Patapampa is the high point of the road between Arequipa and the Colca valley, at 4,910 metres, and it is one of the highest passes in Peru that you can reach on a paved road. The landscape is a bare, windswept plateau of tawny grass and volcanic rock, with a ring of snow-capped volcanoes standing around it. Ampato and Sabancaya are among them, and Sabancaya is active, sometimes sending a plume of ash into the sky. It is a lonely, startling place, and the thin air makes it feel as if you are standing on the roof of the world.
At the pass, travellers have built apachetas, small piles of stones, each placed as an offering to the mountain spirits, the apus, in the Andean tradition. Add your own stone, and ask for safe passage. A few stalls sell souvenirs and hot coca tea, which helps with the altitude. Vicuñas, the wild, slender relatives of the llama, graze on the plateau, and you may see them in small groups, golden in the sun. They were nearly hunted to extinction for their wool, which is the finest in the world, and they have recovered under protection. The reserve here, known as Salinas and Aguada Blanca, covers a huge area of high steppe.
The road to the pass climbs from Arequipa, at about 2,300 metres, over a long, steady ascent, and the change in the landscape is dramatic, from desert to high steppe. The bends are long and open, the surface is good, and the road is wide, but at this altitude the engine struggles, and the air is thin. The danger is the altitude and the weather. Cold, wind and sudden snow are common, and you should have warm clothing, gloves and a waterproof. Altitude sickness is a risk, so spend a day or two in Arequipa or Chivay first, drink water and do not stay long at the top.
Arequipa has plenty, and Chivay, on the far side, has stations, shops and restaurants. Fill the tank in Arequipa and carry a reserve if you can. Morning is the best time to be here, when the sky is clear and the volcanoes stand sharp against the blue. A cup of coca tea and a few minutes at the cairns are all you need.