Renewal of the Q'eswachaka rope bridge

The Q'eswachaka bridge spans the Apurímac river in the district of Quehue. Every year it is renewed by the 4 peasant communities of Quehue: Huinchiri, Chaupibanda, Choccayhua and Ccollana Quehue. They are described as keepers of an age-old building technique based on plant fibre.

The Ministry of Culture presents the renewal as central to the cultural identity of the people of Quehue, linking them to nature and to their history.

The renewal usually takes place in June. The 2027 dates have not been announced, so June is only an expectation for now. No details on how visitors may attend are available at present, so it is worth following the Ministry of Culture's announcements for the edition.

More than a thousand members of the 4 Quehue communities gather for 3 days each year to renew the bridge.

The yearly renewal is described as a cultural tradition that continues from pre-Hispanic times. The bridge forms part of a secondary section of the Qhapaq Ñan road network, on the route between Cusco and Apurímac. Because it belongs to that network, it is also counted as part of World Heritage.

UNESCO recognises the bridge and its renewal as intangible cultural heritage of humanity, following a file submitted by the Ministry of Culture in 2010.

After an attack badly damaged the bridge, the communities that carry the tradition completed its customary renewal, in coordination led by Quehue's district municipality and the Ministry of Culture.