Colca Canyon is a little jot from Arequipa and claims to be the deepest canyon in the world. Being a native of the American Southwest and having just recently visited The Grand Canyon, I laughed at this statement. Oh, Peruvians, you’re so funny with your, “Mine is biggest!” claims. But, apparently there are many ways in which you can measure things like canyons, mountains, and volcanos. So considering that the top of Colca Canyon is at 13,650 feet, I now believe it is the deepest. The landscape and view were beautiful, with a “quaint” feel compared to the rolling majesty of the The Grand Canyon.
We decided to be adventurous (and also prepare for the trek to Machu Picchu) by doing a 3 day, 2 night trek in and out of the heart of the canyon. Our group was a good size for trekking: me and Rob, two British teenagers, a German guy and Spanish guy around our age, plus our guide. She was a cute little thing of only 20 years old that spoke pretty decent English and was very patient with the slower trekking pace of two group members…who will remain nameless.
We hiked for about 4-5 hours each day either straight up or straight down and camped for the night at some pretty sweet little cabin setups. The second night, our accommodations were right at the base of the river with a large grassy area for soccer and a natural-water pool. It was awesome! (spiders and scorpions aside – hey, it’s the wilderness!). The treks were pretty challenging for us, but lots of fun. I kept shouting, “I love trekking!! Me siento viva!!” (I feel alive) Rob just stared at me with vexation. For me, and Rob claims for him as well, is was so fun because I really got to challenge myself and it is an amazing feeling when you look up a cliff that you’re supposed to climb and think to yourself, “Oh, hell no!” but then find yourself making that final push at the end to arrive at the top. Of course the rest of the group was waiting and erupted with wild applause. “Thank you, thank you, friends! I’ve finally arrived!”
On the bus back to Arequipa we met a really cool young entrepreneur from California that had recently sold his online business for a nice sum and was doing some traveling for awhile to relax, reflex, explore, and re-evaluate. We hope to visit him sometime in the near future! We also stopped at a hot springs and an alpaca farm on the way back.
The trip was a great success! Fun, invigorating, plus we could still walk (albeit with much pain and soreness). Rob’s highlight from the trip was trying fresh, local alpaca meat, and I am thrilled to announce that I did not fall, not even once!! Yes! (fist pump)
We decided to be adventurous (and also prepare for the trek to Machu Picchu) by doing a 3 day, 2 night trek in and out of the heart of the canyon. Our group was a good size for trekking: me and Rob, two British teenagers, a German guy and Spanish guy around our age, plus our guide. She was a cute little thing of only 20 years old that spoke pretty decent English and was very patient with the slower trekking pace of two group members…who will remain nameless.
We hiked for about 4-5 hours each day either straight up or straight down and camped for the night at some pretty sweet little cabin setups. The second night, our accommodations were right at the base of the river with a large grassy area for soccer and a natural-water pool. It was awesome! (spiders and scorpions aside – hey, it’s the wilderness!). The treks were pretty challenging for us, but lots of fun. I kept shouting, “I love trekking!! Me siento viva!!” (I feel alive) Rob just stared at me with vexation. For me, and Rob claims for him as well, is was so fun because I really got to challenge myself and it is an amazing feeling when you look up a cliff that you’re supposed to climb and think to yourself, “Oh, hell no!” but then find yourself making that final push at the end to arrive at the top. Of course the rest of the group was waiting and erupted with wild applause. “Thank you, thank you, friends! I’ve finally arrived!”
On the bus back to Arequipa we met a really cool young entrepreneur from California that had recently sold his online business for a nice sum and was doing some traveling for awhile to relax, reflex, explore, and re-evaluate. We hope to visit him sometime in the near future! We also stopped at a hot springs and an alpaca farm on the way back.
The trip was a great success! Fun, invigorating, plus we could still walk (albeit with much pain and soreness). Rob’s highlight from the trip was trying fresh, local alpaca meat, and I am thrilled to announce that I did not fall, not even once!! Yes! (fist pump)
