In which the road is described from Xauxa to the city of Guamanga, and
what there is worthy of note on this road.
I find that the distance from this valley of Xauxa to the city of the
victory of Guamanga is thirty leagues. Going by the royal road, the
traveller journeys on until certain very ancient edifices, now in ruins,
are reached, which are on the summit of the heights above the valley.
Further on is the village of Acos, near a morass full of great rushes.
Here, also, there were edifices and store-houses of the Yncas, as in all
the other towns of this kingdom. The natives of Acos live away from the
royal road, in some very rugged mountains to the eastward. I have
nothing more to say of them, except that they go dressed in woollen
clothes, and that their houses are of stone thatched with straw. The
road goes from Acos to the buildings at Pico, then over a hill, the
descent from which is rugged and would seem difficult, yet the road
continues to be so broad and smooth, that it almost seems to be passing
over level ground. Thus it descends to the river which passes by Xauxa,
where there is a bridge, and the pass is called Angoyaco. Near this
bridge there is a certain white ravine, whence comes a spring of
wholesome water. In this pass of Angoyaco there was an edifice of the
Yncas, where there was a bath of water that was naturally warm and
convenient for bathing, on account of which all the Lords Yncas valued
it. Even the Indians of these parts used to wash and bathe in it every
day, both men and women. In the part where the river flows the valley is
small, and there are many _molle_[420] and other trees. Further on is
the valley of Picoy, but first another small river is crossed, where
there is also a bridge, for in winter time this river washes down with
much fury.
From Picoy the road leads to the buildings of Parcos, erected on the top
of a hill. The Indians have their abodes in very lofty and rugged
mountains on either side of these buildings. Before reaching Parcos
there is a place called Pucara (which in our language means a strong
thing[421]) in a small wilderness, where, in ancient times, as the
Indians declare, there was a palace of the Yncas and a temple of the
sun. Many provinces sent their usual tribute to this Pucara, and
delivered it to the overseer who had charge of the stores, and whose
duty it was to collect the tribute. In this place there is such a
quantity of dressed stones that, from a distance, it truly appears like
some city or towered castle, from which it may be judged that the
Indians gave it an appropriate name. Among the rocks there is one, near
a small river, which is so large that its size is wonderful to behold. I
saw it, and slept one night under it, and it appeared to me that it had
a height of two hundred cubits, and a circuit of more than two hundred
paces. If it was on any dangerous frontier, it might easily be turned
into an impregnable fortress. This great rock has another notable thing
connected with it, which is that there are so many caves in it that more
than a hundred men and some horses might get into them. In this, as in
other things, our God shows his mighty power. All these roads are full
of caves, where men and animals can take shelter from the wet and snow.
The natives of this district have their villages on lofty mountains, as
I have already said. Their summits are covered with snow during most
parts of the year. The Indians sow their crops in sheltered spots, like
valleys, between the mountains. In many parts of these mountains there
are great veins of silver. The road descends a mountain from Parcos,
till it reaches a river bearing the same name, where there is a bridge
built over great blocks of stone. This mountain of Parcos is the place
where the battle took place between the Indians and the captain
Morgovejo de Quiñones, and where Gonzalo Pizarro ordered the captain
Gaspar Rodriguez de Campo-redondo[422] to be killed, as I shall relate
in another part of my work. Beyond this river of Parcos is the station
of Asangaro, now the _repartimiento_ of Diego Gavilan,[423] whence the
royal road passes on till it reaches the city of San Juan de la Victoria
de Guamanga.