Colca Canyon is the second deepest canyon in world and is a popular hiking destination in Peru. Often passed over by tourists in favour of the world famous Inca trail. We originally planned on doing this trek self-guided but costing only £60 for a 3 day guided tour with transport, food and accommodation it hardly seemed worth the extra effort. As we refused to pay the extortionate US$500 plus prices to walk the Inca trail this unique canyon trek, passing through Peruvian villages that pre date Incan civilization, made a worthy alternative.
We left Arequipa at 3am and took a 6 hour cramped bus ride across the Andean Plateau and arrived in Chivay for breakfast before making a move to the Cruz del Condor
Cruz Del Condors
The early start was worth it as we gazed through the early morning sun into the depth of the canyon.
The guide said we would be lucky to see the Giant Andean Condors as it’s not the right season but as we looked down into the canyon there were two condors soaring up and they flew straight over our heads.
Second in size only to the albatross, these magnificent birds gracefully fly whilst barely ever flapping their wings.
Into The Canyon
We then took the bus to the edge of the canyon trail and met the rest of hiking group.
Usually we are disappointed at this stage when suddenly twenty other people appear. However this time we were wrong as we were introduced to an Australian couple who would be our only two hiking buddy’s for the next three days and as it turned out we had quite a lot in common. They both quit their jobs to travel the Americas but unlike us who are eventually heading to Australia they were going to London to look for work.
It took around 3 gentle hours to descend the canyon and get to our first village where a multitude of fruit trees grew in abundance.
The village was small and basic, our room had no electricity, no light or bathroom. In fact it was a bed surrounded by four mud walls. For tea we ate soup, llama and rice. Afterwards we sat staring up at the magnificent canyon while the sun set, casting a kaleidoscope of changing colours on the canyon walls. The area was so relaxing that we had no problem getting to sleep after a long week of early starts and late nights.
The next day we picked up the trail again.
We arrived at a make shift stall, there were guinea pigs on the menu, being curious I Iooked around the back and there they all were. Three cages of the furry creatures waiting to be slaughtered. The lone black one had a special fate. The black colour is the thought to be special which means that it can be used as a sacrifice to the god.
We stuck to the local fruit instead.
After 2-3 hours of gentle walking we came to the ‘Oasis’ which looked like a paradise among the dry canyon rocks. Fed by water from a nearby volcano it truly deserves its namesake.
The Oasis
Set in gardens of colourful flowers and cool swimming pools it is an amazing place to relax, while the day away and forget all your worries. Like a Garden of Eden amongst the baron and inhospitable rocks. Life just doesn’t get more relaxing than this.
The next day we woke at 4.45AM and without any breakfast we set off on the 1300m trek out of the canyon. Some found it hard, some found it easy, and some rode a donkey. With all the trekking we have been doing recently we found it easy taking just over two hours to get to the top.
As we waited for the rest of our group to climb out of the canyon the lack of breakfast was taking its toll. When an hour or two later we made it to the ‘disco breakfast’ bar. Fitted with flashing disco lights and 90s pop tunes I was not ashamed to order two breakfasts at once.
The next stop was the hot springs, basically a warm outdoor swimming pool were someone could piss next to you and you would never feel it. It seems that every tour deems it necessary to add in a “hot springs”. It’s already 30 degrees and there’s no need for more heat. Drinking a cold beer was a much better option!
Lunch was a tasty Peruvian buffet. Even after the breakfast my hunger knew no bounds. After three days of small portions of rice and vegetables even the llamas outside were getting scared of being eaten.
Four plates later and a pile of deserts and it was time to view the fertile canyon valley.
The final stop on the tour, at 4900m, was the volcano lookout. Unfortunately as the weather had turned, all we could see was fog.
And so ended one of the better guided trips we have taken. I’m pretty sure we could have walked the entire circuit in a single day. Most people opt to do it in two days but I’m glad we took the three days to spend as much time as we could in the canyon. We left not with sore legs but a great feeling of tranquillity and peacefulness taken from the great canyon itself.
