Ticlio (or Anticona) is a mountain pass and the highest point (4,818 m or 15,807 ft) of the Central Highway of Peru (km 120), located in the Andes Mountains in the Chicla District, Huarochirí Province,

Department of Lima The Department of Lima () is a department and region located in the central coast of Peru, the ''seat of the Regional Government'' is Huacho. Lima Province, which contains the city of Lima, the country's capital, is located west of the Departmen ...

. It used to be a railway crossing loop on the

Ferrocarril Central Andino Ferrocarril Central Andino (FCCA) is the consortium which operates the Ferrovías Central railway in Peru linking the Pacific port of Callao and the capital Lima with Huancayo and Cerro de Pasco. As one of the Trans-Andean Railways it is the sec ...

(FCCA) in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

, whose main claim to fame was being the highest railway junction in the world. The railway now crosses the pass through the nearby Galera Summit Tunnel at a lower elevation of 4,783 m (15,692 ft) and enters a different valley than the highway on the eastern side of the pass.

Overview

Ticlio Station lies at km 171 of the standard gauge FCCA about 2 km (1.2 miles) from the highway summit at the western end of Galera Summit Tunnel. From 1893 to 1921, it was the junction for the now-closed branch to Morococha. FCCA is an active freight and passenger line (FCCA offers several tourist trips per month from Lima to Huancayo). On the railway approach to Ticlio from the direction of Lima, eight tunnels were necessary in a stretch of less than 3.2 km (2 miles). Temperature varies between 8 and -5 °C. Atmospheric pressure in Ticlio is approximately 50% lower than the one present at sea level, which causes the vast majority of people that pass through this point to suffer

altitude sickness Altitude sickness, the mildest form being acute mountain sickness (AMS), is the harmful effect of high altitude, caused by rapid exposure to low amounts of oxygen at high elevation. People can respond to high altitude in different ways. Sympt ...

or ''soroche''.

Gallery

File:View_from_the_Summit_Yuraccochas_I_-_Ticlio,_Huarochiri,_Lima,_Peru.jpg, View from the summit of Yuraqqucha near the Antikuna pass

References

* http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r022.html * Railway stations in Peru Buildings and structures in Junín Region Buildings and structures in Lima Region Mountain passes of the Andes Roads in Peru {{SouthAm-railstation-stub

Overview

See also

Gallery

References