The valley of the Río Chirinos is the reason to come this far. After the road crests the highland plateau, it tips downward and the landscape changes completely. The open grassy plains give way within a few kilometers to cloud forest: dense, dripping, green in a way that seems almost excessive after the dry air of the highlands. The road — a dirt track that requires more faith than engineering — winds down through the forest in long switchbacks, occasionally opening onto views of the valley below where small plots of cleared land are tucked between the trees.
The villages along the valley floor are small and closely spaced, which makes exploration on horseback or on foot straightforward if slow. Locals grow coffee and bananas and are generally accustomed to strangers appearing, if not accustomed to many of them. The descent itself, taking two to three hours at a careful pace, is as much the attraction as any single point at the bottom — a road that changes character every kilometer and rewards anyone willing to stop and pay attention to it.