The Guinness Book of Records describe the Colca Canyon as the deepest defile in the world, being two times deeper than the Grand Canyon. Despite all this, there are not many people that decide to admire this natural wonder.
Still, the ones that will get there, will be rewarded with an amazing view - a crevasse in the mountain that looks like it has been split with a knife. The high mountains that guard the Colca river can get to more than 3,200 meters, sometimes their tops being hidden in the clouds.
The Colca River starts high in the Andes and the surroundings of this water and the foothills of the canyon has been the home for thousands of people, even since the Inca times. Cultivating Inca and pre-Inca formed terraces and growing lamas are the reasons why people are still inhabiting the area. One of the villages is covering more than 56 kilometers, a common characteristic of this kind of settling in the mountains. The Inca period is representative for the title of the area itself - the Inca word colca refers to small cavities in the ground, used for food and vegetable storage.
Around this village, the canyon reaches its greatest depth - about 3,140 meters. But the way people managed to live here and the way they are currently living, along with these breathtaking sights are not the only reasons to visit the canyon. These lands are the home of the majestic condor. Visitors can see from a short range, the magnificent Andean condors, flying through the canyon. This species of condor is the biggest land bird in the whole Western Hemisphere. The International Union for Conservation of Nature declared the condor a near threatened species.
Not like any other canyon, this one has lots of diversities to offer. The depth and the flow rate of the river modeled the cliffs and the mountains like nothing else and nowhere in the whole world. Moreover, the presence of the vegetation make the sights lively and colorful, no matter what season there is.
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HotelClub Travel Blog is where the weird, the wacky and the wonderful world of travel comes together. You will find posts on green/environmentally friendly travel ideas, interesting and obscure destinations and hotels as well as posts about the cultural side of travel. We also feature 
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