About an hour’s drive up from the Cusco airport is the small rural community of Punacancha. Like most rural communities that are not on a main highway or near an established tourist attraction Punacancha is relatively unknown by outsiders.

Every year our kids’ school organizes a family run/hike event and this year Punacancha was the location for the hike. The school calls it a “run” but nobody runs except for one tall lanky teacher and a few family dogs, everyone else walks. The run/hike started in the community of Punacancha, up to the rock formation forest just outside of town and then back.

I’ll spare you the details of how our rescue dog who is supposed to be an Andean shepherd/collie is apparently scared of sheep now and the story of one of the modern mamacitas in our group who forgot how many of her kids were supposed to be with her (all 2, to be exact) only to say after a brief search the other kid showed up with his friends about 10 minutes behind.

The hike to the Punacancha rock forest formation is beautiful, relaxed, authentic. Highly recommended.