This five day hiking challenge, in March 2014, takes on the mighty 5,520m (17,000 feet) Cerani Pass. Starting and finishing in Arequipa, challengers take in miles of hiking though also seeing some famous touristic sites, including Toro Muerto and the Cruz del Condor. For more information, please contact us.
Day 1: Arequipa – Toto Muerto – Chachas – Andagua
At 4am we will be picked up from the hotel Casa de Avila headed towards the town of Chachas. Along the way, we’ll stop at the famous petroglyph site of Toro Muerto. Here we can appreciate the ancient animal and human drawings etched in the rocks surrounding the area. After a healthy lunch, we will make another stop at Querulpa where we will be able to visit old dinosaur footprints that are millions of years old. The journey will continue towards the town of Andagua and through the valley of the volcanoes. At approximately 5pm we will arrive at our final destination where we will organize our campsite, eat dinner, and spend the night.
Day 2: Andagua – Umapalca – Cerani
After eating a very filling breakfast, we will begin our hike through the canyon lasting about 4 to 5 hours. We will eat lunch at 4,480 meters in the gully of Umapalca. Afterwards, our hike will continue for another 3 hours up through the mountain range with gorgeous volcano views surrounding us all the way to our final destination for day 2, Cerani, at an impressive 5,520 meters where we will once again set up the campsite, eat dinner, and sleep.
Day 3: Cerani – Miña
On day 3 we will hike for about 8 hours headed towards the town of Miña (3,550 meters). We will descend the canyon passing through the arid landscape of the impressive Colca Canyon. Lunch will be at the tiny lake of Miña Uyo (4,620 meters). After lunch we will continue our descent to finally arrive at Miña where we will eat dinner and spend the night.
Day 4: Miña – Choco – Cabanaconde
On this day, we will descend through the valley of Miña for approximately 4 hours to arrive at the town of Choco (2,500 meters) where we will eat lunch. We will then continue hiking for 3 more hours being able to see the impressive Inca terracing still visible in this part of the canyon. At the Choco bridge (1,910 meters) we will cross the Colca Canyon at one of its deepest parts. Once across, we will find our transport that will take us up the canyon for 2 hours until reaching the town of Cabanaconde (3,280 meters). Here we will eat lunch and spend the night.
Day 5: Cabanaconde – Cruz del Condor – Chivay – Arequipa
We will travel to the Cruz del Condor for about 30 minutes where we will have time to be able to view and appreciate the magnificent flight of the condor birds for an hour. Afterwards, we will head to Chivay (3,650 meters) making a few stops along the way to view the impressive Inca work. It will take another 2 hours to arrive to the hot springs of la Calera where we will have time to enjoy the water and relax for an hour. We will then return to Chivay where we will eat lunch and then continue on towards Arequipa. We will return to Arequipa at approximately 5:30pm.
