The Inca trail was described to us as tough but worthwhile and I´m chuffed to report that both of us were able to complete the trek without too much discomfort. The first day was spent walking along the side of the Ulatambo river getting to know the guides and the 14 other fellow walkers.
Fortunately we were very lucky and the group got on brilliantly with people from Germany, Poland, the US and Australia. Some people even laughed at my jokes which was a real treat! The first night was spent in a small campsite just above the cloud forest. The toilets on the trek left a lot to be desired but we somehow managed to get by.
Day 2 was the really tough day including the walk up to Dead Womens Pass, which at 4200 metres is the highest part of the trek. It was at this point that one girl broke down completely and had to be carried by one of the porters! Maura and I were the first two up as we had the power of the Rocky soundtrack blasting over the Ipods.
Day 2 also saw us spend some time at a couple of Inca sites that were used as messenger homes and sacred sites. the guide gave us a lot of quality info about the fact the Inca´s performed brain surgery and successful blood transfusions. They also invented Penecillin, bad luck Fleming! It´s just a shame that they liked to hump their own sisters and as a result all died of Hemophillia...
Day 3 was relatively easy and was more a chance to get infront of other groups at the campsite near Machu Picchu. We arrived after lunch and were able to take a hot shower, a luxury that we desperately needed. A few beers were then consumed to celebrate arriving so close to our destination.
On Day 4 we got up at 4 in the morning so that we could be ready to see the sun rise over the Machu Picchu site. Unfortunately the weather had other ideas! We raced up to the Sun Gate arriving just before 6 to be confronted with miles and miles of fog. No Inca ruins anywhere! We could either laugh or cry.... we chose the former.
Fortunately the sun decided to burn through the fog and when we had walked down to the ruins they were easy to see and really lived up to our expectations. They whole place is a brilliant example of some seriously perfect engineering. For example at the winter solstice a single sun beam shines through the sun gate (1 mile away on a mountain top) into the top window of the Sun temple. I can bore you with lots more stuff but I´ll save it for the pub when we get back!
We were given a guided tour of the ruins then let loose for an hour. Maura and I decided to run up the hill next to the ruins called Waynapichu to get an aerial view and we weren´t disappointed, the whole scope of the place is spectacular.
We then left Machu Picchu to spend some time in the hot springs of Aguas Calientes. Our bodies have been pushed by constant bug attack, some vomitting and a lot of very large Inca steps. I´m looking forward to a massage a lot!
Next stop is Sorata in Bolivia for Mountain Biking and Jungle trekking, I´ll let you know soon how we get on.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment