The adventure started with a 3.30 am wake up call and a weighing duffel and sleeping bags, to ensure each was a maximum of 7 kilograms. The bus wound its way through the pitch along of the early morning, along winding and climbing roads; with an occasional shack visible through the diffused beam of the bus’ headlights.
Our first destination of the day was the last provision shops that we would see for the next few days, a chance to pick up that last chocolate bar, a packet of chips or a bottle of soft drink; I came prepared with my own supplies…. more about that later… Alongside this was the instructions and activity necessary to coordinate 2 guides, 3 cooks, 15 porters who the support party for our group of 16 hikers. It was a sight to behold the personal possessions, individual and communal tents; tables, cars, food were weighted and distributed among the 16 porters, a maximum of 25 kilograms each. The porters were from the same local village with their day job being farming and about once a month completed the Inka trail to supplement their household income.
Several hours after we woke up, with the sun high in the sky; we were finally ready to kick off our 4 day Inka Trail hike into the ruins of Machu Pichu. Our starting check-point was the 82 kilometre mark, Piscacucho (the most common starting point for Inka trail hikes) at 2,600 metres (8,500 ft) altitude; I was glad for the time I had already spent some time at altitude. The trail wound its way through farmland and huts, rising and falling with the contours of the land. We shared the trail with donkeys laden with produce on its way to the market or returning with household from the nearest town.
Our lunch stop was a small village where the cooks and porters had overtaken us to cook lunch; which we were able to eat in a dining tent… Now let’s be clear, lunch was not a sandwich which had seen better days after being transported on a porter’s bag, it was pan-fried fish with rice and vegetables! After lunch, everything was washed and packed and we set off again.
True to my usual form (and level of fitness), I was last to arrive at camp, just in time for a light drizzle to start… The porters had of course, not only overtaken me but had set up all the hikers tents as well as the dining tent (which they would later sleep in). I gratefully climbed in and gratefully took off my hiking shoes; I could almost hear my feet thanking me! Eventually, I summed up the courage to brave the toilet facilities, a “long drop” toilet, a facility without the benefit of solid walls, lighting and running water… I will leave you to imagine the rest.
We were camping under the shadow of the mountain we were climbing the next morning, the famous Warmiwañusqa (“dead woman’s pass”), at 4,215 meters above sea level it would be the highest point I would have been (on foot) and definitely in the altitude sickness territory.
Our second day started at 5 am, with a gentle tap on the tent flap and a boiling pan of hot water and a warm breakfast before starting on a seamlessly never-ending trail and steps up. Initially, it was possible to just walk up slowly without getting too out of breath, then it became harder with the power over the mind becoming more important than the legs and lungs….. I started challenging myself by counting the steps and allowing myself to only stop when I got to 50… towards the top this would rapidly drop down to 20…..
Finally, after 5 hours of constant and steady uphill, I finally made it across “Dead Woman’s Pass”; an achievement that I still bring to mind if a slope up a Sydney street feels a bit steep….
The 600m vertical descend into our second day’s camp on large stone steps which date from the Inka period around 1400 was a memorable experience and one my knees have not forgotten about yet!
The third day of the hike was a long one around 15 kilometres, covering lakes, cloud forests and Inka ruins culimnating in the spectacular ruins of Wiñay Wayna which were just 3 kilometres from the entrance to Machu Pichu. The terraces stretched across the valley and the abandoned buildings were devoid of other hikers, an experience I really only appreciated when we were at Machu Pichu.
CONSIDER ADDING FOOD EXPERIENCES
Reflections 