At 6am I was picked up from my hostel by the Qénte minibus to begin the 5 day hike from near Molliapatta to Machu Picchu, the so called Lost City of the Incas. There were five Gringos (tourists!), made up of four from the USA (Bill, Bryan, Kristen and Jack) and me. There was our guide, Olly (a Peruvian), two chefs, two porters and six horses/donkeys to carry our stuff which included tents, stoves, tables, toilet etc. We started at about 3400 metres and hiked uphill for about five hours before we set up our first campsite at about 4100 metres. The lack of oxygen in the air made the going tough but managable. The scenery was spectacular, especially given we were heading towards the snow covered Salkantay mountain, the highest peak in the area
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