January 14, 2012

Condors




Will debated whether or not he should pretend to be dead so as to attract the great, scavenging condor. He decided against it. The five hour bus ride to Cabanaconde proved to be uneventful, but wonderfully scenic. We arrived after dark, climbing off the bus with a group of French travelers and wandering the silent streets in search of accommodations. Low and behold, we came across a delightful hippie hostel, packed with travelers who, like us, had shirked the tour companies to spare getting ripped off by exploring the canyon independently. It's an easy place to explore alone and plenty of backpackers are seeking companionship and interesting conversation.


A blurry but a nicely framed shot by Will when the one (and only) condor flew by. Catching the 6:30 am local bus up the mountain, Will and I visited the Mirador del Condor. The first to arrive on scene, we basked in the sunshine, wearing down coats to keep out the wind chill despite the warm sun and keeping a sharp eye for the world's largest bird (by wingspan). Fact: They can weigh 17.5 kilos and have a wingspan of 10.5 feet. According to Will, condors eat elephants which explains why there are no elephants in the Andes. I haven't checked my sources on that.



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