The Colca Canyon, twice as deep as the Grand Canyon, lies only a few hours from Arequipa. At its beginning it's about 1,200m deep, but apparently reaches over 4,000m deep! Ideally we would have preferred to do a hiking tour of the Canyon, but we had an overnight bus tour included with our Peru Hop ticket with a local tour company so we took that option.

They collected us bright and early and we hit the road, receiving some commentary about the White City as we drove away. There were a few other Peru Hoppers on board as well as other tourists.

As we drove across the high plains we were able to take some photos of some Vicuñas, the non-domesticated version of an alpaca, and had a brief stop at a roadhouse for some coca tea and snacks before continuing on.

At the highest pass of the trip, around 4,910m we jumped out to take photos as well as add our own pile of rocks to the thousands of rock piles dedicated to Pachamama. From here we could see the Volcanos, El Misti, Chachani, Ampato and Sabancaya. Sabancaya had a steady stream of smoke coming from it, apparently a very normal sight. Along the descent from there to the town of Chivay where we would stay for the night, the road wound through some beautiful mountainous landscapes. We also stopped by some llamas and alpacas grazing under the watchful eye of their owner for another good photo op.

Arriving in Chivay we were taken to a typical rip off tourist restaurant for lunch. It was an all you can eat buffet however, so we made the most of it which helped for our busy afternoon.

After checking in to the hotel we met the guide for a walk. We made our way through town, then crossed a bridge on the other side of which was a section of some original Inca trail. With the altitude we walked along it very slowly, passing a burial site and a plaza area.

At the end of the trail the bus met us, just in time to escape an approaching rabid dog, and took us to the hot springs. There were 2 pools but one was a fair walk down hill. We stayed in the top one so we wouldn't have to walk back up again, lazy we know but we were here to relax after all. The glass windows looked out over a lovely view of the Colca Valley.

For dinner we agreed to go to a touristy restaurant with traditional style dancers. Normally we wouldn't do this type of thing but the Peru Hop paperwork said it was really worthwhile. The cheapest menu option was to share a pizza, which we did and it was absolutely horrible.

The dancers were actually ok, but not amazing. We spent most of our time avoiding their gaze so as not to be pulled up to dance with them, but alas Fergus was spotted! He was dragged onto the dance floor then away behind a wall along with another girl from our tour. We all wondered what was happening until they emerged in full costume for "The Dance of the Condor".

In a big black cape and a giant Condor head Fergus skipped gleefully around the dance floor. We all knew that our ability to spot a Condor the next day relied on how well he performed. The question is, was it good enough???

Our start the next morning was very early, around 5.30 for breakfast. We set off along the picturesque road towards the Colca Canyon, stopping in a small village along the way. In the town square we encountered lots of market type stalls selling knitted alpaca goods, which was pretty normal.

What we also found here was a few disturbing sights. Some of the local school children were putting on a show for all the tourists, dancing traditional dances in traditional clothing around the middle of the square. We just hoped that the money they were collecting at least went towards school books or something. We also saw a few alpacas, llamas and eagles, mostly tied by their necks or feet, being kept solely so tourists could pay for the privilege of having a photo with them.

Once we had been given sufficient time to prop up the local economy we continued on towards the canyon. We passed by other small villages as we continued through the colca valley, as well as some stunning terraced farmland. Our guide told us that in some areas, since the last big earthquake, the ground is sinking by around half a metre a year!

We reached the canyon and the lookout point called The Condor Cross, where Condors are often spotted. Our guide jumped out to see if there were any, but we were out of luck. Instead we drove a little further to another vantage point. We would be extremely lucky to spot any as it is nesting season.

We all jumped off the bus and to our delight spotted 2 condors gliding through the air in the distance. Fergus' dancing had pleased the Condor Gods! One was an adult, mostly black with white feathers on its wing and neck, and the other a juvenile with black and brow feathers. The juvenile flew right in front of us a one point, but the cheeky b***** timed it at the exact moment our camera ran out of memory space!

We had wondered what all the fuss was about with condors, a very important creature in South American culture. Watching them soar majestically over the mountains and the canyon, we suddenly understood.

The condors disappeared after a little while. We returned to the Condor Cross lookout where we began a short walk along the canyon. This section was the start of the canyon, apparently around 1,200m deep. It was amazing to see, though we were disappointed that after such a long trip we spent so little time there, and only saw the canyon at its shallowest point. But, there were more town economies to support!

We stopped at several other towns and lookout points with market stalls on the way back towards Chivay. At one point we were able to buy some ice-cream handmade from the local cactus, which was tasty. In the town of Yanque we saw their beautiful church. Several more animals were on hand for photos here. One man had his eagle trained to complete 4 set poses which quite a few tourists were encouraging by having their photos taken.

We arrived back to Chivay for lunch, having spent more of the morning stopped at markets than at the actual canyon we had come to see. Afterwards was the long drive back to Arequipa.

LAPFWT