The Colca Canyon - Sangalle in one day!

Had a change of itinerary when we realised that we were not seeing any of the canyon, only the river valley.
After some negotiations with the tour guide, and parting with some more dosh, we organised a hike down to the bottom of the canyon and back, in one day.

We were picked up at 6.30am and drove westwards, passing through the small villages of Yanque, Maca and Pinchollo enroute to Cabanaconde. We stopped at the Cruz de Condor (3750m) which is a tourist lookout to view Andean condors. It is not always guaranteed. There are approx 30 in the colony near the lookout. We were there very early, 7.45am, a bit too early for the condors to be up and about. Our guide did point out two juveniles who were resting on a rock ledge, but we saw none in flight.

The road was mostly gravel, and we even had to go through 2 tunnels, one of which was 400 metres long. Completely pitch black as you go through, a little scary.

We arrived in Cabanaconde at 8.15 and met the local guide who was accompanying us on our hike, Edison.

We left the Plaza at 8.30am. The first 30 mins is mainly flat, with only slight undulations. Along this section, we met the Camerons who had spent the previous night staying down at Sangalle, a village at the bottom of the canyon.

We continued on, with the track now becoming very steep, half graded track and very rocky, and half stepped. With my little legs, the steps are always too steep. There were many groups ascending as we continued down. Some were being carried on mules.

The views of the canyon and the river below were breathtaking.

It was hard work on the legs. I think I would use the word relentless to describe it. Luckily we had strong legs and no jelly knees! It took 2 hours, 15 mins to arrive at the canyon floor.

We spent the next two hours relaxing at the oacis. 

Nearly there.....

Basic bungalow accommodation and a restaurant.

We ate our lunch dangling our feet in the cool water of the swimming pool.

We set off at 1.40pm to hike back out and started out at a slow but steady pace. The sun was quite warm and for the first hour and a half it was a real slog, having to stop every 100 metres or so. The clouds then rolled in and it became quite a bit cooler so the exertion didn't feel so bad. It was hard work! We arrived back at the Plaza at 5.00pm, tired but elated that we had done the return hike in one day. 1200m down and 1200 m back up!

We returned to the lodge in darkness. We decided to have a rest day tomorrow as the planned itinerary did not sound inviting. We shared stories with the Camerons, hatched plans for the next day and had an early night.