Blogs from Salkantay Trail, Cusco, Peru, South America - page 4

Our adventure to Machu Picchu ! . By taxi packed with 8 bodies, a truck conducted by a priest who knows how to take every curve with grace, a pully train rattling down the jungle rails, a army jeep full of a Quechua speaking family of 10 stopping in the middle of their constant jokes to pick avocados in the road, and by our very own feet, we arrived in Machu Picchu in a record two days (when the trail typically takes 6 days). We were chased by bulls on a thin mountain trail, and never has my adrenaline been so effective as we scaled the steep wall with our heavy backpacks. We carried all of our gear straight up the mountain without the typical relief of mules, and never has my legs trembled with fatigue. ... read more

The allure of hiking the Inca Trail from Cusco to Machu Picchu is undeniable, but to dodge many of its inherent problems - the crowds, the commercialization, the months of planning, the steep steps, etc. - the Salkantay trek is a wonderful alternative. In fact, in talking to some who have done both, many consider this trek to be equal or even better, for well under half the price of the Inca Trail. The one thing that it lacks is the mystique of being on the Inca Trail, other than on the 4th day when you are on part of an Inca Trail. Some who actually did the typical trail do say that the night before Machu Picchu, sleeping near other ruins is actually better than the main event. The hike is five days long and ... read more

Where to begin? I think that this one will be long winded, but so much has happened that even cutting out tons of details it will be a long blog. I cannot believe the journey we have undertaken over the past five days, the ten of us have trekked almost 60km starting in Mollyampa and ending up in here in Aquas Calientes. Our trek has been a stunning way to discover the beauty of Peru, and also learn more about each other than we probably would have liked. As Morgan says, there is something extremely satisfying to walk where no other motorized mode of transportation could take us. The jury is out on whether or not the trail was easier or harder than what we were expecting, for me the most challenging part was the last ... read more

Er kam, sah und siegte :D Ich habe einen treck gemacht. das hat mir supergut gefallen. mit vielen bergen und schoenen momenten. meine erste exkursion ohne probleme. es hat zwar viel geregnet (das wort regenzeit ist nicht falsch zu verstehen) und einige haben in ihrem zelt gebadet, aber mir gings immer gut. ich hab sogar kein geld ausgegeben, weil wir abends immer gepockert haben (und ich doch irgendwie gut bin, obwohl ich erst einmal gepockert hab) und ich immer gewonnen hab. hihihihi. das ziel der reise war machu picchu. sehr sehr beeindruckend und schoen. die fotos sprechen wohl baende. jetzt bin ich wieder in cusco, esse jeden tag 60 gramm schockolade um wieder zuzunehmen und in einem tag gehe ich wieder nach lima. das waers auch schon von meiner seite. jetzt ist mein letzter monat (mehr ... read more

We were excited to be back trekking again, after our first and very enjoyable trekking experience in the Himalayas in May. This was relatively easy in comparison, only 4 days and with the highest point only being 4,600 metres. Day 1 - We met our guide, Silberio, the night before for a briefing and arranged our pick up for the following morning. It was an early start. We were picked up from our hotel by minibus at 6am. We had booked what we thought was going to be a group tour, but the company had confused themselves with dates and ended up running a trek for the dates they had confirmed to us, and were unable to find anyone else at short notice to join the group. So we ended up with a private trek for ... read more