Alpamayo[2][3] (possibly from Quechua allpa earth, mayu river,[4] "earth river") or Shuyturaju[3] (possibly from Ancash Quechua huytu, shuytu oblong, slim and long, Quechua rahu snow, ice, mountain covered in snow)[5][6] is one of the most conspicuous peaks in the Cordillera Blanca of the Peruvian Andes.

In July 1966, the German magazine "Alpinismus", published a photo of Alpamayo taken by American photographer Leigh Ortenburger accompanied by an article on a survey among mountaineering experts, who chose Alpamayo as "The Most Beautiful Mountain in the World".

[7] Most popular routes start from the village of Caraz, on the north of the Cordillera Blanca.

A French-Belgian expedition including George and Claude Kogan claimed to have made the first ascent in 1951.

After studying the photos in George Kogan's book The Ascent of Alpamayo, the German team of G. Hauser, F. Knauss, B. Huhn & H. Wiedmann came to the conclusion that the 1951 team did not reach the actual summit, thereby making their ascent via the north ridge in 1957 the first.