Colca Canyon

Three days of hiking in the second deepest canyon in the world: Colca Canyon.

Day 1:

We woke up at 2:15 am on Saturday night as we were supposed to be picked up between 2:40-3:15 am. After being picked up at 3:30 am, we drove for 3.5 hours towards Colca Canyon. When we arrived, we had a delicious breakfast with fried eggs, fruit, jam, and juice. Afterward, we drove another 40 minutes to Cabanaconde. We were lucky to be able to observe condors there. It was fascinating to see the birds glide in the wind. From there, we descended 1200 meters in 3 hours to the small village of San Juan, where we spent the night. We also had lunch in the village. We had Lomo Saltado made from donkey meat. Unfortunately, I didn't take a photo of the kitchen. The owner cooked with firewood. The accommodation was also quite primitive. No power sockets, no light, with a tin roof and a slate stone wall. We were also told to shake out our pillows and empty our shoes, as spiders and scorpions could crawl inside. The evening was actually a bit of a horror, as there were crawlies everywhere and we had no light to at least see what was crawling or where something was crawling.

Day 2:

On the second day, we had a leisurely breakfast at 7:30 am. We were incredibly happy about breakfast because there were pancakes with bananas. We were actually expecting soup again. Peruvians eat rice, soup, or even chicken for breakfast. Over time, I can't stand rice with chicken anymore, especially not for breakfast. Afterwards, we walked for about 1 1/2 hours, climbing 300 meters to a small village, where we prepared guacamole. On the way, the tour guide explained various plants and types of cacti in the beautiful steppe landscape. We had lunch in another village.

After lunch, we descended 500 meters to an oasis, where we spent our second night.

Day 3:

Wake up at 4:00 am, start walking at 4:30 am. Yesterday, we climbed 1200 meters in 2.5 hours. Yes, I was exhausted and tired and everything hurt. At first, we walked uphill as a group, but eventually, everyone developed their own pace, so the group dispersed. When we finally made it, we were fortunately rewarded with breakfast. The program for this day also included hot springs, terraces of the pre-Incas, a communal lunch, a visit to alpacas, and a viewpoint with a view of the volcanoes. The landscape around the viewpoint was really interesting, as we saw an incredible number of stone figures from there. Our guide explained that in the past, the Incas built these little towers to show respect for the active volcano. Today, many visitors also build these stone figures.

Overall, I really enjoyed the 3-day hike because the landscape and the challenges of sleeping in such a primitive accommodation and climbing 1200 meters uphill were really interesting. I also liked that the guide could explain a lot about the plants. However, our group was not very sympathetic. It consisted of 2 Danes, 7 French people who were traveling together, and us. Only on the second day did the larger group show interest in getting to know us. We also didn't like the guide very much because he was very unmotivated and spoke a bit condescendingly about tourists. The problem was that the guide had to do the tour for the fourth time in a row without a break, and he now has knee problems. Of course, it's understandable that he doesn't enjoy his job anymore, but it's a shame for our tour.

The last day was less fun because the 1200 meters were really exhausting. However, the breathtaking landscape and the feeling after the tough hike convinced us again and again!