Quick Trip Report

We have returned from a trip to Colca Canyon and Lake Titicaca and feel the need to make a quick report on the trip.  We made this trip with friends, Bill and Pat, and had a great time. However, we cannot report on any depth on the six-day trip and all the things we saw and experienced, so this report is a picture review - no depth but some things we saw.  

We had been experiencing high rain, so our original plan to approach Colca Canyon from the west and go east was thwarted by mud and rock slides. Plan B was to go over a route that Julie and Harold had traveled before - i.e. traveling to Chivay and entering the canyon from the east.  This may sound somewhat disheartening, but we experienced good weather throughout our trip and the touring was excellent.  

We had the assistance of our driver Edgar and guidance from our English-speaking guide Lizzie - so here are some pics!

We spent the first day visiting sites in Arequipa - the Cathedral, Santa Catalina Convent, the Jesuit Church, and the Juanita Mummy Museum. Some shopping was done and a break was needed.  During that break, Bill visited with El Ekeko at a local bistro.

A trip around the city of Arequipa along with a visit to the Mansion of the Founder and the colonial era water mill preceded the trip to Colca Canyon. On the way to Colca Canyon, we passed through the National Reserve and we saw huge herds of llamas and alpacas.  Note the water!

Arrival at Cabanaconde and the start of Carnaval was in progress. Julie and Bill joined in.

A view or the mountains from our Cabanaconde hotel Kuntur Wassi.

Up and ready to go after a hearty breakfast at Kuntur Wassi.

Julie and Harold at the San Miguel Mirador (view point) with the Canyon as a drop back.

Bill takes a break and admires the view.  We all suffered a bit from the altitude and had to do things with some ease.

The terracing that has been done was a never-ending source of amazement. Our guide told us that about 15% of the terracing is being used today.  This terracing was built prior to the Incas.

A cliff cemetery that we viewed at Mirador Choquetico.  The Collagua culture (pre-Inca) lived at the top of the prominences and buried their dead on the cliff sides.

In the village of Maca, Julie and Pat met a Black-Chested Buzzard Eagle and became instant friends.

The Collague culture used these cliff side granaries to store their seeds.  These granaries supplied the right temperature and humidity, and they were safe!

The current farmers were picking peas - by hand.  Here was a result of their handwork waiting to be picked up by the cooperative truck.

The taxis waiting in Yanque.  These are motorcycles with two wheels and seats in the back. They seemed usable and economical.

The local weekly market in Chivay was visited, and here we saw freeze dried potatoes that are said to be good for 25 years. No mechanical refrigerators are used as high altitude drying and cooling is available.

We stopped at 16,000 feet at the pass over the mountains on the way to Puno, the town on Lake Titicaca.

Yareta is plant that from a distance appears to be a moss growing on some rock. The plant is an evergreen perennial, has pinkish flowers, grows very slowly, and some of the plants are over 3000 years old. It grows close to the earth to conserve heat and at altitudes of 14,000 feet.  Our guide said that the locals use yareta to aid in diabetes treatment.

The vizcacha is to the right of the two plants and in front of the boulder.  This rodent is the ecological equivalent of the rabbit in North America. It looks like a rabbit but has a long bushy tail and is related to the chinchilla.

One of the reed boats (actually aided with plastic bottles for more bouyancy) by the Uros people who live on the reed islands on Lake Titicaca (altitude of about 12,500 feet).  More on these islands in an up-coming blog posting.

A reed house sitting on a reed island.  The islands are made on "peat moss slabs" about six feet in thickness that are floating in the water (somewhat anchored) and are covered with reeds.  The islands last about 25 years, but the reeds need to be replenished periodically.

After a boat ride of about two hours on Lake Titicaca, we visited the Island of Taquile, and we had lunch at this gentleman's restaurant/house.  Among a variety of things, he demonstrated a natural soap used to clean sheep's wool.

After our visit on the Island of Taquile, we walked down to the harbor to meet our boat.

The stone tombs at Silllustani were first constructed by leading families/clans of a pre-Inca culture. The tombs had a small entrance placed at the bottom so good spirits could exit and enter.  When the Inca followed, they continued the practice but with improved stone work.  The stone tombs, known as chulpas, were positioned over looking Lago Umayo, because the area was deemed sacred. The remains of a temple to the sun and moon have been found on the flat island in the lake.  It was good to be interred on sacred ground.

The "farmsteads" in the area around Sillustani seem to be well built and unique.  The pottery bulls are meant to give thanks to nature and to seek good luck for the family.

Farming has challenges in the high plateau (Altiplano), and in this case, the challenges of excess water and low temperatures are addressed with broad ditches with the water giving off heat when the temperatures lower significantly at night.

It was a great week with Bill/Pat.  We were so glad they could come.