The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu
Trip Start
Jun 12, 2008
1
11
28
Trip End
Nov 20, 2008
Machu Picchu,
Peru
Friday, August 1, 2008
Day1:
We were picked up from our hotel at the indecently early time of 5.20am. We worked our way round Cuzco centre picking up the other members of our group. Dom and I played our usual game of guess the nationality and profession, something that keeps us amused for hours on end when people watching. Once we had picked up all 13 members of our group we continued in the bus to Ollantaytambo. It was about an hour and a half away (a good opportunity for some extra napping) and then stopped for some breakfast
Dom at the start
. It was over breakfast that we chatted with the other members of our group and got to know who we would be walking with for the next 4 days. We were 4 Brits, 3 Canadians, 3 Aussies, 1 New Zealander and 2 Americans. Once again we were really lucky with the people in our group and everyone got along famously. At the end of the trek one guy made a short speech about how he couldnīt have asked for a better bunch of people to share the experience with...and we all nearly cried!After breakfast we had a short drive to KM82 where we would start our trek. I have to say I was pretty nervous at this point, was it too quick to do this after the parasite? I was also beginning to get a cold and was worrying that might get worse. I also wondered if everyone would go off at a tremendous pace and I would get left behind. However there was only one thing to do and that was to get on with it. So after a group photo session at the beginning of the trek, which took place on some train tracks and we all had to jump out of the way when a train came through, we began to walk.
In terms of difficulty the first day turned out to be fine, it was just like spending a day walking along the Pembrokeshire Coastal Path. The scenery became more and more spectacular as the day went on and we travelled further and further into the mountains. We saw one set of ruins along the way, we could look at them from high above and they were very impressive
The whole group at the start
. Despite all the interest and research carried out in this area very little is known about the ruins we saw along the way. There are all sorts of conflicting theories about buildings, especially at Machu Picchu, so what we were told might be completely different from what other groups were told. Our guide believed that the ruins we saw were a checkpoint or administration point. There are actually 8 Inca trails leading to Machu Picchu and 3 of them crossed near these ruins. After the ruins we had a short walk to the lunch site. It is at this point I need to tell you about the porters. They are amazing and the true heroes of the Inca Trail. Our group was 13 and we had 2 guides, a cook and an assistant and 19 porters. Each porter carries 20 to 25kg along the trail and are some of the fittest men I have ever encountered. They are all about my height and virtually sprint past you, bent double with all this stuff on their backs. We picked our company because they were supposed to treat the porters very well and it definitely showed. Our guys had decent shoes, jackets and backpacks. Other porters had very basic open-toed sandals and then bundled everything into groundsheets which they then fastened round their chests, they didnīt look comfortable but were still much faster than me! Once we got to the lunch point we realised why they sprint ahead of you. We were expecting lunch to be served just sitting on the grass but when we arrived at camp there was a large kitchen tent and another dining tent
First ruins
. As we walked in all the porters formed a guard of honour and gave us a round of applause! At first we were quite embarrassed by this, given what they were carrying, but when the trek got harder over the next two days we began to look forward to the applause when we reached camp!Lunch was amazing, as was all the food on the trek, they certainly made sure we had good, balanced meals to keep up the energy levels. We had an avocado salad, then some soup and then some trout with rice and vegetables. Our cook, Edy, was 22 and was a brilliant chef to prepare such outstanding meals for 36 people. It was some of the nicest food weīve had in South America and thatīs not just because we were starving at every meal time! After lunch we had a nice cup of coca tea, while the porters packed everything away in the blink of an eye and set off again. I love coca tea, itīs such a shame I canīt bring any leaves home with me. It definitely perks you up and Dom and I were ever so slightly addicted and had coca tea at every opportunity round the trail. We also had coca sweets which turned out to be a great 10 minute energy burst!
The afternoon flew by and we were at camp by 3.30, (after 6 hours trekking) where, after the customary applause, we found our tents had been put up in a perfect position with amazing views of the mountains and the valley we were nestled in
Dom on the trail
. We spent some time relaxing and chatting and swapping travel stories. We became really good friends with Matt and Tessa from Newcastle and we taunted each other with all the things we missed from back home, proper tea, roast dinners, crumble and custard, pies, cheese... After a great dinner we were all in bed by 8pm...it was cold, dark and we were tired!Day 2:
After a pretty decent night of sleep we were woken at 6am with a cup of coca tea in our sleeping bags. Nice! Well that certainly did the trick and within minutes we were up and sorting out stuff out and getting ready for the big day ahead. Day 2 is billed as the hardest day of the Inca Trail and the place where most people turn back. You have to climb 1100m up a mountain to 4200m and the top is known as Dead Womanīs Pass. One of the americans decided that enough was enough before we even started and headed back. We decided that we would help a local farmer by allowing him to carry our bag in return for a small fee. It had nothing to do with the fact that we thought it might be difficult with a heavy bag...honest!!! In order to prepare us for the day ahead Edy prepared the most enormous breakfast. There was porridge, pancakes, bread and jam, fruit salad and of course coca tea.
Once fuelled up we began to trek at 7am
More of the First ruins
. Getting up to Dead Womanīs Pass falls into 3 sections, each of which I completed in 1 hour 15mins. The first section wasnīt too bad, it was long but was fairly gentle, the sun was shining and we were happy. At the end of this section we had a quick break for water and snacks (I couldnīt believe I needed snacks after that breakfast but I did!) The next section was really tough, there were loads of really steep steps up through a forest. They seemed to never end, it was just relentlessly up and up and up steps. We were sweating and we had to take loads of breaks to take on more water and catch our breath. Every time we stopped we could look back and see how far we had come and couldnīt believe how steep it was. At the end of the second section the porters had put up the tables and prepared a cheese sandwich, popcorn and coca tea...a second breakfast if you will. We were all really tired by then, our legs were beginning to really hurt but we knew the worst was still to come. The final section was so tough, to this day Iīm not sure how I completed it. As soon as I started walking everything hurt and it felt like the energy from the coca tea was lost almost immediately. It was up, up, up, there were some steps but it was mostly random rocks everywhere and we on more exposed mountainside. Every part of my body was screaming at me to stop but luckily my stubborn side kicked in and there was no way I wasnīt going to haul myself up and over that mountain. So, ignoring my pounding heart and inability to catch my breath (there is no air up there to catch your breath!) I carried on
View from the tent at the 1st campsite
. Slowly but surely I got there, it was definitely a case of one step at a time. We would turn corners only to see more path and the top didnīt seem to be any closer. But eventually the top came into sight and you could hear people already there cheering you on and finally I made it. All 12 of us got there and we had a celebratory group photo at the top. You canīt descibe the feeling when you get to the top and for me it felt all the more sweeter to know that less than a year ago, with my ticker, there is no way I would have made it up that mountain. But there I was, feeling like I was on top of the world, with the biggest grin on my face.Knowing that the hardest part of the trek was now over we began the 2 hour descent to camp and lunch. This descent was entirely down steep steps and our knees took a real pounding. Some people (generally the older members of the group) thought this was far worse than going uphill but Iīm not sure that I agree. Once we all got to camp we had a great lunch and then, knees still wobbling, all retired to our tents for an afternoon nap which was to last until dinner. That night we were at 3700m and it was definitely the coldest night of my life. Even with four layers on I was still freezing and couldnīt get to sleep.
Day 3:
We were woken at 5.30am with more coca tea and were ready to start hiking and hour later
Sunset
. The day started with a climb to the second pass, with a stop to see more ruins along the way. The view from the top of second pass was amazing and we could see two different mountain ranges on either side of us. We then had another long descent to see some more ruins, these were very big and were once a small town and resting point. We then began to walk through cloud forest which was really beautiful. The trees were lovely and there were lots of little streams and waterfalls. The walking was easier, except for our sore legs and knees, and the forest was lovely and cool. After lunch we continued through the cloud forest and got to walk through some Inca tunnels which was quite exciting. Some of the time there was a sheer drop right next to us so we had to be very careful when the porters overtook us. We eventually got to another large section of ruins and explored them for a while these ruins contained temples to the mountains and the Milky Way. The buildings had even been aligned with the stars!After these ruins we were able to walk down to the final camp at our own pace. I would like to stress the word down because we spent the afternoon walking down steps for about 4.5 hours! Before we started walking we were told that once we reached a pylon the path would split in two and we could go right to go straight to camp or go left to take a longer route and see some more ruins
Us and the porters, the true heroes
. At this point the american girl asked "how will we know that weīve reached the pylon?" with the rest of us trying not to laugh our guide managed to keep a very straight face and answer "you will know seņorita because itīs a pylon"! So off we went and we really enjoyed taking our time and chatting and taking photos. By the time we got to the infamous pylon Dom and I were walking with Tim (from Oz) and were in a trio of our own. We decided that we would go to the extra ruins and it turned out to be a great decision. The ruins were a huge set of farming terraces and as we reached them they were bathed in the early evening light and, amazingly, we were the only ones there. It was a really special moment to be there, it felt like the 3 of us were rediscovering them for the first time. We had the whole place to ourselves for about 5 or 10 mins and we sat back and took in our surroundings and the fabulous view. Looking back I think that moment was my favourite of the whole trek, it was even more special than Machu Picchu.When we eventually arrived at camp (after more than 9 hours of walking) we had sore knees and legs but were very happy. There was a great atmosphere in camp because we knew that we were now just two hours from Machu Picchu. That night we had a great supper and Edy even managed to make 2 cakes for everyone which we washed down with "local sangria", Iīm not entirely sure what was in there but it tasted nice
Start of day 2, the smile soon faded
! Day 4:
We were woken at 4am and could hardly contain our excitement that this was the day we were going to see Machu Picchu. It felt like Christmas Day and everyone wolfed down their breakfast and couldnīt wait to get going. Our bodies had a slightly different take on the situation though, I could hardly walk I was so stiff and everything hurt, stairs had become a great problem. We said farewell to our porters and they were going to head straight down to Aguas Calientes (the town below Machu Picchu) and made our way to the final checkpoint. You are no longer allowed to trek along the Inca Trail in the dark which makes getting to the Sun Gate to watch the sunrise over Machu Picchu impossible. However everyone fights to get to the checkpoint so they can be the first group through and then the first people to get to the Sun Gate. We had to wait until the checkpoint opened at 5.30am but we were the 3rd group there (pretty good going considering the first group got there at 3am, crazy people) and everyone was really excited. When we finally got through the checkpoint we were practically running because we knew that Machu Picchu was so close. It was still dark and we had to use our torches for the first half an hour. It meant that everyone was shouting "step", "rock", "big step" etc to help each other out and avoid any twisted ankles, or worse still, completely falling off the path and into the river below.
I had known it was two hours but somehow had either forgotten or refused to believe it. After an hour and a half I was getting tired and couldnīt keep up the crazy pace we had been going at. Our guides had also neglected to mention the vertical steps which we were met by right at the end
Day 2
. They were really tough and afterwards we found out they are called Gringo Killer. But eventually we made it to the top, shook hands with the guide, turned the corner and there it was, Machu Picchu, laid out in all itīs glory in the early morning sun. We were further away than I thought we would be and it took us another 40 mins to get down to the ruins, my knees did not thank me for that last part. We were in the ruins by 7am and were able to enjoy the classic view thatīs in all the pictures, without too many tourists about. After all the trekking it didnīt seem quite real that we were actually there, all our photos look like weīve been superimposed on there! The ruins are phenomenal though, they were every bit as amazing as I hoped they would be. We put our bags into storage and then had a tour around the ruins. If you ever go to Machu Picchu you can tell the groups who have just completed the trail because a) they are dirty and b) they are the ones holding onto things and wincing as they walk up and down the steps!The tour round Machu Picchu was great (if a little painful on the legs and feet) and we got to wind our way through all the other tourists and see everything we wanted to. The stonework there is amazing you can hardly believe that the Incas were able to build it as perfectly as they did. One of the reasons why it is in such good condition is because the Incas hid it from the Spanish buy covering up all the trails, so it avoided the destruction that other settlements suffered
Looking up to dead womans pass
. Our guide told us that when the Incas retreated into the jungle they hoped to return to Machu Picchu and use it as a base to overthrow the Spanish and expand their empire, but it wasnīt to be and it was only rediscovered in 1913. There was a funny moment on the tour when our guide asked "why do you think the doorways were so high when the Inca were so small" Dom replied "big hats!?!" and everyone laughed, but our guide said "yes Dominic, well done". Dom then said that his answer was given in all seriousness and wasnīt a joke...hmmmm!After thoroughly exploring the ruins we took the bus down to Aguas Calientes and checked into our hostel for the night. The first thing I did was have a long hot shower...amazing! We then all met up in a restaurant and enjoyed a last celebratory meal together. Most of the group were heading back to Cuzco that night so we lazed away the afternoon with them and then headed straight to bed when they got on the train.
The next day we passed some time in the market before catching the 12.30 train back to Cuzco. The train ride was really good fun, at one point we stopped and a guy in traditional dress came aboard and did some dancing in the aisles, there is a video on here if you want to see a bit of it. The views of the mountains were amazing and in just an hour and a half we were back where we started four days ago. We took a bus back to Cuzco where we have been passing time for a couple of days before we catch a bus to Arequipa tonight.
Although it was one of the toughest things I have done I am so glad I completed the Inca Trail. Itīs a fantastic achievement for both of us and weīve grown to love hiking and hope to do more, both in South America and back home. Right, well, this was a mammouth entry wasnīt it. You can wake up now Iīm finished babbling! Iīd better be off now and catch my bus.
Lots of love to you all. G x
