The first run of the Colca Canyon - May/June 1981

The first run of the Colca Canyon - May/June 1981. 40th Anniversary of the First Descent of the Colca Canyon in Peru. , May 18, 1981, marks the beginning of the descent of the Colca. Two kayaks and a raft are immediately carried away by the fast Colca current. The bed of the river is lined with boulders of various sizes, polished smoothly by rushing water. Sometimes they form a narrow passage, which makes steering difficult. With big rapids every hundred meters, the water drops down up to five meters as the river descends. This is nothing compared to the upcoming 800-meter vertical drop. The further they venture down the canyon, the more obvious it becomes that this is a one-way trip. Only forward! There is no turning back!, The explorers experience their baptism of fire on the second day. First, the water forces one kayaker out of his kayak, then the raft overturns, and one of the crew disappears in the water, a frightening sight for everyone. Fortunately, he comes out of troublesome water unscathed. But this is just the beginning. Two days later, the water smashes one of the two kayaks against the rocks. Although the Colca rushes by, the expedition seems to have stalled., Numerous waterfalls, sometimes combining two at one point, forces the explorers into portages , the tedious lifting of a raft, carrying it or sliding it on the ropes consumes a lot of time and energy., There are days when, despite many hours of struggle, the group manages to cover only a few kilometers., After a week of toil, it becomes clear that the food (initially only enough for seven days) will have to be rationed to last the remainder of the journey. The further and deeper into the canyon they go, the stricter and wilder the land becomes, land through which five paddlers, accompanied by photographer and filmmaker, must traverse. The huge rock debris rises several hundred meters up, and below, there are piles of boulders, which look as if they had only recently broken away from the walls and tumbled into the river. From a very inaccurate map of Professor Arias (still the only one available) that shows the route of the Colca River through the canyon, it appears that Hacienda Canco is not far ahead.