Two o'clock in the morning is when we set the alarm, in order to be ready for pick up by 2:45 for our Colca Canyon tour. I think I managed to get a few hours of sleep - and the anticipation of seeing the canyon and visiting hot springs was enough to motivate me to wake up in the darkness.
As soon as we got on the bus, the tour guide gave us the plan for the day: drive to Chivay (which would take approximately 3 to 3.5 hours) to have breakfast, stop at viewpoints in the Colca valley on the way to the canyon, hike to a viewpoint in the national park to see the giant condors, hot springs in Yanque, have lunch in Chivay, go to Patapampa to see the volcanoes, check out alpacas, then head back to Arequipa. First things first - sleep on the bus. This was actually my preferred coping mechanism to deal with the rolling hills, winding roads, and high altitude - I still felt a bit queasy at times, and had to put on my seatbelt to avoid getting bounced out of my seat, but thankfully, no nausea.
When we got to the Colca valley, the sun was just rising, and everything looked so peaceful. I got the perfect window seat on the bus to take photos, and admired the changing geography (from the city to desert oranges and reds to river valley greens and yellows). As we approached Chivay, it looked like a decent size, nestled in the lush valley, as the capital of the Caylloma province in the Arequipa region. There was a welcoming gate when we entered the town, and we saw unadorned, practical structures for homes and other buildings, made mostly of clay or stone. Breakfast was a simple offering of eggs, avena con chocolate (oatmeal with chocolate), bread, and coca tea - perfect for 6 in the morning, and important fuel for the rest of the day.
As the driver deftly wound us through the twists, turns, and tunnels, we saw the river dividing the valley sink deeper and deeper into the ground. The landscape became more terraced - signifying how much of the land was actively being used for agriculture. Apparently, each terrace is a micro culture, and terraces are managed very similar to fields, where they are left fallow to replenish nutrients on a regular cycle. We learned how challenging it is to maintain the lands - as prices for transportation and distribution increase, more families are now farming for themselves and local communities, instead of trying to export their produce elsewhere. Another source of income for these valley communities is tourism - everytime we stopped, there were always booths selling things like coin purses, hats, and alpaca sweaters. Sometimes there would be Indigenous people dressed in traditional clothing posing with alpacas/llamas for photos.
At Colca Canyon, in the national park, we followed our tour guide on a short 1.7km hike to admire one of the deepest canyons in the world. As we hiked, we got to see the different cacti up close, flowers that thrive in the high elevation, and giant condors gliding above us with their massive wings. It was tough to climb at 3700 meters above sea level, and even though my legs weren't tired, my heart was beating much faster than normal - I had to take breaks to make sure I didn't overdo it, and was really thankful I had prepared myself by taking altitude pills and drinking lots of coca tea. I was proud of myself for making it up the steep incline to the condor viewpoint at 3800 meters elevation - and a bit anxious as I think about our upcoming Rainbow Mountain hike, which will take us to 5000 meters! Hopefully I'll be more acclimated to the altitude by then.
Once everyone made it back to the bus, we headed to Yanque for some relaxation in hot springs - the best reward after completing the hike! The water wasn't too hot (35 to 37 degrees Celsius), which I think was probably a good thing at such high elevation, and the bright sunshine made it much more comfortable to get out of the water - it was the first time getting out of water where I wasn't chilled immediately! The outdoor pools of water were nestled in the sides of the valley, separated by a suspension bridge (to cross the valley), basking in the warmth of the sun, above the gentle river. The only thing that would have made the experience better was showers to clean ourselves before/after - unfortunately we could only towel ourselves off before hopping back on the bus.
Lunch was back in Chivay, but at a different restaurant that served a buffet of Andean specialties, including alpaca, trout, and vegetable croquettes. With our tummies full again, we headed up to Patapampa, at 4910 meters elevation, to see all the volcanoes in the region - some of them are still active (e.g. Sabancaya), but nothing looked amiss while we were there. A short drive from the volcano viewing was an area where a large group of alpacas were grazing around a lake - there were so many fluffy camelids, and all of them were so focused on eating that they didn't even notice we were there.
3 hours later, we were back in the historic center of Arequipa, after driving through the much more modern downtown - which was kind of similar to Lima, where the big brands were visible (Bitel, Little Caesars Pizza, H&M, etc.) and evidence of the "White City" was harder to see. The rest of the day was spent just relaxing, since we had already done so much.
Tomorrow will be our last day in Arequipa before heading to Cusco!
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