Hello blog, we have some catching up to do! This week we saw Machu Picchu, an abandoned Incan estate that the Conquistadors never discovered, and one of the seven wonders of the world. There are two ways to see Machu Picchu. Most people go by train and bus to spend the day there, but we braved the Inca Trail!
The Inca Trail is an Incan-made stone path that winds ~40km through the mountains past several Incan ruins, ending at Machu Picchu. Four days of early rising, long hikes, beautiful scenery and early bedtimes.
Our group was 12 "passengers" from the US and Canada, head guide Pedro, assistant guide Miguel, our cooks Benny and Pablo, and 20 Quechua (the indigenous Andean people) porters- Priscilla is writing a post on them. A really great group and now that it's over I'm still in shock that they're not around all day.
Day 1: Bus from Cusco through the Sacred Valley to KM 82 to start our hike. Beautiful warm, sunny day and level hiking to get us warmed up and working together as a group.
Day 2: the hardest day! 1200m rise in elevation to Dead Woman's Pass at 4200m. Elevation and slope were serious enough that by the top the routine was "take a dozen steps, stop to catch your breath." Altitude sickness affected all of us throughout the hike: headaches, stomach trouble, shortness of breath. Woken up in the middle of the night by someone in another group screaming: they swore someone tried to come into their tent and grabbed their leg, but there was no one there. Guides say that site is haunted and this has happened before: spooky.
Day 3: the most beautiful day, even though we were completely surrounded by clouds. Hiked on stunning dramatic paths through cloud forest and past more ruins, and camp on top of a mountain. The clouds let up just as we arrive, treating us to jaw-dropping views of the mountains, and, once the sun set, the milky way. Take me back!
Day 4: the usual final campsite was out of commission due to land slides, so we got to wake up at 2:30am and hike 5 hours to finally reach Machu Picchu! Machu Picchu is one of those places you'd think is over hyped, but it's not. Standing at the Sun Gate watching the clouds sail past through the valley below is unbelievable, a great payoff after 4 days of hiking. Toured the ruins surrounded by clean, normal tourists, and spent the rest of the day feasting and celebrating our achievement and friendships in Aguas Calientes and Ollantaytambo. One thing our guide Pedro told us on the tour was that we've been pronouncing it wrong this whole time: in Quechua it's pronounced Machu "Pik-chu". Picchu in Quechua is a rude anatomical word!
Day 5: Toured Incan sites of Ollantaytambo and Pisac in the Sacred Valley, visited a weavers' collective (yes I went crazy shopping) and back to Cusco for a group farewell dinner.
Yesterday was recovery, errands, Inca Museum, Pisco museum, and final goodbyes, and now we're in Puno to see Lake Titicaca!
We've also had our first gear casualties:
-blue raincoat I've used for hiking since the 90s finally wore out and split its seams. Got a replacement and store clerks said my old one went out well and " joined the honorable dead"
-one hiking sock, lost by the hotel laundry
-the GoPro lasted through most of Machu Pikchu but is now permanently frozen, I'm still trying to troubleshoot.
Am working on adding a photo gallery!
By the time you reach Machu Picchu you are both a tourist and a tourist attraction to the cleaner tourists.
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