The Peruvian Central Railway is a Peruvian railway that runs from El Callao to Huancayocity, located in the central Andean region of Peru.
It is the only train in South America that reaches 4,781 MASL. The highest point is “La Cima” with 4,835 m above sea level. n. m. which is located on the mining branch from Tíclio to Morococha.
For many years this was the railway that reached the highest altitude above sea level, recently being surpassed by the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, which reaches a height of 5,072 m a.s.l. n. m..
To reach such a height, the train crosses 58 bridges, 69 tunnels, and around 6 zigzags. Using almost 8 hours to travel the distance of 172 km that separates the Puerto del Callao station to the Galera station.
Along its route, the line traces the course of the Rímac River and its tributaries, crossing the provinces of Lima and Huarochirí to the Chinchán station located 7 kilometers west of the town of Casapalca.
The latter is a locality established in the western foothills of the Andean mountain range whose industry is the concentration of minerals. The line continues its ascent to the top of the Andes, which it crosses through the Galera tunnel.
From that point begins the descent towards the valleys that separate the western mountain range from the central one.
Following the course of the Yauli River, which belongs to the Atlantic slope, it reaches the town of La Oroya. From that point it follows the course of the Mantaro River passing through the center of its valley and connecting its main towns such as Jauja, Concepción and, finally, Huancayo.
Did you know?
In 1851 the Polish engineer Ernest Malinowski, settled in Peru after leaving voluntarily for political reasons in his country then occupied by Austria, Prussia and Russia, proposed extending the Lima – Callao railway opened that year to the Jauja valley.