Santa River in the context of Huascarán National Park

The Cordillera Negra (Spanish for "black range"), Yana Walla in qechua is part of the Cordillera Occidental, one of three mountain ranges in the Andes of west central Peru. It is almost entirely located within the Ancash Region.

The range extends over an area about 230 km long and 25–40 km wide, stretching in a NNW-SSE direction parallel to the Pacific coast, its ridge is about 60 km from the coastline. It is part of the Andes mountain range which inland borders on the Costa, the narrow strip of coastal deserts along the South American coast. In the north and east the range is bordered by the Santa River which crosses the coastal ridge at 8° 45' S and runs parallel to the Cordillera Negra for almost all its length. In the south the range is bordered by the Patiwillka River at 10° 30'. In the central part of the range near Huaráz, Casma River breaks through the ridge of the range.

Huaraz ([waˈɾas]) (from Quechua: Waraq or Warash, "dawn"), formerly designated as San Sebastián de Huaraz, is a city in Peru. It is the capital of the Ancash Region (State of Ancash) and the seat of government of Huaraz Province. The urban area's population is distributed over the districts of Huaraz and Independencia. The city is located in the middle of the Callejon de Huaylas valley and on the right side of the Santa river. The city has an elevation of approximately 3050 meters above sea level. The built-up area covers 8 square kilometers and has a population of 120,000 inhabitants, making it the second largest city in the central Peruvian Andes after the city of Huancayo. It is the 22nd largest city in Peru. Huaraz is the seat of the province's Roman Catholic Bishop and the site of the cathedral.

Huaraz is the main financial and trade center of the Callejón de Huaylas and the main tourist destination of Ancash region. Moreover, it is one of the biggest towns in the Peruvian Andes. Huaraz is the main destinations for winter sports and adventure. Many visitors from around the world come to the city for practicing sports as climbing, hiking, mountain biking and snowboarding, and also to visit the glaciers and mountains of the Cordillera Blanca, mainly Mount Huascarán, which is considered the tallest mountain in the tropics, all of them located in Huascarán National Park which UNESCO declared a nature world heritage site in 1985.

Chimbote [tʃimˈbote] ; Quechua: Chimputi) is a city in northwestern Peru. It is the largest city in the Ancash Region and the tenth most populous in Peru. With a population of 425,367 in 2017, it is the capital of both Santa Province and Chimbote District. The city has an altitude of 4 meters.

The city is located on the coast in Ferrol Bay, 130 km south of Trujillo and 420 kilometers (260 mi) north of Lima on the North Pan-American highway. It is the start of a chain of important cities on the Peruvian north coast like Trujillo, Chiclayo and Piura. The advantages of this geographic location made Chimbote into a transshipment junction for the Santa River valley. The city is the second most important port city after Callao.

The Santa Valley (Quechua Sancta) is an inter-andean valley in the Ancash Region in the north-central highlands of Peru. Due to its location between two mountain ranges, it is known as Callejón de Huaylas, the Alley of Huaylas, whereas "Huaylas" refers to the territorial division's name during the Viceroyalty of Peru.

Going north from Lima, the road climbs to an altitude of 3,945 m, where the lake Conococha marks the head of the valley. This lake is the main source of Santa River. From here the road descends into the Callejón de Huaylas, demarcated by the Cordillera Blanca ("white range") to the east and the Cordillera Negra ("black range") to the west. To the south rise the summits of the Huayhuash mountain range.

The Cordillera Blanca (Spanish for "white range") is a mountain range in Peru that is part of the larger Andes range and extends for 200 kilometres (124 mi) between 8°08' and 9°58'S and 77°00' and 77°52'W, in a northwesterly direction. It includes several peaks over 6,000 metres (19,690 ft) high and 722 individual glaciers. The highest mountain in Peru, Huascarán, at 6,768 metres (22,205 ft) high, is located there.

The Cordillera Blanca lies in the Ancash region and runs parallel to the Santa River valley (also called Callejón de Huaylas in its upper and midsections) on the west. Huascarán National Park, established in 1975, encompasses almost the entire range of the Cordillera Blanca.