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Chopicalqui and Huascarán (south) glaciers from Km 42 (road to Portachuelo), Cordillera Blanca 03

Mountain·PeruPeru

Chopicalqui

6,354m

Cordillera Blanca

Summit weather

James Sykes · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Elevation
6,354m
Relief
2,340mabove the lowest point within 5 km
Steepest slope
65°within 1 km of the summit
Snow at the summit
All yearSee month by month ↓
Summit
9.0889°S, 77.5747°W

Mountain in Peru

Chopicalqui is a mountain in the Cordillera Blanca (Peru). Its summit stands 6,354 m above sea level.

From the lowest point within 5 km (4,014 m), it rises 2,340 m. The steepest side is the west face: 48° on average over the first kilometre. In places the ground near the top reaches 65° — terrain for climbers, not walkers.

The nearest town is Yanama, 14 km away at 3,828 m: 2,526 m below the summit.

Read more on Wikipedia

Scores

Chopicalqui for skiers and climbers

Two scores out of 10, built only from open data — every part is shown. They describe what the mountain offers, not how safe it is.

Hiking & mountaineering

6.4/10

Difficulty to the top

Alpine climb

Glaciers around the top.

Indicative only — never a safety assessment. Conditions change: ask local guides and check the forecast.

  • 0.8/2.50 waymarked routes and 19 path sections nearby
  • 0.5/1.52 huts and shelters
  • 2.0/22,526 m of ascent from the valley
  • 1.4/1.51,404 m of prominence
  • 1.5/1.512 months with summit afternoons above −5 °C
  • 0.3/1via ferratas, climbing and glaciers

Ski score

0.3/10

  • 0.0/40 km of downhill runs
  • 0.3/1.57 ski lifts
  • 0.0/1.5lift station heights not mapped
  • 0.0/30 months of snow at about 4,328 m

Snow season on the slopes (estimate)

Around 4,328 m, in the middle of the ski area: no snow.

  1. Jan
  2. Feb
  3. Mar
  4. Apr
  5. May
  6. Jun
  7. Jul
  8. Aug
  9. Sep
  10. Oct
  11. Nov
  12. Dec
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

7 lifts · 0 km cross-country

How these scores are made

Ski (where OpenStreetMap has skiing within 12 km): up to 4 points for the length of downhill runs (300 km or more = 4), 1.5 for the number of lifts (40+), 1.5 for the vertical between lift stations (1,500 m) and 3 for the snow season — a month counts when the estimated mean temperature at the height of the ski area is −1 °C or lower and snow falls or lies there (NASA POWER, 2001–2020). Hiking & mountaineering: up to 2.5 for waymarked routes and paths, 1.5 for huts, 2 for the ascent from the valley (2,000 m), 1.5 for prominence (3,000 m), 1.5 for the season (months with summit afternoons above −5 °C) and 1 for via ferratas, climbing and glaciers. OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: where few things are mapped, a score can be lower than reality.

Plan your visit

Stay, climb and get there

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

Snow

When there is snow on Chopicalqui

At the summit, snow all year round. Month by month below, at different heights on the way up.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Summit6,354 msnow all year round
Snow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all monthSnow on the ground all month
Halfway up5,091 moccasional snow from October to August
Snow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeNo snowSnow some of the timeSnow some of the timeSnow some of the time
Yanama3,828 mno snow
No snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snowNo snow
  • Snow on the ground all month
  • Snow some of the time
  • No snow
  • This month

Estimate for a normal year: average temperature and precipitation from NASA POWER, carried to each height, in a simple model of snow building up and melting. In a given year snow can come earlier or stay longer. It does not replace the local snow and avalanche bulletin.

Summit weather

Chopicalqui, month by month

Not a forecast: long-term averages (1991–2020), carried up to the summit. The orange line is where an average afternoon reaches 0 °C; above the dashed blue line it freezes even at dawn.

On an average November afternoon the summit reaches about -1 °C; on July nights it falls to about -16 °C. Even in the warmest month the summit stays below freezing all day: ice and snow all year round. Even at its highest, in November, the 0 °C line reaches only about 6,260 m: 94 m below the summit. Across the region, August is the driest month (12 mm) and December the wettest (65 mm).

4,000 m5,000 m6,000 mSUMMIT · 6,354 mYANAMA · 3,828 mJanuary: 6,110 mFebruary: 6,090 mMarch: 6,010 mApril: 6,070 mMay: 6,110 mJune: 6,010 mJuly: 6,010 mAugust: 6,140 mSeptember: 6,210 mOctober: 6,230 mNovember: 6,260 mDecember: 6,120 mJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
0 °C on an average afternoon 0 °C at dawn the summit
MonthSummit high °CSummit low °CYanama high °C0 °C line (m)Rain & snow (mm)Wet daysSun h/day
January-2-14156,11050124.8
February-2-14156,09057134.0
March-2-14146,01062143.8
April-2-14156,0704095.2
May-2-14156,1103366.6
June-2-16146,0101447.6
July-2-16146,0101537.8
August-1-16156,1401237.3
September-1-14166,2101665.4
October-1-14166,2303385.1
November-1-14166,26049115.5
December-2-14156,12065144.5

Estimate: the NASA POWER climate of a ~55 km cell (average height 3,844 m), adjusted to the summit by −6.5 °C per 1,000 m. Rain, wet days and sunshine are those of the region. Mountain weather changes fast — always check a local forecast. ★ = mildest months at the top.

Relief

The mountain in profile

Two cuts through the summit, 16 km long, from the 30 m Copernicus elevation model. True scale: no vertical exaggeration.

West – east
6,354 m4,456 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmWE
South – north
6,354 m3,794 m0 km2 km4 km6 km8 km10 km12 km14 km16 kmSN
Steepness by direction
30°N: 38°NNE: 46°NEE: 43°ESE: 46°SES: 47°SSW: 32°SWW: 48°WNW: 37°NW

Average slope of the first kilometre from the summit. The orange petal is the steepest side.

Around the mountain

Huts, lifts and trails around Chopicalqui

Counted around the summit in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. The satellite plate shows 14 × 14 km.

Chopicalqui seen from above (Sentinel-2) N 5 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 14 × 14 km, north up. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

  • 2mountain huts and shelters

    Refugio Huascarán (4,620 m), Refugio Perú (4,660 m)

  • 3cable cars, gondolas, chairlifts and rack railways

    Teleférico Huascarán

  • —ski areas
  • —waymarked hiking routes
  • —via ferratas
  • —climbing crags and routes
  • 2named glaciers

    Glaciar del Nevado Huascarán, Glaciar del Nevado Huandoy

  • 12viewpoints

    Portachuelo de Llanganuco and 11 more

  • 13campsites

    Cp. Morrena, Campamento Base, Lake Llanganuco Camping, Campo Morrena and 9 more

  • 5hotels, B&Bs and chalets

    Puriy Marka Lodge, Hospedaje Illariy, Hostal Jesus Flores and 2 more

  • 1restaurants and cafés

How hard are the paths?

19 path sections within 5 km, by SAC hiking scale (T1 easy walk … T6 difficult alpine).

T1T2T3T4T5
  • T1 hiking
  • T2 mountain hiking
  • T3 demanding mountain hiking
  • T4 alpine hiking
  • T5 demanding alpine hiking

Towns at the foot

  • Yanama14 km · 3,828 m
  • Shilla17 km · 3,015 m
  • Amashca19 km · 2,873 m
  • Ranrahirca19 km · 2,756 m
  • Yungay20 km · 2,521 m
  • Shupluy20 km · 2,635 m
  • Matacoto22 km · 2,408 m
  • Cascapara22 km · 2,727 m

OpenStreetMap is built by volunteers: a low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. Places © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

Photos

Seen by climbers and visitors

Chopicalqui glacier camp and Huascaran (6020870833)
sergejf · CC BY-SA 2.0
Chopicalqui glacier crevasses (6021417330)
sergejf · CC BY-SA 2.0

Recent years

How each month compared at the summit

Afternoon high at the summit (estimate). The first row is the reference, the 1991–2020 average in °C; the years show only the difference.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
1991–2020 average-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-1-1-1-1-2
2020+0.2+0.2+1.4+1.4+1.5+2.0+0.6+1.0−0.2+0.6+0.4−0.5
2021−0.6+1.4+0.2+0.7+0.7+0.4+1.4+0.8+0.5+1.6+0.2+0.8
2022+0.4+0.4+0.7+0.8+1.2+0.3+1.4+1.3+0.8+1.9+1.7+0.5
2023+0.2+0.8±0.0+0.3+1.3+1.9+2.5+2.0+1.1+1.9+2.0+0.9
2024+2.0+2.3+2.0+2.5+2.5+3.0+1.9+1.7+1.7+0.7+0.3−0.3
2025−0.6−0.9−0.7−1.3−1.4−1.6−1.4−1.2−0.6−1.7−1.4+2.3

+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual

About these numbers

Names, elevation, prominenceWikidata (Q1928597) · CC0
Relief, 3D view, profilesCopernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
ClimateNASA POWER, 1991–2020 · CC BY 4.0
Around the mountain© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
ImagesEOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.

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