To avoid the large masses of tourists we leave at 06:00-06:20 am, we pick you up from your hotel in the city of Arequipa. Then we continue towards the Colca Valley.

We take the road via Yura and as  we will be able to look at the south face of the snow-capped Chachani 6075 meters above sea level and the Misti volcano 5825 meters above sea level.

We will also be able to appreciate the suburbs of the city of Arequipa, which has only been populated since the 80s, due to a great drought in the Peruvian Andes, Puno, Cuzco and others.

These people migrated to the city of Arequipa looking for new opportunities.

As we leave the city, we see that everything changes, we will see many varieties of cactus and in the distance to the north we see the imposing Sabancaya Volcano 6318 meters above sea level continuously erupting.

After a 2-hour trip we will arrive at the Aguada Blanca and Salinas National Reserve.

This reserve has a size of 366,936 hectares

It has 37 species of mammals and 158 of birds.

5 species of reptiles, 4 of amphibians and 3 of fish.

The flora is basically made up of 358 species of plants.

Our first stop in the reserve is in Pata wasi – Pampa blanca.

From here we can see the north face of the Misti volcano, also small lagoons that are very close to the road where the vicuñas are located.

Vicuñas are one of the 4 species of South American camelids that live in this reserve in the wild.

We can see groups of family units led by an alpha male.

We can also see groups of vicuñas made up only of males, fighting among themselves and thus preparing to displace the alpha male from the group of females.

After this natural spectacle we headed to Patawasi, here we can use the bathrooms and if you didn’t have breakfast at your hotel here you can buy coffee, sandwiches and the famous coca and muña mate which is good for combating altitude sickness.

This place is located in a natural environment surrounded by nature where we can see rock formations, a forest of stones of volcanic origin.

Then we continue on the north route along a completely paved road that cuts the national reserve in half.

On the way we can see groups of Llamas and alpacas.

We will get off the car to appreciate, get closer and, as far as possible, caress these South American camelids.

Usually these camelids are found in wetlands where they find a microclimate and environment appropriate for better quality fiber and meat.

We will also appreciate and visit Tojra pampa, which is a very important place within the global ecosystem where to protect species it was declared a RAMSAR site.

These places (RAMSAR) are protected for their biological diversity, they are among the most productive environments in the world and a refuge for several species of flora, fauna and birds from different latitudes.

Thus, we climb progressively passing through a volcanic complex called Chucura until we reach the viewpoint of the Andes known as Patapampa 4912 meters above sea level.

From this natural viewpoint you can see part of the Pacific ring of fire such as El Misti Volcano, Chachani volcano, Sabancaya volcano, Coropuna snow capped, Hualca-hualca volcano, the snow-capped Mismi where is located the origin of the Amazon River and the snow-capped Ampato where it was discovered famous Juanita mummy.

So far during this entire tour we have avoided the large masses of tourists because we have left two hours before the normal departure.

Then we descend with the transport until we reach the town of Chivay 3700 meters above sea level.

Together with the town of Yanque, they are the two towns where large groups of tourists who are organized by the classic tours sleep.

To avoid these large groups, we go to the right side of the Colca Valley, crossing the Colca river until we reach the typical town of Coporaque.

In this town we trek for 1 hour in the middle of nature and pre-Inca terraces.

At the end of the trek we have a typical lunch prepared by a local family.

This activity is the favorite of our guest friends, you will eat what we Peruvians eat at home based on quinoa, native potatoes, alpaca meat, among others. There are also vegetarian options.

And the most important thing is the interaction with the lady of the house, you will be able to hear how she still speaks the language of the Incas: Quechua dressed typically.

That’s why our tour is called Special Culture and Nature Tour.

After this experience, we cross  to the other side of the valley (left side).

Before reaching the town of Yanque we will stop at the Occolle viewpoint.

This viewpoint is important because from here you can see a set of pre-Inca terraces that shape an amphitheater and which some specialists maintain was an agricultural laboratory that was used to adapt corn to the different ecological levels of the valley.

We take advantage of the fact that we are already close to the Yanque thermal baths and at this time there are no tourists.

We recommend you bring towels and a swimsuit.

Then we continue to the Cruz del Condor, on the way we will visit all the natural viewpoints of Choquetico, Wayrapunku, Peña Blanca, hanging pre-Inca tombs.

You can stop wherever you want.

This visit is done without tourists because everyone will stay in Yanque or Chivay. We will have the valley and the viewpoints just for us.

We arrive at the Cruz del Condor to appreciate the beginning of the geological formation of the Colca Canyon.

Condor nests are found in its inaccessible walls.

If we are lucky, we can see the condors returning to their nests. It’s impressive to see a place like this WITHOUT TOURISTS.

Then we do a trek from Media Luna to Cabanaconde, it is a descent from 3700 to 3300 meters above sea level.

We walk for 1 hour; We can observe the locals in their daily activities and also the sunset.

We arrive at the Casa Santiago hotel, dinner.