10/21 - Upper Rio Cotahuasi

We decided to spend a layover day in the small town of Cotahuasi, after driving from the Rio Colca over the altiplano for 9 hours. It was a long bus ride in one of the most deolate areas I have ever been. The drive took us past Coropuna, one of the highest peaks in Peru at an altitude of more than 15,000 feet. We saw llamas in the wild, roaming accross the plains, as well as an amazing high altitude moss that covers many of the rocks in the area. Although desolate, the altiplano was full of vibrant and extreme colors. Whites and neutrals mixed with brilliant greens and the sky blues. It was amazing.

Once in Cotahuasi, we packed into a small hotel for the night. In the morning I got to walk around Cotahuasi around 6am. The town is most active in the early morning as agriculture and work begins in the early hours. I walked through the narrow street, barely noticed by the local people getting ready for their day's work. Smiles and 'buenas dias' were common through the rural village. I stopped to ask directions to the belltower with a few locals who took great interest in why I was passing through their town. Since the village is in the middle of a deep canyon, more than 13 hours from the nearest real city, tourism isn't a major industry here. It was nice to know that our journey has truely taken us OFF the beaten path.

After breakfast, we loaded up the MicroBus to head to the Upper Cotahuasi. This section is seldom run, and anticipation was high as we cruised up the dirt road along the river. Driving this road was pretty incredible alone. From more than 500 feet up we could see the whitewater, peering over the edge of sheer drops on one lane blind corners. The view down into the valley was intense:

Andy, Todd, Ben, Scott Baker, Brian Lee and I got our things ready roadside, peering down towards the whitewater. We guessed the flow at the putin around 400-500cfs, and it seemed like a good low to medium flow for the run. The first rapid was a beautiful 8 foot ledge dropping between huge boudlers. The right boulder was a bit undercut with a sticky hole at the bottom. One by one we dropped over the ledge, like ducks following the leader. Brian got a bit worked and pushed against the wall, resulting in a swim in the first rapid of this unknown Class IV-V river canyon. He decided that was enough for him and hiked back upto the bus which was thankfully still in reach. Jonathan and Ben in the first drop, 8 footer:

Down to five, we pushed on into the canyon with continuous boulder gardens and good gradient. A bit further down there was a sweet 6-8 foot boof into a pool with a boulder in it, choking the landing zone down to a few small feet. I also pinned in one rapid, a strange side to side pin, as my boat fell in between two rocks, momentarily catching me between the two. I managed to wiggle my hips out of the rocks, but it was a first for me. Ben running other drop:

Downstream a ways was a Class V that had a ski jump down the left that landed next to an undercut on the left and a piton rock on the right. Andy and Scott Baker opted right while I went left. Andy styled it of course, while Baker had an interesting variation involving a broached kayak, a back deck roll and running the rest backwards. I hit the ski jump right on, but got pushed into the undercut wall, bracing hard to stay upright.The rest of the run down to the takeout bridge was good, with mixed boulder gardens, Class IVish.

We crusied back to Cotahuasi by way of Alta, a small agri village, and a few other pueblos that really are off the path traveled. On the river we suprised some fishermen who had probably never seen a kayak on the river, despite having fished it daily for many years. It is these moments of clarity and realization that make traveling and adventuring worthwhile and important for me. The look of shared understanding between people who live next to the river, and those who pass through it in a foreign land.