Inca Trail Day 4 - The Sun Gate is a misnomer
Trip Start
Sep 17, 2007
1
38
272
Trip End
Oct 08, 2008
Aguas Calientes,
Peru
Monday, November 5, 2007
It was sprinkling when we were woken at 4 in the morning. Only an hour and a half of walking on fairly flat ground remained until the Sun Gate and the first glimpse of Machu Picchu. We couldnīt get into the park until the first check point opened at 5:30. Everyone wanted to be the first to see our goal.
We had a pancake in the dining hall but no one wanted to eat much so early. We were scheduled to leave at 5 but everyone was ready to leave very quickly and we headed out closer to 4:30. Our guide assured us we would be the first to Machu Picchu
wakey, wakey
. So we stumbled down a rocky trail in the dark for maybe 3 minutes before reaching the check point. Iīm pretty sure everyone thought the check point was going to be farther away. We were the second in line and were soon joined by the rest of the camp. We waited for the guards to show up and let us in.When they did, we all raced for the Sun Gate. Being first while backpacking isnīt really something I consider important, and I didnīt want Erin to kill herself. But she used the adrenaline surrounding the whole affair to really book it down the trail. She managed to pretty much keep her place in the line for practically the whole way. It was a big change from three days previous. It started raining about half way through. The mist wasnīt going to lift. But everyone raced on anyway. Erin ran out of steam on the last climb up to the Sun Gate. We emerged into the ruins to look towards our goal.
We saw mist. It started raining harder. From here it was another hour or so downhill to Machu Picchu. Our guide herded us out quickly, wanting to tour Machu Picchu before the crowds. We werenīt hurrying anymore. The trail was slippery and dangerous. So while the rest of the group raced ahead, we carefully picked our way over the slick stones. Itīs a miracle Erin never hurt her ankle during any of this. We arrived at the Caretakers Hut soaked and discouraged. Mist covered most of the postcard view. It wasnīt pleasant.
We went down to the entrance to store our luggage and change into some drier clothes. Then Victor took us into the ruins and gave us a little tour. We were one of the first groups into the ruins and the contrast to the hundreds of people later in the day was amazing
waiting for the race to Macchu Pichu
. The mist also gave it a mysterious feeling. Machu Picchu was never discovered by the conquistadors, and thus never desecrated. It was found by Hiram Bingham of Yale University in 1911. He also found most of the ruins we had passed on the Inca Trail. No one really knows what itīs purpose was. Less than 200 people could have lived here. But itīs high quality stonework means that it was important, maybe even a retreat for royalty.
We visit most of the temples as we progress through the ruins. One has strange bowls that may have been a mirror to see the stars and study the heavens. Another has two huge wing-shaped rocks with a birdīs head at the center like a condor. The sun temple is hewn out of the rock. The stonework is amazing. They carve it like cheese. Victor shows us a stone said to have 32 sides. Everywhere the mountain and standing boulders are incorporated into the design. The tour ends at a rock supposedly shaped like a guinea pig. We are to meet in Aguas Calientes in a couple hours.
To my surprise, Erin elects to join the rest of the group and climb Huayna Picchu, the mountain behind the city. Only 400 people are let up each day
the "sun" gate
. It is a steep uphill climb. She said she didnīt want to climb anymore stairs. But she headed up the mountain. There are stairs carved into the rocks and cable supports to haul yourself up. Itīs very steep. But when we reach the ruins at the top (yes, they even built things up here), the view of the mountains and MP is amazing. We climb through a cramped Inca tunnel and up to the summit, where we have a 360 degree view of the spectacular setting. Butterflies and other insects flutter everywhere. Lizards hang out for the feast. The trek downhill was even more frightening than the trek up. The mist had long cleared and we made our way over to the Caretakerīs Hut to get the classic view of Machu Picchu. We had to fight our way uphill through massive herds of French tourists. But we finally got our view. The problem was finding a person who could take a decent picture. Itīs really sad how I hold the camera in the right position overlooking the amazing view, carefully position us, and the guy expertly takes a picture of us and the sidewalk. I tried three different people before giving up.
The bus down to Aguas Calientes was pretty fun. A series of giant switchbacks lead from the entrance down the mountain. If the bus meets another one coming up they had to squeeze past or back up
picchu in the mist
. We met our group at a restaurant for a very expensive lunch. For some reason they couldnīt get us train tickets so I had to walk to the train station to prove I existed. This put us on a later train than everyone else. Chris and Sophie had the same problem so we hung out with them and played cards in the train station. We jumped on the train around 4:30. Strangely enough, this is our first train ride so far. It was pretty nice. But we were tired and smelly.We arrived back in Ollantytambo around 6, where we were supposed to be met by a bus. There were a bunch of people holding up signs but we werenīt on any of them. Then we finally saw Chris and Sophieīs names. They had mixed us up. The lady wouldnīt let us on the bus until she called the agency and fixed the problem. We took the bus back in the dark to finally arrive back in Cusco.
The entire experience was a really great time. Most importantly, Erin really enjoyed it as well. She might even trek with me again in the future. We met some of our group for dinner in the evening, and we all parted to go our separate ways. We had completed the Inca Trail. It was a great end to Peru. Now we head to Bolivia.
Travis
