Abra Málaga

Abra Málaga is the pass where the road from Ollantaytambo crosses the Cordillera Vilcanota at around 4,300 metres before dropping into the Amazon watershed, and it is one of the most productive birding sites in the Andes. The reason is Polylepis: a high-altitude tree that grows above the normal treeline, once widespread and now reduced to relict patches, and the fragments on the slopes here shelter species that live in almost nothing else - the royal cinclodes and white-browed tit-spinetail among them, both critically endangered, along with a long list of high Andean specialists. Conservation groups and local communities have worked on protecting and replanting the remaining stands. The eastern side of the pass drops fast into cloud forest with a completely different bird community. The pass itself is cold, windy and above 4,000 metres, and the road is subject to snow, fog and landslides.

What you actually see

• The Polylepis fragments - relict high-altitude woodland above the normal treeline.
• The endangered specialists - royal cinclodes and white-browed tit-spinetail.
• The two slopes - puna on one side, cloud forest dropping east on the other.
• The pass - about 4,300 metres on the Ollantaytambo to Quillabamba road.

When to go

May to September for settled weather; the pass gets snow, fog and landslides at other times. Dawn for birding. Acclimatise before spending a day above 4,000 metres.

Honest expectations

Cold and windy at over 4,000 metres, with weather that changes fast. Some Polylepis patches are on community land and access should be arranged. The birds are specialists - without a guide and some knowledge, it is a cold roadside.

Nearby

Ollantaytambo and the Sacred Valley are west; Santa María and the jungle road are east.