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Published: July 11th 2006
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5 July
Simon had to go solo for the day as I languished in bed, having succombed to travellers' tum. Let's just say that Immodium became my new best friend for the next four days.
Simon meanwhile arranged our post-trail travel to Puno and checked out the Inca museum. We left the Point Hostel and checked into our pre-booked hotel just around the corner, where we prepared for the trek and got an early night.
6 July
Got ready quickly after our 5am wake up call (thankfully not 3am, which some other guests in the hotel were treated to) and wolfed down some breakfast pronto. We were picked up by our guide Valeriano and set off in the dark out of Cusco, watching local people enjoying an early morning run (? to work). There were only four people in our group and we picked up the other couple in Urubamba about halfway to kilometre 82, the start of the trail. Dilly and James were a bit older than us but the chat was flowing freely and after a coffee break in the town of Ollantaytambo we were soon at the start point.
Day 1 was a
pretty gentle walk - we had been told 'undulating' but there were a few patches that left us gasping from the effort. It would have been a lot more tiring if we had not had our bags (like most other trail-goers) carried by the five porters and cook in our group. These guys were incredible! While we made our way along with small day packs, they lugged about 25kg of stuff each...we were soon to see why so much was necessary. Coming down to our first lunch point beside the river we were not met with a few packed lunches, rather a tent complete with table, stools and even a napkin holder. We were then given a three course meal to fuel us until tea.
We got to the campsite around 5pm and sat down to a tea of popcorn and biscuits. After we finished gorging ourselves, Valeriano informed us that dinner would be in an hour. Everyone now felt like pigs! Despite this dinner was largely consumed with gusto. Seeing as it was dark and there was nothing else to do, we were all tucked into our sleeping bags by half eight, after a long day.
7
July
Where Day 1 is undulating, Day 2 is predominantly uphill. 1200 metres to be exact...and we felt every step. After four hours climbing, we arrived at Dead Woman's Pass, so called because from a distance, a large rock on the top of the pass loosely resembles a woman's face. After a lengthy break we began a 600m descent, which although easy on the lungs, was equally hard on the legs.
8 July
We were awakened by cups of local coca tea being brought to our tent at 6am and got up to face another climb, though not quite of the same magnitude. Day 3 is the longest day and was interspersed with Inca archealogical sites such as Runkuraqay and Phuyupatamarca (Place of the Clouds) where Valeriano gave us some historical information to build up to our arrival at Machu Picchu the following morning.
The campsite this evening was very busy and Dilly was the only one of the group to avail herself of the hot showers available. After dinner we were introduced to our porters and cook so that we could show our gratitude for all their hard work.
9 July
Up at
4am (without tea) and along with the rest of the campsite made our way in the dark to the checkpoint, which opened at 5.30. As soon as we were cleared through, there was a concerted effort to reach Inti Punku, the Sun Gate, before sunrise. In the event our group had enough time to get down to the hill above Machu Picchu with plenty of time to see the sun come over the mountains around 7.10.
Given the spectacular surroundings, some group photos were taken and Simon chose this moment to ask me to marry him! Of course I accepted and now have not one but three rocks on my finger!
The rest of the day was spent having a tour around the site, which as expected was incredible, and then down to the town of Aguas Calientes where we partook in a hot spring bath followed by food and football (we were glad France lost after Zidane's raging bull impression).
Unfortunately our trip had a soured ending because on our return to Cusco we discovered that the hotel storing our bags had been raided by an armed gang. Although Simon's bag escaped luckily (some people have
all the luck) my bag had been forced open and the contents scattered across the store room in amongst other peoples' luggage. After recovering from the initial shock, it turned out only my minidisc player was missing with my mobile and credit cards left untouched (I have been told I need a new phone). Following an unneccessarily prolonged attempt to get the police report from the hotel, we eventually made it to bed back at the Point at 11pm - long day!
Overall the Inca Trail lived up to all the hype and we would recommend it to anyone who fancies roughing it in luxury. Mary and Ric, we challenge you to complete the climb from Day 2 checkpoint to Dead Woman's Pass in less than our time of 4 hours 10 minutes (Mary - you are not allowed to carry Ric!)
Next on the blog: travelling to Puno and Lago Titicaca.
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Timotei
non-member comment
Muchos congrats Simone and Alex!
Well well well, what a marvellously serendipitous surprise to find in the middle of your blog - I slightly choked on my 'erbal tea! Congratulations to the both of you, and well done sir on choosing such a picturesque spot to pop the question! If you need any tips on wedding planning...my tip is...leave it to the missus!!! Enjoy the celebratory peruvian champagne upon your return to civilisation...I shalt raise a glass in your honour this eve...ciao for now...Tim x