The Amazing Colca Canyon

DAY 6: CHIVAY - COLCA CANYON

At 7:30 am Juan, the driver, and Omar, the tour guide, picked me up in a comfortable small bus. After picking up another 9 tourists from their hotels, we left Arequipa city around 8:00 am. Before boarding the bus, I would suggest taking a pill for altitude sickness.

On the way to the Colca Canyon, we passed the district of Yura and then we stopped at Quisquos Irrigation to appreciate the view. Then, we stopped in “Pampa Cañahuas” to appreciate the vicuñas. The vicuñas belong to the llama and alpaca family. These animals are territorial and wild, so it is possible to see them every day in the same spots. Their wool is extremely expensive and the big companies get their wool only in November of each year. At this point the altitude was 11,482.94 feet.

At 10:20 am we arrived at Patahuasi. This is a small marketplace that sells items made from alpaca such as scarves, purses, socks, hats, etc. At this point the elevation was 12,270.34 feet. Here I would recommend that you drink a coca leaf mate (It is like a tea), made in order to help you with the altitude sickness.

After resting for about 20 minutes, we continued our journey on the bus. We stopped a couple of times to see different kinds of birds in their natural habitat and a lot of llamas and alpacas. Llamas and alpacas are domesticated in Travel Peru
, so we knew that these animals belonged to someone.

Next, we reached the highest point on the way to the Canyon. This point is called the Pass of Patapampa and has an elevation of 15,748.03 feet. Here you can enjoy the view of different volcanoes such as Ubinas, Ampato, Sabancaya and Hualca Hualca. Here you should walk slowly because you can feel the altitude.

After this pass, we were able to see a temporal glacier. It is there only in winter, but not for too long because of the global warming. Most of the volcanoes in this area are losing their white peaks because of it.

At 1:45 pm we arrived in the town of Chivay, whiich has an elevation of 11,919.29 feet. Here you will need to pay for the tourist ticket (US$ 11.00). Our tour guide took us to a restaurant to eat lunch. The restaurant had a buffet for only US$ 5.00. Here you can try delicious typical dishes from the area such as Alpaca (which contains no cholesterol!).

I arrived at my hotel in the town of Yanque at 3:35 pm. This is a nice and comfortable place to stay. Yanque is located 4.47 miles away from Chivay. My tour guide told me that he would be there for me the next day at 7:00 am to continue with the tour. For the rest of the day, I was free.

The hotel where I stayed offers a guided hiking tour, which lasts three to four hours, around the town of Yanque, the Ruins of Uyo Uyo and, lastly, a visit to Yanque’s hot springs. Since I had been in the area last December, I decided to go for a walk by myself, carrying my camera, water and some coca leaves to chew against the altitude sickness.

I left my hotel at 3:45 pm and I really enjoyed the walk despite the fact that I got lost trying to find the Uyo Uyo Ruins. A dog decided to be my “guide” during the hike, although he wasn’t a very good one since I got lost. At 6:45 pm I was back in my hotel after walking around the town and talking to a couple of guys from the town. By the way, on my way back I visited the Colca Lodge. This lodge is pretty nice and has four natural hot springs for their guests. I would say it is the best hotel in the area. My wife and I stayed there last December, and we loved it.

After 5 minutes of arriving at my hotel, I started to feel a little headache. I did not pay attention to it, so I ordered my dinner and I saw some kids presenting a typical dance in the lunch area of the hotel. After the dance, my headache was intolerable, so I took a pill and a coca leaf mate, but I couldn’t finish my dinner. When the altitude sickness hits you, the best thing to do is to rest and drink a lot of liquids. On my way to my room I was able to appreciate a beautiful sky filled with stars. In my room I fell asleep around 8:00 pm.
Travel Peru

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