Machu Picchu - we did it!

Our group at the beginning of the Inca Trail

Hiking the Inca Trail to get to Machu Picchu was basically the premise for our entire trip to South America. Although nothing could have prepared us better for the gruelling trek than two months of disaster travelling, I was still nervous about how the whole trip would pan out. Two nights before the hike, I was struck with a horrible cold but nothing could have stopped me at this point. Here´s a rundown of the 4 most arduous but rewarding days of my life so far:

Day 1

The first day was hot, dusty, and long. After an overnight stay in the neighbouring town of Ollaytaytambo, our group of 7 was met by our guide, Julio César. We could not have asked for a more amazing guide - this was Julio´s 500th Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu in just 14 years, making him an incredible wealth of knowledge and experience. They let in 500 people per day, including civilians, guides and porters, and at this point in time the Inca Trail is booked solid through to November. We spent most of the day listening to Julio point out surrounding landscapes and Incan ruins, as well as getting used to the terrain and setting a comfortable walking pace. After walking from sun-up to sun-down, we finally arrived at our first campsite where we were greeted with cheers and applause from our porters. This is something that we´ve encountered throughout all of our travels in Peru and Ecuador - no matter where we go, the service and food are always beyond spectacular. Every night we´d be enthusiastically greeted by our crew, and they would have our tents and eating areas beautifully set up. There was even individual wash up stations with clean water and soap for all of us before our meals. Our cook, Carlitos, was phenomenal and somehow managed to make different delicious concoctions every day of our trek in the middle of the Andean mountains. Oh and every morning we were awoken with steaming mugs of delicious hot chocolate.

Day 2

The only way to describe the second day was god-awful. There was 7 km of constant uphill hiking needed to reach the dreaded Dead Woman´s Pass or Warmiwañusca and each step was more painstaking than the last. I now have calf muscles bigger than my waist to show for it. The worst part is that we were walking at an altitude of more than 4000m, making it difficult to fill our lungs with air. It was kind of like trying to climb uphill for six hours with a 10 pound weight sitting on your chest. As we meandered along the valleysides, we could hear Julio playing El Condor Pasa on his flute from a distance. It was encouraging, if not a bit insulting, that he had so much more energy than we did.

Us at the top of Dead Woman´s Pass - 4200 m above sea level

Julio encouraging (mocking?) us along the trail

Day 3
This was the best day ever! After reaching the highest point of the hike at the first pass, the hiking on day 3 was easy-peasy. As we began our descent, the pine forests and dusty rocks turned into lush rainforest vegetation, and on either side of the trail there were orchids, purple lupins, red mosses and hummingbirds. The way to the last campsite was almost entirely downhill, and by the end of the day we picked up the pace until we were almost running fullspeed down the trail. It´s amazing how much everyone´s strength and stamina improved. We were almost euphoric when the last campsite came into view, with everyone congratulating and high-fiving one another. Wiñay Wayna is the last stop for everyone before they leave for Machu Picchu the following day, and the entire town was buzzing with excitement. At dinner I was so pumped up that I couldn´t sit still - we had almost conquered the Incan trail, I could finally breathe without difficulty, and I didn´t need three pairs of socks to sleep that night - what more could you need from life?

Taking things easy on day 3

Day 4

We woke up at the ungodly hour of 3:30 am. Somehow we had convinced ourselves that we needed to be the first to reach Machu Picchu, to make Julio proud for his landmark 500th trip. By quarter past 4, we were the first ones to reach the control point, where we had to wait for the gates to open in the morning. Other groups had the same idea, and we sat there grinning in the dark, where the other groups found us and groaned with disappointment as they realized they were the second, third, forth, etc. to reach the gates. Julio warned us that every day groups were very competitive when it came to reaching the ruins first, and that often people were pushed off of the path when they got in the way. I thought it was a bad idea, but when the gates finally opened a surge of adrenaline rushed through me and suddenly I was ahead of the pack with Chris, a fellow Canadian. We realized it was very possible that we could be the first to reach the ruins, and so we sprinted the entire path under the cover of complete darkness while tumbling down rocks, heaving ourselves up the steps and pushing spiderwebs from our faces. As we reached the last leg of the trail, the sun began to peak over the ruins, revealing that we were indeed the first to reach the eastern gates of famous Incan ruins. Exhausted, sweating but exhilarated, what else would two triumphant Canadians do on Canada Day as the sun rises over Machu Picchu? Belt out Oh Canada to the rest of the world, of course!

Getting ready to burst through the gates at 5:30 am

Sprinting up ridiculous Incan steps to be the first at the sun gate

And Machu Picchu itself? It was incredible, but I wouldn´t do it any justice by writing about it. Plus you´re all going to hike the Inca Trail yourselves one day, right?

-V


Machu Picchu Stats:

• Total length of Inca Trail: 45 Km
  
• Altitude at Kilometre 82 (the starting point): 2600m
  
• Highest altitude at Warmiwañusca: 4200m
  
• Hours spent hiking/climbing/crawling: 25 hrs
  
• Record time for completing the Inca Trail: 3.5 hrs
  
• Number of times I felt like giving up: none
  
• Best meal during hike: Mashed potatoes stuffed with carrots and peas, chicken breast with rolled mozarella cheese and ham and pasta salad. Finished with a cinnamon and clove mulled wine.

p.s. we haven´t posted any photos of Machu Picchu itself for those of you out there who are like us and want to see it for yourself.

-meghan