Peru and the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu

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Hi again,

Well we can now safely say that we have survived the Inca Trail although it was touch-and-go for a while!

It was fantastic, of course, but extremely hard work. We walked 50kms in 4 days and climbed to 4000m on the second day - that was a hard day! But the views were incredible and it was very surreal being so high up, the clouds were below us most of the time!

We had a great group of ten (and we all seemed to be of equal fitness which was a relief!) and our two Peruvian guides were lovely and eager to provide us with all the knowledge they had of all the 'archealogical sites' as they liked to call them. Obviously the peak of the trip was visiting Machu Picchu on the fourth day, we got up at 4am and hiked in the dark to the Sun Gate where we watched the sunrise over the ´lost city´. We were very lucky apparently because at this time of year it is often cloudy over Machu Picchu but we had a really clear day and a fantastic view.

The porters on the trip were perhaps the most fascinating of all! They are not young but yet carry all our stuff not to mention camping equipment, gas canisters, 4 days worth of food etc and they race past us in just a pair of old sandals up and down the slippery steps of the mountains without even breaking a sweat! It put us all (in our expensive hiking boots) to shame!

The whole experience was amazing and we hope you enjoy the photos, had a few relaxing days in Cusco on our return (and a much needed massage)! We stayed again in our favourite hostel so far ´Loki Hostel´. Cusco was amazing - they call it the historical capital of Peru, there is so much history there... not to mention a fantastic nightlife!

Love Phil and Kathy xxx

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Comments

[Rach]

WOW!
Wow guys! That looks absolutely fantastic - am SO jealous! Although looks like lots of hard work - much more than Duke of Edinburgh i feel! lol Hope you're both recovered now though. Well done and keep in touch! Rach xxx