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Trekking Colca Canyon Without a Guide Or a Tour

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Trekking Colca Canyon Without a Guide Or a Tour TREKKING COLCA CANYON WITHOUT A GUIDE OR A TOUR BY PETER KORCHNAK & LINDSAY SAUVÉ Where is your 1 Toothbrush? Travel the World and Eat Your Salad, Too. WWW.WHEREISYOURTOOHBRUSH.COM/COLCA In this ebook Introduction 3 Planning your solo trek in Colca Canyon 4 About Colca Canyon 4 Weather 5 Cost 5 Packing list 6 Safety 6 Getting there 8 Getting around 8 Entering the Canyon 9 Trek itineraries 10 Day 1: Cabanaconde to San Juan de Chuccho (or Tapay) 13 Day 2: San Juan de Chuccho to Llahuar 16 Alternatives: San Juan de Chuccho to Sangalle or Fure 21 Alternative 2: San Juan de Chuccho to Fure 22 Side trip: Fure or Llahuar to Catarata 23 Day 3: Llahuar to Cabanaconde 24 Cabanaconde 26 Acknowledgments 28 About the Authors 29 2 Introduction While you can visit the Canyon on an organized tour or hire a guide, it’s venturing down there solo that provides the most satisfying experience of the Canyon’s splendor. We wrote and published the original version of this guide to trekking Colca Canyon without a guide or a tour after our visit in May 2014. At the time, we found all of three blog posts to help us plan the trip (one of those is no longer live, as of this writing). So we wrote our own guide as a way to help all those who come after us. Since then, a number of other travelers trekked the Canyon on their own and wrote about it. Meanwhile, the article continues to be one of the most popular ones on our travel website Where Is Your Toothbrush?, pointing to its continued usefulness to hikers. We, therefore, aspire to keep the guide up to date year-to-year, checking for and adding the most current information we can find. This is the May 2018 edition of the guide, its 3rd, completely reorganized from last year and updated with the latest information. We hope you find it helpful. Enjoy! Peter & Lindsay Where Is Your Toothbrush? 3 Planning your trek in Colca Canyon About Colca Canyon World’s second deepest canyon, about twice as deep as the Grand Canyon at 3,270 meters (10,730 feet), Cañón Del Colca is located 160 kilometers (99 miles) northwest of Arequipa, Peru. Named after qolqas, granaries built into mountainsides, the Canyon is about 100 kilometers (62 miles) long. The trekkable portion covered in this guide is roughly in the Canyon’s middle section. While the Canyon has been inhabited for about 1,000 years, trekking here began in the early 1980’s; tourists started arriving in the 1990’s. Aside from the stunning natural landscape, visitors enjoy watching giant Andean Condors soar over the Canyon, wildflowers bloom, terraced farms cascade down the hillsides, village life pass, and indigenous Quechua culture survive in nearly unchanged forms. Colca Canyon from the rim near Cabanaconde 4 Condors One of world’s biggest flying birds, theAndean Condor is one of the main draws of Colca Canyon. The best place for condor watching is Mirador Cruz del Condor, between Chivay and Cabanaconde. The spot is easy to skip if you are bussing directly to Cabanaconde (see Getting around). Add an extra day or take a very early, i.e. 1:00 a.m. bus, deboard, and either hike 2 hours or take the next bus to Cabanaconde. Alternatively, you can do this on the way back. From inside the Canyon, specimens hover in the distance high above like tiny black crosses. Weather The Colca Canyon area is drier and hotter than other parts of Peru. Rainy season, such as it is, lasts approximately from December to March, with February being the wettest. We do not recommend trekking in the Canyon in the rainy season. Consider safety, as there’s a possibility of flash floods and landslides, and comfort. If you do come during this period, pack a poncho, water-proof shoes, and an extra change of clothes. The rest of the year, the Canyon is dry and hot, though temperatures drop dramatically at night. The best period to visit is April thru June. Set out on your daily hikes as early as possible in the morning. There are few trees or shelter to provide shade; by 11:00 a.m. the place is scorching. Bring or buy a lot of water. Cost Hiking in Colca Canyon on your own is not only a more economical option, it’s more scenic and adventurous. A 3-day/2-night trek in Colca Canyon on your own costs a fraction of what a tour company may quote for a 1-night stay sans trekking. For example, in 2014 we trekked three days and spent two nights in the Canyon for S/255 (USD77.70) per person, including entry fee, transportation, accommodations, and meals, while a popular tour company wanted S/480 (USD146.20) for a one-night visit inside the Canyon. 5 In addition, some tour companies only dispatch tours when they reach a minimum signup quota, so even if you are ready to buy, the tour may not happen. The permit for the Canyon is S/70 (USD21.30); a night in a hostal is S/10–20 (USD3.05–6.10), a dinner or a breakfast costs S/10. Water and snacks can be as expensive as an entire home-cooked meal. Packing list Whether you’ve backpacked in the wilderness before or are a casual hiker, pack lightly and remember to bring these essentials: • Hiking boots. Not sneakers, not mere hiking shoes. The trails are uneven and ascents/descents difficult. • Hiking poles. Recommended for descents. • Water. You can buy bottles in the villages but pack extra. • Wide brimmed hat and sunscreen. The sun is brutal, do yourself a favor. • Headlamp or flashlight. To access shared bathrooms at night. • Cash. There are no ATMs. • Toilet paper. Just do it. • This guide. Save it on your smartphone or print it out. There is no wi-fi, except spottily in Sangalle. Safety Basic precautions for hiking in Colca Canyon are the same as in any wilderness area, amounting to, “Don’t do anything stupid.” Acclimatization Colca Canyon is located at a high altitude. Take basic precautions before hiking here. Spend a few days in Arequipa first or add a night in Chivay. Take it easy on your trek, pause and drink water often. Be sure to protect yourself from the scorching sun (see Packing list above). Walking tips While hiking through Colca Canyon, keep to the middle of the path; loose rocks on the edge and uneven hillside terrain pose risk. Be 6 aware of uneven ground on dirt paths. Particularly when headed down into the Canyon, proceed slowly, look under your feet, and keep your knees bent. A pair of hiking poles is recommended. If you decide to admire the views, stop. If you encounter donkeys, scoot toward the landmass, never to the edge of the trail. Falling rocks and landslides The greatest danger is falling rocks and landslides or rock slides. The key is to remain vigilant. Watch for falling rocks and for tremors announcing an imminent rockfall. If you do get caught under a rock fall, step away from the trail edge toward the mountain, pull your backpack over your head for cover, and if possible hide under or against a large rock. If you encounter a trail buried under a small land or rock slide, walk fast over it (a path will often be already made by locals). If it looks dangerous or you hear/see signs of the slide still moving, turn back. Scenes from in and around the Canyon 7 Getting there Buses to Cabanaconde (3,287 meters / 10,784 feet, above sea level), a sleepy town at the edge of Colca Canyon where three principal trailheads are located, depart from Terminal Terrestre in Arequipa. FIND A HOTEL IN AREQUIPA › Bus schedules tend to change so check ahead for the current schedule. The most frequently mentioned departure times are 1:00 a.m., 3:00 a.m., 5:00 a.m., 8:00 a.m. (we took this bus on our trek), 9:30 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 2:00 p.m. Get your ticket early for the popular “normal” morning times. To overnight inside the Canyon the same day, leave Arequipa early in the morning, as steep paths can be treacherous in daylight, let alone in the dark. Alternatively, break the trip down with a few hours in Chivay, then continue to Cabanaconde to stay the night there and hike down the next morning. The trip from Areuipa to Cabanaconde takes 5.5–6 hours, including a stop in Chivay at the Canyon’s eastern end. One way trip from Arequipa to Cabanaconde costs S/17 (USD5.20). Getting around You must have a boleto turistico to enter Colca Canyon. The ticket, valid for 5 days, is available for S/70 (USD21.30) from red- vested Autocolca tourism agency representatives on the bus to Cabanaconde or at the terminus on the town’s main square. Map The network of trails inside Colca Canyon is simple. While there is no official map available, the map on page 12 below (image courtesy of feeb) was in wide use until a few years ago. Newer maps tend to be more colorful but have the same amount of information. 8 No matter the map, they each provide a good approximation of time and elevation changes needed to hike from point to point. If you don’t see distances, don’t worry: they’re deceptive, if not useless hiking up and down the steep slopes.
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