6 Day Horse Riding Holiday to the Condor's Canyon in Peru

Day 1: Zurite - Ankawasi - Ccacahuara - Ch’uro (3359 - 4200 meters above sea level)

The meeting point to start this wonderful experience will be the village of Zurite in the province of Anta.

• 09:00 The staff that will carry all the equipment needed during the next days, will be waiting for you in the vicinity of Zurite to be able to meet you and to accommodate your belongings in an assistance vehicle. You will then continue to saddle the horses that are assigned for you.
• 10:00 You will begin this adventure at the level of the Pampa de Anta and after, you will go to a hill with eucalyptus forest and enjoy a wonderful view of the Chicón snow-capped mountain. You will start riding downhill until you reach the Ankawasi village (Eagle’s Nest).
• 13:00 Lunch in Ccacahuara
• 14:00 During the afternoon ride, you will reach an altitude of 4,000 meters above sea level. It is the highest point on this day which is located at a distance of two hours from Caserío de Ch’uro, where you will spend the night.
• 17:00 After an arduous work for the horses, you will arrive at this indigenous community of Ch’uro, which is located at the foot of a leafy forest of Qeuñas (Polilepys Inkana).
• 18:00 Dinner and camping

Day 2: Chúro - Pamapa Huaylla - Chonta (3905 - 4083 - 3442 meters above sea level)

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 This day you intend to cross a part of the central mountain range using very old horse paths that connect small hamlets of the mountains. You will arrive at the Pampa Huaylla stream, from where you will begin to ascend to a height of 4,100 meters above sea level. At this height, both your and your horses’ breathing will be accelerated by the scarcity of oxygen. Surrounded by grasslands, you will observe scarce vegetation.
• 13:00 You will have lunch in the grasslands and very close to an old and abandoned vehicle that became silent a long time ago. It seems like if it is the only inhabitant of this unsurpassed spot. A wonderful view of the snowcapped mountains of Humantay and Salkantay will be your inseparable companions until arriving at the Chonta community.
• 17:00 Arrival in the hamlet of Chonta
• 18:00 Dinner and camping

Day 3: Viewpoint of Condors (3442 - 3315 meters above sea level)

• 08:00 Breakfast.
• 09:00 After enjoying a delicious breakfast, you will meet a guide that will carefully guide you down the steep paths of the condors viewpoint. You will cover this way by foot, as the road is suitable for you to enter but not with the horses. It is narrow and right at the edge of one of the deepest canyons of Peru, the Cañón del Apurimac. This scenery is the habitat of the impressive and majestic condor. The same one that nests in the inaccessible rocks and ravines of the canyon. This rugged geography has its own microclimate. Being so sometimes condors fly over the canyon in search of food in the morning hours and often do so in the evening.
• 13:00 Lunch in Chonta
• 14:00 Farewell walk to the Cóndor Viewpoint. If the conditions are not favorable during the morning walk, the strong winds in the afternoon tempt the birds to take flight into the depths of the canyon. In order to see this, you can access three different observation points which are the following:
• Viewpoint 1: panoramic view of the canyon and the river Apurímac
• Viewpoint 2: view of the first rocks and ravines
• Viewpoint 3: view of the depths of the abyss
• 17:30 Return walk to Chonta community
• 18:00 Dinner and camping

Day 4: Chonta - Ch’uro (3442 – 3905 meters above sea level)

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 Horseback ride back to the heights of the grasslands to more than 4,100 meters of altitude
• 13:00 Lunch close to the abandoned car
• 14:00 The terrain that awaits you to ride during the afternoon will allow you to move more easily until arriving at the town of Pampa Huaylla. It is located in the heart of a ravine; from here you will ride to the side of the stream which is also named Pampa Huaylla, until you reach Ch’uro village.
• 17:00 Arrival for camping at Ch’uro
• 18:00 Dinner and camping

Day 5: Ch’uro - Compone (3905 - 4253 - 3354 meters above sea level)

• 08:00 Breakfast
• 09:00 After an hour of riding uphill, a rocky and difficult road opens up in front of you. This one will take you to reach an indescribable beautiful forest of stones. The stony manifestations of this area seem to be incredible, because rock formations are observed that resemble megalithic buildings of the beginning of history. Also there are rocks that resemble prehistoric animals as well as giant birds. Undoubtedly the spots you see of the rocky sets of Ventanayoq, Waachayoq, Quinsa Rumi and Yuraq Qaqa are magical religious places from the beginning of our history. These places are virgins to guided tours, they are a kind of field studies.
• 13:00 Lunch
• 14:00 Recognition walk through the lithic collection of Yuraq Qaqa. This place, due to its capricious morphological characteristics, was adapted to the use of locals for a long time. They hid the cattle or horses here that they stole from different towns. This natural corral camouflaged and concealed by the dense forest of Qeuñas and endemic shrubs has been used by astutely rustlers.
• 15:00 Downhill ride to the town center of Compone
• 17:00 Arrival at the lodge of Compone
• 18:00 Dinner and overnight at the lodge of Compone where it will be finally possible to take a hot shower.

Day 6: Compone - Markjo - Huerta - Huaylla Qocha - Mahuay Pampa - Maras - Mirador Del Valley - Hacienda Del Chalán (3354 – 2800 meters above sea level)

• 08:00 After a good night of rest, the breakfast of our last horseback riding day is waiting for you
• 09:00 During the morning horse ride, you cross the flat Anta area from one side to the another, passing by the towns of Markjo and Huerta. After passing through an eucalyptus forest, you will arrive at the town of Huaylla Qocha and its beautiful catholic chapel constructed in the XVI century.
• 13:00 Lunch in Huaylla Qocha
• 14:00 The last afternoon ride on which you will see on the way different water reserves in the high comunities of Chaquepay, Mahuay Pampa and Maras. Maras town again draws our attention giving us the oportunity to discover different ancient little streets and it’s tipical gates. Just after passing Maras town, you start our descending ride in the direction of the valley.
• 17:30 Arrival at the Hacienda del Chalán in Paucarbamba

Tour highlights

• Visit of the Inka agriculture complex of Zurite town
• View to the Chicón snow mountain
• Panoramic view over the Anta flat area
• Grow area of native potatoes
• Small town of Ch’uro
• Pampa Huaylla community
• Chonta town
• Condor viewpoint
• Ankawasi community
• Eucaliptis forest of Zurite
• Stone forest
• Colonial chapel of Huaylla Qocha
• Valley viewpoint
• Viewpoint over the Huaypo lake
• Maras town
• View to the Humantay and Salkantay snow mountain
• Vilcanota river
• Incomparable panoramic views over the Sacred Valley and the snow mountain chain of the Andes

Peruvian Paso horses

Webster's Dictionary defines “luxury” as, “the use and enjoyment of the best, most precious things offer the most physical comfort and satisfaction.” Luxury may be the single best word in the English language to describe the Peruvian Paso horses. There is something for everyone in this elegant animal: smooth riding comfort, high energy, straight, stamina, intelligence, a tractable disposition, animated, flashy presence, and 100% natural action which sets the Peruvian apart from others.

The Peruvian Paso horses transmit its unique smooth gait to its purebred foals. No artificial devices or special training aids are necessary to enable the horse to perform its specialty, a natural four-beat footfall of medium speed that provides a ride of incomparable smoothness and harmony of movement along with the utmost ground covering ability within on sequence of footfalls. This signature gait is called “Paso Llano” and it is 100% unique.

In addition to an easy gait, the Peruvian Paso horses have brilliant front action movement. It is typified the upward lifting of the front legs combined with “término”, an outward movement of the front legs similar to the loose rolling of a swimmer’s arms doing the crawl. The lift and término are 100% natural. They are fluid, effortless, and well-integrated within the gait sequence.

Of all of the traits that distinguish the Peruvian Horse, the tremendous “brío” is perhaps the most prized by both expert and novice horse people alike. Brío is an inherent quality of a noble and willing spirit that enables these tractable horses to perform tirelessly for many hours in the service of his rider.

The Peruvian horses are the world’s greatest riding horses. They are smooth to ride, beautiful to behold, and have incredible brío - all traits that enable transportation. Peruvian horses excel in many aspects of pleasure riding: trail, competitive trail competition, team penning, sidesaddle, drill teams, musical exercise, and showing.

Physically, the Peruvian horses are horses of medium size and with a refinement. The ideal height is 14 hands tall, with good balance and almost even rations of girth, leg, and back. It may be in any color. The coat and skin are refined and the mane is long and abundant with fine, lustrous hair. The bone is refined but dense in all aspects, overall refinement, grace, and elegance.

The stallions exhibit the powerful arched neck and crest of their Iberian ancestors. Peruvian Horse breeders pay scrupulous attention to genetics, with the three primary qualities being gait, soundness, and disposition.

Tack

The traditional tack of the Peruvian Horse has remained true to his heritage, but they may be ridden in any type of tack that fits properly. The headgear, saddle, stirrups and “guarniciones” (trailgear) used today in shows are the traditional equipment imported from Peru, where it has evolved over hundreds of years. Although many people choose to show their horses in traditional tack, any style may be used. And of course, on the trail, anything goes!

This horse riding holiday takes place in Cusco region, Peru.

+−

You will be served five breakfast, six lunches, and five dinners. Snacks (water, chocolate, and fruits) are also included in the price.

• Peruvian Paso horse
• 5 breakfast, 6 lunch, and 5 dinner
• Snacks (water, chocolate, fruits)
• Professional guide / experienced rider
• 5 nights' accommodation
• Kitchen tent
• Bathroom tent
• Sleeping bag - mattress
• Nurse
• First aid kit with oxygen bottle
• Assistance vehicle
• Horse riding helmet
• Saddlebags
• Rain ponchos

• Picking up or dropping off service (can be organized)
• Alcoholic drinks
• Hotel
• Breakfast on the first day and dinner on the last day
• Tips

Recommended Airports

• A reservation requires a deposit of 40% of the total price.
• The deposit is non-refundable, if the booking is cancelled.
• The rest of the payment should be paid 30 days before arrival.