This particular stop and the next one were not included in last years tour, but many people said they wanted to visit Arequipa and also Colca, the Canyon of the Condors. So that was our plan.
It was a relatively short run, so we left a little later than normal. The road climbed up a high pass, almost to 5000 m, being actually 4910 m via many winding turns, ideal for a motorcycle. There were all the usual plaques and signs on top, but one thing that really stood out was the Apu's, tiny piles of rocks, each made by a person to ensure that their soul was lifted to the mountain tops when they passed. The interesting thing was that there were thousands of these, spread in every direction, with some a few kilometres from the summit.
Chivay is a village if anything. It has one decent restaurant and one reasonable hotel - ours. But neither were special. I had to lug the luggage up a double set of stairs, which while possible is always a challenge with multiple cases or bags.
Having done that, we had decided to go to the hot baths, about 10 km up the road. The heated water is artesian, not surprising given the volcanos nearby. Will drove us in the truck , while the others had a re-run on the winding road just for fun. We arrived to find that the proposed spa was closed, then realised that there was a new one just a hundred metres further on, accessible by a swing bridge across a fairly raging river. We arrived to find about 7 man-made pools all at different temperatures and only one other occupant. So we tried a few until we found a hotter one. Then the crowds (and our colleagues) arrived an hour later - I guess after work, and soon there were 300+ people present! We really enjoyed the hot spa and slept well, for an early start as the condor only fly in the early morning and evening.
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