Up and out of Colca Canyon

The Oasis from above

When I got up in the morning, my ankle felt better but was still very sore when I put weight on it in the wrong way.  Even though I was still dissappointed about not being able to hike out of Colca Canyon, I was confident I had made the right decision to go up by mule.  No need to have ankle problems the rest of my life especially since I love hiking so much. 

The mule ride out of Colca Canyon was actually kind of fun. It took a while to get the hang of how to sit and stay balanced with the continually shifting angle as the mule climbed rock and turned corners.  At times it seemed pretty scary when I was hanging over the edge of a several thousand foot drop.  The mules were very sure footed and I was amazed at some of the steep stepped rocks they climbed.

It was a beautiful day and as we ascended the canyon walls, we went from beneath the clouds, through them and eventually far above them.  Also, we had some sun today so, it made for some better, more colorful pictures. 

I left on the mule ride about an hour after everyone else and finally passed some people near the top.  Omar, Mary Beth and Mark had just reached the top and were resting as I went by. I continued on into town and they came in just behind. It was 8:30 am and we went to a small restaurant for breakfast of scrambled eggs, coffee, and bread with jam. 

We had to walk to the edge of town for the bus to pick us up.  We all got into a large tour bus except Prince and Kam´s group as they had their own Van.  We said goodby as they left town.  They were headed to Nasca the following day.

The bus ride stopped at a couple of places on the way back to Arequipa.  the first one was a natural hot springs just outside of Chivay.  The second was in Chivay at a restaurant that served an all-you-can-eat buffet which almost everyone opted for.

The Buffet Line

My Plate