In the Realm of the Gods

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Sleep did not come easy on the night of March 27th. Getting out of bed in the cold and the dark was even harder as our heads spun and tummies cramped. Alas, we are hardy folk and so set off into the night to start our 5 day trek to Machu Picchu.

Arriving in the village of Mollepata we had a light breakfast and met our crew. Us (of course), Matt & Anna (South of London), Darren (Wales), Ivana (Buenos Aires), George (Hungary), Mandee (Invercargill, but we´ll say Perth) and our ever-chirpy guide Enrique. Day one was tough as we battled with the lurgee but the scenery was spectacular as we wound our way round mountains, looking down on villages way below us and up towards snow capped mountains in the distance.

Camp 1 was at the base of Salkantay Mt (www.salkantay.org) surrounded by snow and horses that liked to run away in the night. Our tents were up just in time to duck inside out of the rain for a wee kip, then it was hot chocolate and popcorn, huddling for warmth and mellowing to the sounds of Fat Freddy´s Drop.

Day 2 was uphill out of the valley and over the Salkantay pass at just below 4800m. It was tough as the wind whistled down the valley and the rain started to drop big, ice cold drops upon us. It was even colder at the top and we stopped just long enough for a group photo before we tore off down the other side, eager to escape the wind and the rain. But we didn´t. And for the next few hours we were slogging it out through a muddy bog, torrential rain chilling us to our bones. The soup for lunch was warm, but failed to get right through and it was hours before the rain ceased and the temperature increased enough to get us going again. That afternoon we hit the ´tropical´part of the hike, and waded through knee deep mud while swarms of literally tens of mossies feasted on my ankles (I was later to discover they got to almost every part of me). There were so many I could barely swat them off! That night saw a few beverages round the candles, and we were visited by a late night stumbler who mistook our tent for his and squished me in the process. Luckily he is a slight fellow and was on his way rather quickly.

Day 3 was a very long day through to lunch as our tummies rumbled. We walked beside the river, climbed waterfalls and were surrounded by colouful butterflies of all shapes and sizes. Apart from a small incident which resulted in a broken tent pole and Caitlin being attacked by a cheeky monkey, the afternoon was rather pleasant as we waited out nightfall from the comfort of some natural hot springs surrounded by mountains. It was amazing. We returned to camp to find that Darwin (our chef) had cooked up a royal feast complete with stuffed chillies, chicken, rice, salad, pasta and of course fries. More beverages and story swapping preceded our last night in tents.

Day 4 was very dull, and the last few hours were spent walking along mind-numbingly long train tracks. I tripped up, kicked my ankle, and could barely walk come nightfall. I am awesome. But that night we had a hostel in Aguas Calientes and it was a treat to sleep in a bed, no matter how short for, before our very early wake up call for Machu Picchu.

April 1st dawned cold and dark. Ok so it had not yet dawned but my foot looked like something out of a freak show and did not resemble a foot at all. Caitlin had mutant blisters (she still does, eew). So while the others puffed and panted their way up the hill in the dark we hobbled our way onto the bus and watched the mist pull itself away from the mountains as we rode towards the realm of the gods.

I don´t really know how to describe Machu Picchu except that it was calming despite the amount of people there. In the early morning calm it was beautiful and was even more than I had been looking forward to. There was a slight incident with a llama stampede, but another very friendly llama was kind enough to pose for the stereotypical photo for me (I will post these as soon as I can).

We were sad to leave, but a most joyus afternoon of drinking in Aguas Calientes followed before the train/bus back to our hot showers (!) in Cusco.

The following night, after doing a packload of washing (very dirty said the washing lady!) we met up with our group again for some cocktails and a sad farewell... and then we were headed for Bolivia.

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