Our last and final 'package tour' of the trip was to be a three day trek down the world's deepest canyon. And up again. As has been the case in Bolivia before with our two day Salt Flats tour and three day Pampas adventure, we were to get our money's worth here in Peru. We'd met an amazing girl called Karla in Aguas Caliente one evening who was actually from Arequipa. When she heard we planned to visit her home city she revealed how homesick she was (she had moved to A.C for a few months to help some family friends with their restaurant) and spent over an hour with us planning our trip there and recommended her friend's tour company: PeruShweiz. We headed there straight away on arrival in Arequipa and were impressed immediately. For once we didn't have to spend hours upon hours comparing the different companies. For 35 pounds each our trip was to include transport, a guide, two night's accomodation (including one night in an isolated village with a local family) and meals. Oh, an walking sticks for the challenging trek ahead.
As always with these tours, we couldn't just get on with it immediately and start with the trekking. We first had a 3am pick up from our hotel followed by a five hour drive (the highest point reached 4910m above sea level) to see the Flight of the Condors (no, not conchords). We were taken to a viewpoint over the canyon for not only stunning views but also a bit of condor spotting. I think we saw one in the distance once, I think. The condor is the second largest bird in the world after the albatross according to our guide so they shouldn't have been that difficult to spot.Our guide explained however that there were less and less condors these days due to pollution in the river below.
It was then on to the village - Cabanaconda - from where we were to begin our trek and we were pleased to find out we had a little 'free time' before our incredibly early 11am two course lunch. Chris and I had a great time because, in typical Peru form, the villagers seemed to be having parties left, right and centre. We followed one band down a small residential alley and found they were celebrating a wedding. Of course they invited us in but alas, our 'free time' had almost run out and we had to head for lunch. Yet another example of Peruvian gaiety and celebration - they seem never to stop! I cannot get over the friendliness of the people in Peru and also how much attention is spent on celebrations.
The women here have a different 'costume' to those we came across in the Andes and Peru. Here, the patterning on their skirts and waistcoats was incredibly intricate (all made by hand of course) and their matching hats were of a different shape too.
After lunch it was finally time to begin the trek, but only after watching a few more groups of locals dancing and singing their way around town in a Catholic celebration for the Virgin del Carmen. School children also paraded around with candles while the priest shouted (indoctrinating...) Catholic lines out which they responded to. Cool. Or something.
We were in a group with two French couples enjoying their three week summer holidays and a 19 year old American student called Chris. Our guide Angel took good care of us and immediately explained the huge piles of rocks on the track to the canyon. People are so connected to nature here and respect Mother Earth an awful lot - we've seen before people pour water onto the ground before drinking it (or in the case of our Death Road driver, highly potent alcohol) to thank the earth for providing it and give a little back. The mounds of rocks we now saw, the Apachata, were in order to give thanks and pay respect to the mountains and the mountain gods - everyone who passes normally adds a stone to the mound. After an ''Ok Chicos! Vamos!'' from Angel, we were off.
Chris:
A few facts...
1) At 4150m deep, this is the deepest canyon in the world. Apparently the US's Grand Canyon is the third.
2) The Colca river is named after food storage houses
3) Today's descent was going to be 1001 metres!
2) The Colca river is named after food storage houses
3) Today's descent was going to be 1001 metres!
Of course, I'd brought along every item of winter clothing I owned and thus had two extremely heavy and full bags. Idiot. Why did I do this? Because I was so sick of going on three day tours and freezing to death - from the Salt Flats where we'd been promised a heated room to the Pampas where we'd been promised 30 degrees and sun, we hadn't had much luck! So this time, I wasn't taking any chances and brought everything. And of course, needed NOTHING. It proved incredibly hot for the duration and the only thing I succeeded in was breaking both mine and Chris' backs. How clever.
Chris:
We learned three tips to trekking:
1) Going downhill for long periods is actually more exhausting
2) 3-4 minute breaks are maximum efficiency, otherwise there's no way you're standing up again
3) Light snacks like Oreos or Ritz are a necessity
1) Going downhill for long periods is actually more exhausting
2) 3-4 minute breaks are maximum efficiency, otherwise there's no way you're standing up again
3) Light snacks like Oreos or Ritz are a necessity
Chris is absolutely right. We trekked for around three and a half hours downhill to begin our trek which may sound easy but trust me... when you're fighting with tiny gravel stones that slip under your feet when it's really steep, and huge rocks that sometimes roll down the canyon if you touch them, there are way more challenges to consider than your fitness or the firmness of your thighs. I am a terrible down-hiller and really, this proved to be the most challenging part of our two days hiking. The local women of course complete this 'walk' in their sandals (which we later found out are recycled from car tyres giving them a long-lasting sole!) and with huge sacks on their backs.
We were also shoved to the side a few times by the donkeys and mules making the trip to the villages with necessities such as beds and mattresses. Amazing. The villages we were heading for had no road access so the only way to get vital items to them was using mules. We later asked Angel about education and healthcare and he explained that when they reach secondary level, the children have to go to live in Cabanaconda with friends or relatives in order to attend school. For primary they have to walk for a few hours with their parents to reach the nearest one. Once finally at the bottom I was so pleased to learn that we had arrived only 5-10 minutes later than the others - I'd been convinced they'd been waiting for about half an hour. Very pleased and proud if I'm honest!
Chris: We were destroyed by the long descent to the canyon's river. Our guide was extremely supportive but did admit we were on the slow side. Our overpacking had taken it's toll on the shoulders. Steph was also not liking the loose rubble walking downhill one bit.
The trek didn't end here though. We now had to head up again! And through a few villages before finally reaching our accommodation for the evening in Cosnirhua village which proved very comfortable. We were lucky enough to enjoy a hot shower (water heated by the sun) before a dinner of extremely traditional Peruvian food cooked by Angel and the mum at the house. We tried a fried ball of mash potato filled with cheese - amazing! Exhausted, we all headed to bed right after dinner and were all asleep by around 9pm! (Our 3am start hadn't helped with our energy levels, I don't think).
The next morning we were introduced to the many many guinea pigs who live in the kitchen under the stove by the family's young son and enjoyed banana pancakes before our gruelling trek on day two. First, we stopped in the next village, Malata, where a lady explained many traditions and ways of life: we were shown how to grind corn into a floury substance, how to plough the ground and many other things. Then, it was all down hill again. Luckily it was only an hour and a half this time and the reward at the end was HUGE. A crazy oasis at the bottom of the canyon complete with swimming pools, a huge lunch of Spag bol and three hours of relaxation time.
Angel continued to point out interesting facts of nature such as this natural mosquito repellent. We rubbed potently-smelling leaves all over our arms in preparation for the mossies at the oasis.
The white blobs on the cacti are, weirdly, insects...
If you crush them, their blood proves to be a great dye for wool and other materials. Peruvians really use this natural resource for dying their wool - we'd had a demonstration of this process during our day on the 'Inka Express' some weeks before and were interested to learn where the insects came from.
Chris: Finally the oasis appeared between lush green canyon walls at the bottom with waterfalls. Soon we found ourselves swimming in pools and lazing in hammocks.
Eventually it was time to make the ascent back up again which we'd all been dreading. By this time, mine and Chris's backs had broken in two carrying all the winter clothes I'd brought so we shared a mule along with the French couple to carry our bags up. I know, soft aren't we?!
Chris: We decided over the Spag bol lunch to leave asap to get the dreaded hike over with so as to also arrive before dark. Half of us decided to go up carrying only liquids and transport our bags up by mule. The Parisian couple split the cost with us and let me tell you I'm glad we were in this half of the group. I think with back and shoulder pain from the day before this may have avoided a year of chiropractor therapy down the road. Young student Chris who ate a record amount of coca leaves in the morning sprang up the mountain and left us all behind in the dust. Marie and Dennis were ahead of us by a quarter of an hour.The climb was a true challenge except this time we actually enjoyed the spectacular 3hr hike and even completed in 2.5 hours!
We made it!
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