On the following morning, after a very hearty breakfast, we left Ocros, with an earnest entreaty to call at the house of the cura, should we ever pass through the village again; but the invitation was almost useless, as there was scarcely a hut, _rancho_, in the village that would have held me and my almaufres. We continued our journey by descending into a deep ravine, where there was no appearance of vegetation, except a few _tunas_ and the _giganton_ rising twelve or fourteen feet high; these, instead of enlightening, gave the scene a more dreary appearance; for these vestiges of vegetation, as they seemed to be, stood on the rocks like way-worn travellers, while their naked trunks craved that moisture from the clouds which they sought for in vain from below. After travelling three dreary leagues, we began to ascend the cuesta of Chiquian; at first we perceived the whole extent of the ravine, _quebrada_, but the clouds soon began to roll beneath our feet, and intercept the view of the road we had just travelled over. Our ascent was very laborious to the mules, but I alighted twice and led mine; in some places steps were cut in the rock, and hollowed out by the feet of the mules and other cattle that had passed.
When we reached the top I expected to have an extensive view of the country, but I was very much mistaken; towards the coast all seemed to be enveloped in a thick mist, and on every other side the mountains rose one above another, or their proximity blocked up the whole view at once. At a distance we could at times see the summit of some mountains belonging to the principal chain of the Cordillera, covered with snow, and we appeared as if completely isolated--the bed of clouds behind us looked like the sea, limited only by the horizon, and before us the mountains reared their towering heads, as if to oppose our progress.
The top of the mountain was covered with some short grass and moss, with a few horned cattle feeding on it; but after travelling about two leagues we began to descend, and our eyes were once more cheered with the view of some straggling ranchos and patches of cultivated land. At two o'clock we arrived at Chiquian, a comfortable looking town, or village, as it would have been called in England. We found here many white families, and some agreeable people; but the whole village was in an uproar, being divided into parties respecting a law suit with the cura; we however went to his house, where we were received with a most hearty welcome.