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Published: January 31st 2011
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Relaxing Before the Trek
Hanging out in a hammock at Pachamama's Hostel. Canyon de Colca
The town of Cabanaconde is a 6 hour bus ride from Arequipa. The road winds through barren cactus studded landscape and ascends to nearly 15,500 feet before descending to the warm valley that is the start of the Canyon de Colca. Colca Canyon is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon. While the canyon's walls are not as sheer as the Grand its size is formidable. The canyon is also known for its small colonial towns and villages that are home to the colorful Andean people who farm its steep stepped terraces.
Cabanaconde is a small town that is on the canyon's south rim and is the launching point for treks headed into the canyon. We stayed the night at a Pachamama Hostel. Pachamam in run by Lui (Lewy) and his wife. This is THE place to get info for the do-it-your-self trekker. They also have steamy hot showers (luxuries like hot water can be hit or miss on the shoestring budget) and a tasty alpaca meat in wine sauce.
We packed up and head out after our crepe and egg breakfast (included...can you tell how much we loved this hostel!). We were completely
alone on our descent into the canyon. The sky was incredibly blue and the sun shone on our backs the entire way down. December and January is the rainy season in the highlands. Before we arrived rain had soaked the area for weeks. However, we did not see a single cloud the entire time. Blue sunny skies dominated the hike. The inner canyon actually reached above 90 degrees Fahrenheit. This made the pools of the Oasis seem inviting, yet so far away! The only person we saw on the 3,000 foot descent was a Andean women in traditional dress leading her supply laden donkey down into the canyon.
Our destination is the small village of Tapay. 120 Adean people call Tapay home. It's stepped-terraces date back to pre-Incian time and are still cultivated today with rice, corn, bean, and other staples. To get there we will need to ascend 2,000 feet from the canyon's floor (yes, after having just descended 3,000 feet). The journey will take about 6 hours.
The descent trail seem to cling magically to the steep canyon walls. At times there in a 1,000 foot drop on your right and a sheer rock wall to
your left. Luckily the trail is wide enough for a fully loaded donkey, so two white people with packs are pretty safe. We could see the town of Tapay nearly the entire way down. We could also see Sangelle or what most tourist call the Oasis. The Oasis has a few tourist hotels built around large cool pools of naturally flowing water at the base of the canyon. We will stop there on our way back up tomorrow.
When we finally reach Tapay we are both pretty spent. We made our way to the Maruja guest house. Despite the remote location the room was pretty nice! The bathroom however was a different story. It did have solar heated hot water that came out in a trickle, but you had to fight the ducks to get to it. The bathroom was literally IN the chicken/duck coup. There were also guinea pigs (cuy, in espanol) there for eatin.
The next day was an arduous one, but not without glory. We trekked through the small canyon town of Malata with its own cathedral. Then it was down 2,000 feet to the river and the Oasis. We took a short swim. Ryan
had to keep covered due to some sun burn the day before, you think he would have figured out sun block by now.... Still the cool fresh water felt amazing on our taxed bodies.
From the Oasis it is 3,000 vertical feet back to the hammocks of Pachamama. Step by step through the dry dusty air with majestic peaks to keep us company along the way. 6.5 hours after leaving Tapay we reached the green terraces of Cabanaconde. While physically challenging the hike was never overwhelming. The grades are steep, but easy compared to the 14,000 ft peaks of Colorado. This was the least planned part of our trip but it turned out to be one of the most memorable pieces of our Peruvian journey.
(There are two pages of photos)
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