Cabanaconde is the trailhead, not the destination. Almost everyone here is preparing for, or recovering from, a descent into the canyon. The main hike is the steep 1,200-metre drop down to the Sangalle Oasis at the canyon floor — a hot, dusty 2.5-hour walk down and a brutal 3-4 hour climb back. The standard alternative is a multi-day loop via the villages of San Juan de Chuccho, Cosñirhua, and Malata.
Above the rim, the village itself has a quiet plaza, a small adobe church, and views west to the canyon walls. The pre-Inca farming terraces in the surrounding valley — still in use — give a sense of just how long human beings have been working this landscape. The Cruz del Cóndor viewpoint is forty minutes east by road.