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Inca Trail
Entry 29 of 49 | show all | print this entry |
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From La Paz we set out on a four day trek through we knew as the
"Bolivian Inca Trail". We did some preliminary research (read what other people wrote in travelrs' logs), got a ride from La Paz to the beginning of the trail, and we were on our way.
The Inca Trail is an actual trail, still being used, built by the Incas, and ending in Cuzco, Peru. The trail is built out of stones, so get good shoes, and is a great example of Inca workmanship. On the way you can see wonderful views, beautiful old forts, and amazing stone bridges, among many scenic routes.
On our first day, which starts at the highest point, we were amazed by the views, and encountered a herd of Lamas and appreciated the workmanship mentioned above. It's amazing the Incas could do all that engineering without modern tools, cement, or even the wheel.
We decided to stay outside the first village, even though the children there absolutely demanded candy, and through stones at you if you didn't give them any, reguardless if you simply didn't want to or didn't have any candy to give. But since it was towards the evening we set up our tents, cooked dinner and went to sleep while regaling each other in tales of extraordinary heroism and adventures (Elad's journey with a chunk of gold only to find out it's fool's good).
We woke up in the morning to one of the most impressing views of the trip, tucked between the mountains, at the end of the village; we witnessed a beautiful sunset between the mountains. We packed up our tents, ate breakfast and continued thorough the beautiful mountains. It seemed that every turn presented itself with another "Kodak Moment", and we took as many pictures as we can while trying to preserve film (before digital cameras).
Towards the end of the second day, and into the third we started going into less mountains area, with more vegetation, a sort of forest, almost a jungle. There we came upon a "village", in the sense of a couple of stone houses, with leafy roofs. There we met a happy Bolivian, making wooden spoons by hand, hoping to sell them in La Paz. He will walk there and back, I now regret I didn't buy a spoon.
This was our point to cross the river, we had four choices: walk several miles to the nearest bridge and back, get on a boat which no-one knew when it came, swim, or jump across the river on rocks, between the rapids. Being an impatient bunch, we decided to jump. Taking our backpacks off, and throwing them to one another. Of course I dropped my backpack, and had to jump into the river, grab it and swim to the other side.
I know, it was stupid.
Lucky for me Elad had some spare cloths and I didn't have to be wet for the next two days.
We kept walking through thick vegetation, when we came onto a little brook in the middle of jungle. It seemed like a clearing out of the storybooks, with enough sunlight shining through to see, but all shade, rocks to rest, trees all around, fresh air and water.
A great place for lunch.
We also encountered a wonderful bridge, made out of ropes, crossing a gorge...seemed to be right out of an Indiana Jones movie. After a bit of hesitation, we decided to cross it one at a time. We came upon a house of a Japanese man, leaving on the mountains of Bolivia, tending to his garden who let us stay with him overnight. We set up our tents, helped ourselves to some fruit from his garden (with his blessing) and enjoyed the wonderful vistas.
We continued our journey through our last day, the Inca trail has lost a bit of its magic, after all we've been looking at it for four days straight now, but we enjoyed meeting the locals, seeing how they live and how hospitable they were.
We took a truck back to La Paz, climbed on the back with many workers and drove off. Later we found out it was the most dangerous road in the world.
Overall:
Great trek
"If you didn't do the Inca trail - Bolivia, you weren't really in Bolivia"
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