We have the option of leaving from Arequipa at either 2:00 or 8:30 am.  We arrive in Cabanconde after 6 hours.  We walk for 4.30 hours to Llahuar, at the bottom of the canyon.  We have the opportunity to relax in the hot pools, which range in temperature from 36 to 38 degrees Celcius, and enjoy the view of the nearby geyser. We have dinner and stay the night here in bamboo bungalows.

Around 3:00 am the following morning we get up and start the climb up the canyon, by torch and starlight (such a climb is fiercely hot by day). Those who are feeling very tired have the option of making the ascent by mule.   Breakfast of pancakes with jam or scrambled eggs at the Valle de Fuego hostel tastes delicious after the walk.  We then take another local bus for 30 minutes to the Cruz del Condor.  Here it is usually possible to witness the flight of condors, as they rise on the thermals out of the canyon around 9:00 am.

We catch the bus again and stop in Chivay for lunch and the opportunity for a relaxing 20-minute dip in the hot pools there.  Arrival back in Arequipa is between 4:00 and 6:00 pm.