PUBLISHED HERE IN SUNDAY STAR TIMES
Dawn was welcomed by a band parading through the streets and it was the perfect wake-up call for the first day of the Inca Trail.
It was 4.30am and coffee was scarce. My partner and I anxiously sat in the hostel foyer, in the muddled town of Cusco, Peru, watching other backpackers lug their impossibly large bags over their shoulders as they waited for their tour guides to arrive. We didn’t know what to expect.
Cusco sits at about 11,000ft above sea level, and the highest point of the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, ‘Dead Woman’s pass’ sits at 13,800ft, or 4200m. Altitude sickness is something to watch out for, it can affect even the fittest people. We stayed in Cusco for three days before the Inca trail so we could adjust and for the first few days we both felt sick. Taking altitude sickness pills seemed to help (Sorojchi pills). What didn’t help was getting food poisoning on the first day, from a local Irish bar we ate at the night before. But that wasn’t going to stop us.
Photo by Alexandra Nelson. A porter makes his way down the steep slope.
Our quirky tour guides Marco and Percy welcomed everybody on board the bus. We made our way through the mountains as drops of sunlight reached across the windows. The rickety dirt and cobblestone roads made it a wobbly 2½ hour ride. Parts of the road were so thin we had to back-up and wait for other cars to pass.
We passed the villages of Chinchero, Urubamba and Ollantaytambo and stopped in the Sacred Valley for breakfast before continuing for another 30 minutes to our starting point, at the Vilcanota River.
We stop for a short break to admire the view.
The first climb across the Vilcanota River was steep, everyone in our 16-group tour was wheezing – but this was meant to be the ‘easy day’. We stopped after 20 minutes in the blistering Andes heat, surrounded by mountains to introduce ourselves and learn about the local fauna – and one that was going to help us: cocoa leaves. Yes, they are the same ones used to make cocaine and we chewed them to help give us energy and overcome altitude sickness. They’re sacred to the Andes.
The next few hours we saw our first Inca ruins of Llactapata, discovered by American explorer Hiram Bingham in 1911. We passe the ruins of the Inca hillfort of Huillca Raccay and Cordillera Urubamba mountains with the snow capped peak of Veronica in the distance. Sweating in the Andean sun was a strange contrast while gazing at the snow. Hours later, we arrived at camp Wayllabamba with our tents already set up by the porters and our dinner sizzling away, prepared especially for our tour from our designated chef.
Photo by Scott Thornton. Walking poles are recommended for the Inca Trail.
The toughest day began at 6am with a light breakfast and a side of sore legs.
Luckily we were able to hire a local porter from Wayllabamba who carried one of our 12kg bags. That was a lifesaver and made day two more manageable.
Photo by Scott Thornton. Talking some deep breaths in to admire the cloud forest.
We continued for one hour to Tres Piedres, meaning ‘three stones’ and a small bridge over the Huayruro river for a break. Here we were lucky enough to take part in a ritual where our tour guide, Percy shared a part of his culture with us. We picked three stones out of a river which each represented somebody special in our lives. The ritual involved placing them on a ledge above the mountain and kissing them, it’s a way of sending love and leaving all your ‘bad energy’ behind.
Along the way there are mini stores where hikers can buy gatorade and snacks which is exactly what we needed. I must have had at least two litres so far, because it was stinking hot and I still felt very ill from food poisoning. The tour guides are so understanding and supportive, and there was no pressure to keep up with the group if you feel like lagging behind.
After an encounter with a cute kitten, a few holes in the ground for toilets and little buckets to wash our hands, we continued on for three hours through steepening woods toward Dead Woman’s Pass.
A popular photo spot on day three of the trek.
The steep climb to the peak of 4200m was tough to say the least. Our tired bodies were soothed by the sound of an old man playing a traditional Peruvian flute at the peak. The sound drifted through the mountains as we admired the view.
On the descent we were guided by cold winds, a nice change from the blistering heat – it was all downhill from there.After over six hours of hiking, we had made it to our second campsite – Pacamayo.
Day three: Pacamayo to Winay Wayna 15km
Photo by Scott Thornton. I had to take a break to pat the lamas in the middle of our trek.
The longest but most beautiful day of the trek. We woke up at 3.30am and it was time for both of us to lift our heavy bags once again.
We were lucky to have ‘tent service’ and enjoyed hot cocoa tea and hot chocolate while snuggled in our sleeping bags.
The path today is almost all originally from the Incas. At one point, we had to climb up a staircase on our hands and knees because it was so steep.
Photo by Alexandra Nelson. The sun rises over Machu Picchu from the Sun Gate.
We came across the Inca ruin Phuyupatamarca, meaning Town in the Clouds. Access to the ruins is down a steep flight of stairs passing six Inca Baths.
Winay Wayna is the last official campsite before Machu Picchu, and we celebrated the last night with a cake made by our incredible chef. Everybody was amazed that someone could bake a cake this high in the mountains, without a proper kitchen.
Photo by Alexandra Nelson. Two lamas casually stroll through Machu Pichu.
Day four: the final day to Machu Picchu 5km
We were welcomed by a light breakfast and the scent of cocoa tea hanging above the breakfast tent. Our legs were aching from hauling our belongings through tough waving terrain from the past three days.
Photo by Alexandra Nelson. Stone walls look over the surrounding mountains.
Fragments of light lit the final part of the trail for us as we moved toward the Sun Gate to make it in time for sunrise. Once we arrived, we could see the whole of Machu Picchu laid in front of us as the sun began to leak through the clouds.
A short walk down from the Sun Gate we reached the famous ruins. We had a two hours tour and celebrated the end with a crisp beer at the tourist bar. There was no better way to finish the tour than that. Not to mention kicking off our shoes and being treated to a hot shower and massage in the local town, Aguas Calientes afterwards.
Photo by Scott Thornton. The markets in Cusco, Peru are a rainbow of colours.
What we loved: The views, the food (three meals a day), the campsites and tour guides.
What we didn’t: The dirty toilets – of course we didn’t expect first class while we were hiking, but these were beyond a joke. It would have been cleaner to use a bush for a toilet. Tourists who caught the train to Machu Picchu were swarming the ruins even when all the hikers arrived early. Priority should definitely be given to the hikers who did the hard yackka.
Our tour guide, Marco, gives us a hug at the end of the journey. We are all exhausted.
More information perutreks.com
Getting there LAN flies from Auckland to Cusco, stopping in Santiago and Lima on the way. Once you arrive in Cusco you can arrange to be picked up by your tour from your hostel. From there the tour bus drives up to the starting point of the Inca Trail.
The writer travelled on her own time.