Shortly after leaving the city in the direction of the Colca Cañyon, the first road signs appear: be warned, this is llama country! Little do we know about the differences between llamas, alpacas and vicuñas, until we find ourselves surrounded by them. With some quintessential Peru pictures as a result.
Our objective for the next morning is to set off at dawn to meet the Colca Cañyon's most famous protagonist, the Andean Condor, largest flying land bird in the world. Though when the alarm clock rings at an ungodly hour, we do snooze a little longer, secretly hoping that the condors are having a grasse matinée... It is Monday morning after all! Travel karma is on our side, because only minutes after turning up at the Cruz del Condor viewpoint around 9:15 AM, le moment suprême (for which other earlier birds have been waiting since at least two hours!) happens: El condor pasa!
So far for our luck that day, as right before the first overnight hike of our trip, all the way (1200 meters!) down to the canyon floor (did I mention this is the second deepest canyon in the world, and twice as deep as the Grand Canyon?), my trusted hiking boots suddenly fall apart. Admittedly, after more than ten years of service. So no other choice but to descend on good old Converses... with one clear objective: arrival in the oasis for Happy Hour at 4 PM!
Already way passed 4 PM, the oasis (as a fata morgana looming in the deep) still seems miles away, and the steep descent over rough boulders and rocks interminable. At the point where our feet consider refusing service (who said hiking was fun?!), we luckily encounter two Frenchies in better spirits, whose distracting chitchat brings us down the canyon in no time. Some well-deserved (and self-negotiated) happy hours are a fact after all! :)
The oasis brings more good surprises: turns out that, for only 15 USD, we can hire a mula for the way back up in the morning. No doubt the best spent dollars in ages! While Jorg (who needs even two mulas! ;) still mutters a bit about not trusting a stupid animal with his life (the canyon edges can be tricky), it only takes a couple of steps under the burning sun for him to be convinced as well.
Back up the canyon rim, in the lovely village of Yanque, heavenly hot springs and some cute llamas and kolibris await us... This is canyon country at its best.
