelap. The illustrated talk contrasts Peru in the 1970s with the (sometimes) modern country of 2015.

Hilary Bradt is co-founder of Bradt Travel Guides and led tours and treks to Peru for 15 years. In addition to her trekking guide, now in its 9th edition, she is author of numerous articles on the country. In 2008 she was awarded an MBE for Services to the Tourist Industry.

The pre-Inca cliff tombs at Revash, Chachapoyas district

Corn (maize) drying in the northern desert

Detail from the massive pre-Inca ruins at Kuelap, Chachapoyas

Huascaran, Peru’s highest mountain, Cordillera Blanca

Wall (and passing llama) at the pre-Inca ruins at Kuelap, Chachapoyas

Viscacha, wild relative to the chinchilla