Destinations >>> Arequipa >>> Cotahuasi Canyon

Cotahuasi Canyon

It extends like a water snake, a powerful snake able to bore through mountains and hills with infinite persistence and tireless spirit to make its way between the deep walls and fertile valleys of the Cotahuasi canyon, considered the deepest canyon all over the world.

The Cotahuasi canyon, which extends from the foothills of the Solimana snowcapped mountain until the confluence of the Ocoña River, has 3,535 meters deep in the Ninacocha sector, nearby the Quechualla town, being the deepest part of a wonderful trip where you can even enjoy lofty lakes, revitalizing thermo medicinal waters, white glaciers and a great variety of flora and fauna.

Declared as Touristic Reserve Zone on March 3rd, 1988, in the surrounding areas of the canyon you can find churches, graves and vast terraces areas (cultivation areas in the hillsides) of pre-Hispanic origin, which are a tangible demonstration of diligence and inventiveness of old Peruvians, in order to obtain the greatest quantity of cultivable land.

Likewise, due to its rough and beautiful geography, it has been turned into an ideal destination to practice adventure sports. A festival of mountain biking, rafting, free flight, rock climbing and trekking is carried out every year.