of note commonly seen in the area: porpoises, pelicans, sea lions, herons and, on rare occasions, sharks. The village prides itself in catching the largest shark in Peruvian history (in 1989), a 5m long great white. Behind the village, across the Pan-American Highway, are fields and winding valleys in the foothills of the Andes. History In pre-Columbian times, Cerro Azul was the site of a fishing village of the Kingdom of Warku. Warku was contemporaneous with the Chimú culture to the north. The Kingdom of Warku was hierarchical; at Cerro Azul elites lived in large compounds while commoners lived in smaller structures. All residences at Cerro Azul included rooms for drying fish. The dried fish could later be traded for goods from outside the village. Elite residences included a brewery that contained large hearths and gigantic vessels to store the chicha (corn beer) that could be served during feasts. The town was subdued by the Inca Pachacutec who ordered to build a stone fortress (Fortaleza de Cerro Azul), with steps down to the sea in honor of his victory and a symbol of his absolute power. This fort was as grand and magnificent as the Sacsayhuaman fortress according to Cieza and some historians. In 1830 it is issued a decree which temporarily enables the Port of Cerro Azul for the coasting trade, i.e. to allow landlocked products in the valley of Cañete, as well as the production of the guano islands nearby. Images Populated places in the Lima Region Surfing locations in Peru