Trekking up high in Salkantay

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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 at over 6000 metres. When the sun went down at about 6pm it got cold; very cold. It was well below freezing and we were sleeping in tents!! I had four tops on, 2 pairs of trousers and 2 pairs of socks, and a thick sleeping bag and I was still cold! Our 6 horses spent the evening grazing around our tents while the 6 of us played cards and had the odd glass of whisky in the dining tent.

On day 2 we climbed a further 500 metres to 4600 metres up Salkantay up to one of the passes where we stopped for photos. We then headed down the other side completing around 8 hours of walking for the day.

While the ascent is made tougher by the thin air the downhill requires more focus and the boulders and rubble have to be carefully avoided to prevent twisting your ankle etc.

The further down we got the warmer it became which was a blessing when it came to the camping. For nights 2 and 3 we camped in little hamlets in the middle of nowhere on a mountainside. On the third night I was attacked by mosquitoes which rendered me with no less than 52 bites, mostly on my arms and legs!

On day 4, after a short truck ride, we walked the last 3 hours along a train track which took us to the the base of Machu Picchu, a town called Aqua Calientes (meaning hot water as there are local hot springs). Here we checked into a hostel and enjoyed a much deserved and much needed hot shower before going out for dinner and beers. It was nice to be back in civilisation again!

On day five we were up at 5am, some of the team bearing worse hangovers than others, and headed up Machu Picchu on the bus in time to see the sun rise over the famous Inca ruins.

I´ll put a separate journal entry for Machu Picchu as there are plenty of photos and interesting facts.

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