the inca trail trek was one of the most mentally and physically challenging things we have done and we are generally a pretty active couple...i had anticipated it to be hard, but for me more than jimmy, this was quite the challenge due to my battle with mr. altitude...which nearly crippled me at times.
after all was said and done and reaching the end which of course was machu picchu, all i can say is this venture was amazing, painful, beautiful, epic... i have never seen so many changes in scenery, historical ruins, or gigantic mt. peaks. truly a once in a lifetime opportunity for us and i am so glad we did this.
we went with a company called llama path that is known for the excellent treatment of their porters (we had 22) and great tour guides...and our guides marcelino and flavio could not have been better. really funny guys full of so much knowledge and passion for their history and natural surroundings.
day 1: after a 3 hour bus ride, stopping for breakfast and checking in to the trailhead with our permits we were ready to start our adventure around 8:30 in the morn. let's do this!
group at trailhead
the first part of the trail was more rugged looking and full of spanish moss covered trees, various cacti and walls of bromeliads. we passed a set of ruins and several little villages/homes all while looking at huge snow capped mt. peaks in the background.
heading towards the snowy mts.
cactus
before i was crawling
ruins in the valley
bromeliads
this hike was already hard for me only a couple of hours in. sleeping only for a few hours the eve of the hike got to me and i just couldn't adjust and begun to have major struggles with the altitude. it was sorta disheartening too, because todays hike was nothing compared to what was to come on day 2 from what we had heard. i became out of breath on the slightest inclines. just any exertion was a chore. the second i stopped i would be fine. it was such a bizarre feeling.
by the end of the day we were in the back of the pack and i basically threw a fit...total mental breakdown..."why did we pay for this sh*t!?" kept going through my head...bless jimmy's heart for staying back with me and giving me pep talks of how stoked i would be at the end of all of this because i was a total baby for awhile there. moving on...
our break for lunch was a sign of things to come meal-wise...the spread of food llama path put out was insane. multi-course meals of peruvian specialties. just what the dr. ordered after expending so much energy. i passed out in the grass after lunch and woke up to being eaten alive by these weird fly things that became one of my many nemesis over the next few days. i got terrible reactions to these severely itchy bites, huge lumps with rings and a bloody oozy center. how attractive!
our wash daily wash setup
porters working hard
after my crummy mood
typical run-in on the trail
our day ended coming to a camp set up with an amazing view of snowy mt. peaks. as with every night, we sat down for a happy hour of snacks and coca tea followed by card games, dinner and an early bedtime.
day 2: dead woman's pass. altitude of around 14,000 ft. thousands of inca steps straight up, which felt more like a million. kill.me.now.pleeaaase.
jimmy, wait for me!
we climbed so high we were literally in the clouds by the end. we chewed wads of coca leaves like they were going out of style. my face and mouth was numb from the leaves and my legs were numb from a stair master workout form hell. at some points i could only take 10 steps then had to rest to stop my racing heart and heavy breathing.
half way there
chaw full of coca
what is crazy to me is how the porters literally run by you and they are carrying packs of 55 lbs and i have a day pack on and am struggling. one of our porters was 64 years old. insane!
after several hours of trekking essentially on a stairway to heaven, i stumbled to the top and it was such sweet relief! being that high up there is little vegetation, just mainly wild grasses and a few shrubs.
ready for a nap
wobbly legs
thankful for him motivating me
group at the top
many meters up
from the top we descended down a huge hill of many steps into cloud forest. downhill is a breeze for me so i was one of the few who preferred and thrived on the downhills. it is harder on the knees the slower you go so it is best to just plant your hiking stick correctly and jam down the steps. the scenery changed a lot on the downhill and became a misty rainforest atmosphere with a ton more pesky bugs. start to finish, it was a very long 10 hour day.
going down...
...and down some more.
pole vaulting
jimmy getting the special treatment for headache
lost in a foggy cloud
misty mountain
2nd hill
edge of the earth
hobbits
camp
day 3: we only hiked half day today since we pushed it so hard on day 2. yeah! smooth sailing through the rainforest.
morning view from tent
marcelino & flavio = great guides
it was very moist along this leg and the coolest colored mosses are growing all along these massive inca walls we trekked upon. halfway through day 3 we passed a ridge above the final town closest to machu picchu, aguas calientes.
pretty mosses
aguas calientes
visited another huge set of ruins and upon arriving two llamas came charging down the mountain and began wrestling and biting each others ankles. we quickly realized this was a mating ritual and not some wrestling match...but then upon further inspection, it was decided it was two male llamas...soooo uhhh we were not sure what was really going on in the end but they were game for a nice photo shoot. so peruvian postcard.
back that a** up
llama sutra
postcard moment
this llama was not amused
oh, just some more steps
running out of picture ideas
we got to camp at midday and napped, then took off for a late day walk to one more set of ruins. the ruins tended to get more and more dynamic and incredible the further into the hike we got which of course was closer to macchu picchu.
huge terracing
some old windows
sat down to a huge final feast and several hours of playing mafia with the group. we really had a blast getting to know everyone. honestly couldn't have been paired with better people. some of them living short term in peru and some on an indefinite vacation with no return ticket home and some, like jimmy and i just out for a few weeks to explore amazing peru. steven, pieter, arend, patrick, ruben, erik, paul, ben, nitzan, vimmi and pulin thanks for some great memories!
went to bed unable to sleep with so much anticipation and excitement for what we had come on this journey for in the first place...machu picchu!!!
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