Highstakes for an Inca refuge: for centuries off the beaten track, the pre-Columbian site of Choquequirao now stands front and center as the tourist's alternative to Machu Picchu.

• Author: Fenton, Toby

Spectacularly sited in the Peruvian Andes is an ancient city of the Incas, long shrouded in mystery. If this much of the story sounds familiar, the name of the city, likely does not. But if Peruvian tourism officials have their way, soon Choquequirao will be as familiar to you as the venerable Machu Picchu, its "sister city" and imperiled landmark. Meaning "cradle of gold" in Quechua, Choquequirao is the focus of archaeological excavation and tourism initiatives which, officials hope, will establish the site's own landmark credentials, as well as ease the infrastructure burden on heavily visited Machu Picchu.

The gateway to Choquequirao is the village of Cachora--a four-hour drive southwest of Cuzco, the magnificent capital of the Incas and the hub of Peru's tourist industry. At just under ten thousand feet, Cachora sits on the southern lip of the Apurimac Canyon. Below the valley plunges into an invisible abyss, carved out over millennia by the Apurimac River--just miles away laterally, but over six thousand feet beneath. On the northern side tower the snow-capped peaks of the Salkantay massif--the heart of the Andes central cordillera.

The ruins of Ghoquequirao are perched on the other side of time canyon, at about the same elevation as Cachora. The trek there from the village, with supplies carried by mule and horses provided for steep ascents, is a four day round trip, with one night spent at, the rains.

The trail begins as a gentle descent into the valley towards the canyon through fields lined with eucalyptus trees and scattered with wild gerbil nests. As the fields become scrub, the Apurimac River reveals itself for the first time, a fragile streak of silver nearly a mile below. Its pale color--the result of its flow crashing against mighty boulders--is the only indication of line river's power.

Born and the peaks of the western Andes, the Apurimac River is the true source of the Amazon. Its name means the Great Speaker or Speaker of the Gods in Quechua. Apu can mean both god and mountain--inseparable concepts to the Incas, who worshiped their surroundings. Rivers were regarded as the mountains' messengers. According to Inca legend, the great conqueror Pachacutec consulted the Apurimac before crossing to defeat the Chanca tribe, powerful neighbors from across the canyon. Victory would prove the catalyst for the creation of an empire.

As the descent steepens, my calves tighten and the path begins to hairpin back on itself, winding down the parched southern slopes of the canyon through burned unfarmed grassland. A searing sun and a harsh wind add to the grueling descent. The withered terrain is in stark contrast to the canyon's lush northern slopes, watered by the glacial peaks of Salkantay, a few hundred feet away as the condor flies.

By dusk we reach the river, a raging torrent despite this being the end of the Andean dry season, when the Apurimac is at its lowest. Across a swaying suspension bridge, the northern bank offers a place to rest, but not for long...