Blogs from Salkantay Trail, Cusco, Peru, South America - page 2

It had rained hard last night again. It was going to be another muddy hike today and I was not looking forward to it. Puma told us we would have some uphill and downhill hiking today but mostly downhill. As we prepared to head out I chatted with the Swiss group who were trying to decide to whether try to hike or just take a taxi to the next stop. It was tempting decision considering the weather. We packed up and put on our rain ponchos before heading out. The first part was to get out of the campground which was a downhill hike through very thick mud. It was slippery and none too safe. Once we got through that part the hike got easier and we found ourselves walking through a Peruvian jungle full of ... read more

The day started early with a cup of coca leaf tea. The morning was very chilly and the thought of having to leave my sleeping bag sounded dreadful. To prepare us for our long day of hiking we had pancakes for breakfast and were given a bunch of snacks to munch on during the day. Today was our longest day of hiking; by the end of it we would walk approximately 20 miles and cross the summit at 15,213 feet above sea level. While the climb to the summit was gradual, words cannot describe how hard this hike was…. Truly it was one of the most difficult things I have done in my whole life. The altitude forced you to take very small steps and I was still forced to rest frequently. As I got closer ... read more

We woke to frost on tents; Jacob had slept like a rock, I shivered a little between sleeps. We were greeted at our tent door at 6:00 with hot coca tea, which helped. The clouds had rolled in over night, masking some of the views, but bringing snow for our achievement of the summit. Since Jacob had not been home for winter, he loved his chance to feel snow on his cheeks. It took us an hour to reach the summit and then we preformed a ceremony of thanks and positive wishes for the Pachimama, the goddess of earth. It felt awesome to be there, with snow flakes coming down and the glacial ice dimly glowing blues in the cloud light. Now, it was time to descend. We were to have our longest day, but not ... read more

The alarm went off at 4am and I got up ready to be picked up and driven to Mollepata village, the starting point of the Salkantay Trail. I greeted some of my bleary-eyed companions as I boarded the bus and tried to get some more sleep on the journey. We had breakfast in the village, before each introducing ourselves. The group was made up of: couple Briohny and Graham (I'd been confused at breakfast when I kept hearing my name) and Edward, all from England, Antoine from France, Vincent, Jean-François, Sophie and Dave from the French speaking part of Canada, Erik and Gillian from the English speaking part of Canada, Nora and Dakota from the USA, Helene and Kristian from Denmark, sisters Ceciel and Danielle from Holland and two students from Hong Kong, Dominique and a ... read more

Having already done the famous Inca Trail years ago (it was booked until October anyway :) we decided to go for the alternative Salkantay. We did not get an amazing weather but was still worth the journey, the amazing group of people we trekked with all made up for it. Out final day at Matchu Pichu (see next post) was rewarded by some sunny and warm weather...... read more