Glaciar Arhuay, Huascarán National Park

The Arhuay Glacier is a glacier located in central-western Peru, in the province of Huaylas, belonging to the department of Ancash. It constitutes one of the main glaciers of the Cordillera Blanca, a mountain range that is part of the Western Cordillera of the Peruvian Andes. The glacier is located within the limits of the Huascaran National Park declared Natural Patrimony of Humanity in 1985.

The glacier covers an area of 4.25 km² and has a length of approximately 2.3 km, with a maximum width of 4.5 km. According to its characteristics it is a valley glacier, of simple basin because it drains into a single channel, with a longitudinal profile in cascade especially at the back of the glacier tongue.

The origins of the Arhuay glacier are located in a glacial cirque dominated by the peaks of the Pucahirca Sur and Rinrihirca snow-capped peaks. It rises at 6,025 m altitude and descends to 4,554 m above sea level. The terminal tongue of the glacier currently appears in contact with the Arhuaycocha lagoon, which pours its flow through the Santa River into the Pacific Ocean.

From a dynamic point of view the glacier in its middle part mainly, has a very slow movement according to the slope of the bedrock which results in the very pronounced cracking that can be clearly observed in its structure. This movement is counteracted in the lower part by the terminal tongue of little slope, which acts at this time as a support wall or wedge.

Given the current climatic conditions it is evident that also this glacier like other glaciers shows a retreat, a fact that is evident in the decrease in the level of its glacier tongue. The Arhuay being a glacier easily accessible, is an attractive tourist destination for those who visit this area of Peru.