Paracas National Park in Peru
Declared a National Reserve in 1975, Paracas National Reserve is a roughly 300,000 acre area of water and pampas located just south of the town of El Chaco. Established mainly to protect the marine and bird life in the area, Paracas is a rugged area frequented by sandstorms and very strong winds, but despite its less-than-hospitable nature has been home throughout the centuries to many and diverse cultures, including the Paracas peoples who lived here from about 2000 to 500 BC.
This reserve includes a few thousand acres of ocean as well as dry land and visitors can often find dolphins playing in the water just off the coast and even sea lions, sea turtles, and sometimes penguins. Under the sea is plenty of other marine life including whales, sharks, octopus, and smaller fish like bass and marlin. It’s also a staging point for migratory birds and a landing area for many threatened species, including a number that are on the endangered list.
There is a variety of coastal habitats found within the Paracas National Reserve as well as varied landscape categories within the reserve and its buffer zone, including the sea, desert, wetlands, seaside hills, oasis, semi-desert, industrial lands, and an urban sector as well.
Despite the sometimes harsh weather conditions and the frequent sandstorms (the word Paracas means “raining sand” in Quecha), visitors to this part of the country will certainly want to take some time to visitor the reserve, especially if they are eco-tourists or simply enjoy communing with nature. Naturalists with the park service note that there are currently approximately 216 bird species, 19 mammal species, 52 fish species and six species of reptiles within the reserve, making this a wonderful place for bird watchers and other lovers of wildlife.
Guided tours of the Paracas National Reserve take visitors along thin dirt tracks where they can view the water and the sand and the many creatures there as well as photograph cliffs full of caves and visit picturesque fishing villages. A guide must be hired in order to explore these land trails as self-guided tours are not permitted.
There are a few archaeological sites for guests to visit as well including the Candelabra, a 120-meter long geoglyph that resembles the Nazca Lines in the Nazca Desert. The best way to view it is from a boat. Visitors can also head to The Cathedral, a rock formation formed by erosion and windstorms, reminiscent of the domes of the world’s great cathedrals.
Also onsite is the Julio C. Tello Museum, which provides information about the Paracas culture and includes interesting artifacts including native textiles, ceramics, skulls and bones, and funereal objects. Though it’s small, it’s worth a visit.
Paracas National Reserve remains a “park in peril”, largely because of unregulated fishing practices and waste dumping, so visitors should be sure to abide by all rules of the park in order to be a responsible tourist.
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