Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
LAGUNA DE SALINAS
This lake (4300m above sea level), east of Arequipa below Pichu Pichu and El Misti, is a salt lake that becomes a
white salt flat during the dry months of May to December. Its size and the amount of water in it vary from year to
year depending on the weather. During the rainy season it is a good place to see all three flamingo species, as well
as myriad other Andean water birds.
Buses to Ubinas (S12, 3½ hours) pass by the lake and can be caught on Av Sepulveda. A small ticket booth on
Sepulveda sells tickets, and schedules vary so it is a good idea to inquire a day before you wish to go. You can hike
around the lake, which can take about two days, then return on the packed daily afternoon bus at around 3pm (ex-
pect to stand) or try to catch a lift with workers from the nearby mine. One-day minibus tours from Arequipa cost
about S150 per person; mountain-biking tours are also available.
Cañón del Colca
It's not just the vastness and depth of the Colca that make it so fantastical, it's the shifts in
its mood. There are more scenery changes along its 100km passage than there are in most
European countries; from the barren steppe of Sibayo, through the ancient terraced farm-
land of Yanque and Chivay, into the steep-sided canyon proper beyond Cabanaconde that
wasn't thoroughly explored until the 1980s. Of course one shouldn't turn a blind eye to
the vital statistics. The Colca is the world's second-deepest canyon, a smidgeon shallower
than near neighbor, the Cotahausi, and twice as deep as the more famous Grand Canyon in
the US. But, more than that, it is replete with history, culture, ruins, tradition and - rather
like Machu Picchu - intangible Peruvian magic.
Despite its depth, the Cañón del Colca is geologically young. The Río Colca has cut in-
to beds of mainly volcanic rocks, which were deposited less than 100 million years ago
along the line of a major fault in the earth's crust. Though cool and dry in the hills above,
the deep valley and generally sunny weather produce frequent updrafts on which soaring
condors often float by at close range. Viscachas (burrowing rodents closely related to
chinchillas) are also common around the canyon rim, darting furtively among the rocks.
Cacti dot many slopes and, if they're in flower, you may be lucky enough to see tiny
nectar-eating birds braving the spines to feed. In the depths of the canyon it can be almost
tropical, with palm trees, ferns and even orchids in some isolated areas.
The local people are descendants of two conflicting groups that originally occupied the
area, the Cabanas and the Collagua. These two groups used to distinguish themselves by
