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Published: March 16th 2007
Machu Picchu
This is my postcard picture.Just so you know this has been the hardest blog to write and 2 months later I had to finish it. So I apologize for the delay.
This was by far one of the most physically demanding challenges Ive ever had to do in my life, and for that reason I recommend doing the Inca trail atleast once in your life.
So as my last blog stated I did get into to Cuzco sick ass fuck, and I was so glad when GAP was waiting for me at the airport cuz I wasnt in the mood to bargain with taxi drivers. After arriving to my hostel that looked more like a hotel they greeted me with tea. Ofcourse grandma Grimm was right about them giving you coca tea when you first get there for altitude sickness. Then I got a message saying that I would have a briefing at 5:45 the next day, and I thought who the fuck meets that early.
By the time I was all checked in the only thing I wanted to do was to take a hot shower and sleep since I had been up all night at the Lima, airport. Then
Coca Tea
No theres no cocain in the tea like most people think. We were told you need a shit load of leaves and some chemicals for you get high off the stuff. sometime around 5:45pm I get a wake up call from the receptionist telling me that there was a cab waiting for me outside. Mind you I had completely sedated myself so that I could get rid of the flu that was plaguing me days before my trek.
It was a bit intimidating to say the least when I got into this other hotel with a room full of australians and one other american that would be my tour group for the next 4-5 days. Then I realized that most of the group had already been traveling together since Ecuador and had picked up a few people back in Lima, and I was the only one joining the group for a few days in Cuzco.
So after the akward briefying and feeling like shit I turned to one of the guides and said if Im too sick to go on the trail, Is there any chance of getting my money back? and she said NO ofcourse. And then I asked what would the company do to accommodate me if I was too ill, and she said that I would have to catch the train to Machu Pichu and have
KM 82 - the beginning
Top row: Juliet(tour leader), Sarah(my tentmate), Simon, Lana and me. Bottom row: Michael, Jaqueline, Ary, Adrien, John, Allison, James and Adam(and his hat). a few extra days in Cuzco. And then after all the questions, she made me walk back to my hotel, freezing my ass off still in my pajamas, what a Bitch!
Ofcourse after realizing that I'd be loosing $700 if I didnt trek the trail, I went to every pharmacy in town the next day. At that point I was up for taking anything they gave me aslong as it got rid of my flu. And since I just so happen to book the trail during the off season the cold and rainy weather didnt help. That night I couldnt sleep cuz my neighbors were up partying then fucking till really early in the am. Since we didnt have windows, we had these large openings above the doors I could hear EVERYTHING.
DAY 1 (of the trail)
After a shitty morning I dragged my ass for breakfast and over heard a couple telling a few UC Berkely kids that were also doing the trail that on day 2 it would get really cold on Dead Womens pass. Then I found out from these kids that you can book a tour when you get into town for $250,
Check point KM 82
So this is the beginning of the Inca Trail park entry. The actual trail the Inca's took doesnt start till Day 2. but you have to carry all your shit up the mountains for 2-3 days depending on how cheap you were.
Once picked up by the guides and cooks we went on a long drive that I dont remember cuz I imediately fell asleep on from still being sedated and went to find the rest of the group. We then stopped in Ollantaytambo to get plastic bags for our duffles and ponchos. Funny cuz having grown up in the HOOD, you go what the FUCK is a Poncho? And who the fuck wears that shit?
Then after some more driving in really narrow roads we get to kilometer 82 where we have to go through the entrance to the actual park/reserve/inca trail. Once we got on the trail you start to think, Man, this is cool I could do this. At the beginning its so easy and then by early after noon you reach the first steep hill and you go NO WAY! And as much as I kept psyching myself out that it didnt look so bad, the medication still had me a bit sedated and was working against me. These mountains by the way were really decieving,
Starting the trail
Oh, the worse was yet to come. This was only the beginning. you'd often look up and you'd think your almost there because all you can see is sky, then you get close and go, NOW WHAT THE FUCK, MORE? SHIT!
By lunch I realized that mosquitos were still following me from Mexico and bitting my ankles. Half awake from all the non-drowsy drugs I was eating I realized that this would be a very long trek. Very shortly after lunch we were told we would trek a large part up to DEAD WOMENS BASE so that it wouldnt be so hard the next day. At that point I met Edmundo who said his job was to stay behind with all the slow people on the trail and make sure they got to the next check point safe.
Ofcourse the guide felt it was a good idea after filling us up with food to climb up the side of a mountain for a bit and then stop and look at DEAD WOMENS PASS. The whole time I kept saying I CANT FUCKEN SEE WHAT YOUR LOOKING AT, yeah, I guess it wasnt so good losing my glasses before my trip. So after a stamp on my passport that says WAYLLABAMBA,
Almost there
Sara and I at the tail end of the group almost to our first campsite. we then started to decend to our first campsite. I felt like such an idiot when we finally arrived and some of the porters started to clap for us, that felt shitty.
So after all the bullshit about tents and everything I finally asked to share with whom ever was free whether it be male or female and I got Sarah. I remember going to bed and discussing with Sarah about dreading the climb the next day, since it would be our highest point on the trail, that peak messured 4200 meters/13,780 feet (or so).
DAY 2 (on the trail)
I think I was up before the actual wake up call at 6am, FUCK I was tired. But it was cool that the wake up calls to our tents usually came with cocoa tea. Yeah, we were spoiled on the trail. And after having pancakes for breakfast we were slowly on our way up for the rest of the day.
Shortly after the trek I started to feel a sharp pain on my leg. After attempting to explain to my guide what it was, he figured he didnt understand it so he though it was my
Dead womans pass
Yeah, so the center peak you see in the distance is what we were going to climb on day 2. Looking forward to that. vagina. Since he couldnt make sense of where I had pulled my muscle on my upper leg he assumed it was somewhere on the female body he didnt understand all that much about. That was retarded. So he suggested to Edmundo to keep a close on eye me, and to make sure I walked for 10 minutes straight and stop for 2-5 minutes to rest my leg.
FUCK, this was by far my hardest day on the trail. I remember Edmundo saying to me the whole time, You know we can always go back if you feel like you cant do this. But remember I have to walk back with you to town. And I kept saying to him inbetween breaths, FUCK THAT, I paid for this shit and I will finish it cuz Im not getting any money back at this point. And I could see what he was doing, but at the time I found it very annoying when he was trying to have a conversation with me and I was slowly charging up a steep mountain trying to concentrate on breathing.
At one point up the pass, Juliet (tour leader) looked at me and asked
First night
First campsite, we were greeted by porters who clapped at the fact that we were fucken slow. why I was so angry. To be honest I really was fucken angry going up the pass that day. I couldnt help but think of how stupid I was for attempting to climb a fucken mountain when I wasnt in good shape to do so. Man, the whole way the rest of the group got to hear me cursing up a storm as I went up. And all I kept thinking to myself was, WHAT THE FUCK WAS I THINKING, WHEN I BOOKED THIS TRIP?
Then the closer I got to the top I could see that the rest of the group was already up there and were staring at me and Juliet struggle up the mountain, it felt so cruel. After a short break it was picture time again, later a few more pictures there I realized that we would now be going down hill for the rest of the afternoon until lunch.
Who ever said that going downhill was easier, is so full of SHIT! Because it was so foggy in some parts it was hard for me to see where I was stepping and I'd slip and fall on my ass. This happened the whole
Cranky Veronica
Me and Sarah were up at 5am and by 6am we had coca tea in our tents as a wake up. It was too fucken early too be up. way going down and I remember Edmundo saying to me, If you fall one more time Im gonna be forced to take your hand the whole way. So I let him go in front of me on the trail and every now and then he'd hear me say SHIT! He'd turn around and say did you fall again, and I was like, NO.
The whole time people were running down the steps quick as fuck in the rain I was having a hard time just going down a step at a time. I kept hoping that those people would fall off the edge of the mountains, fucken show offs. Every now and then Edmundo would report back to Marcial at the front of the group and say that we were hours behind. After awhile I'd hear him say, you know Im really hungry and I kinda want to get to the site by lunch time. Yet he was the one that reminded me to stop every 10 minutes to rest and told me more stories about Inca myths.
I felt bad when I reached the campsite and everyone was sitting around the table like they had been waiting
The pass
Yeah, so day 2 was a fucken bitch and I remember going up dead womans pass going FUCK THIS, I WANNA GO HOME. for me for like and hour and were all very hungry. By that point I was completely drenched from the storm I caught half way down the trail.
After lunch I found out we had another pass to climb. Yey!!!!! This pass however was 3998 meters/13,113 feet, so not as high as the morning one, but still up there.
By the second pass I was already dragging my feet because my knees where killing me, but I hadnt complained much yet, except to myself. Plus Edmundo wouldnt let me, so he kept me well entertained with stories about tourist killing their wives on the trail and dumping them off the side of the mountains. That was a funny one.
After what seemed an endless journey of downhill steps we reached campsite #2. When I got there it looked like everyone had already been there for hours and ofcourse I was the last to get there. Then Edmundo proceeded to tell me that we were camping on a site that was heavy with ghostly night activity, and that I should not tell anyone for fear it might start panic amongst the others. Right!
When I was finally
Time for another group photo
Altough we were all told to wear out jackets when we reached the top, I was hot ass fuck from having taken my sweet time up that mountain. settled in I couldnt believe that I had survived day #2 of the trail, the most difficult part was now behind me. The whole time I kept thinking to myself that I wasnt going to make it and that at some point I'd have to turn around because I couldnt hack it anymore. It wasnt just the physical part anymore but the journey itself was so mind fucking aswell. Man, your head starts to play tricks on you and your imagination runs away on that mountain. I was thinking to myself alot, Im never gonna smoke again, I should be more nice to my parents, I had to stop a few times and say WHAT? This is nonsense, and we need to get off this trail soon.
Because of the rain and the fact that there were others camping at the site, we were told to put all of our belongings inside the tent. I think subconsciously Sarah was thinking about that because around 3 or 4 am she wakes me up and says, Marcy, Marcy, your shoes? And I could hear people running around our tent, I figured it was the porters or maybe Edmundo being silly. Then
Runkuraqay
So this according to Edmundo was the actual start of the Inca Trail I looked toward the door of the tent and my shoes are inside, and I say, but there already inside, and I wait for a response and then I realized she was talking to me in her sleep like usual. GREAT!
DAY 3 (on the trail)
So after our usual warm water morning shower, breakfast and a quick trip to the toilet we were on our way for a short hike and were told we could take our sweet as time since it would be a short day. Mind you there are no toilets on the trail but you can find them at the campsites. So if you had to go, you had 2 choices, you can either hold it to the next site, or find a bush. Which by the way we were told at the very beginning that you couldnt go on the trail. And most oftent there were no bushes in site. Most of the time you would walk so close to the edge of the mountain that you'd start to get vertigo. One can easily slip off the mountain and die because there are no guard rails.
So day 3 was fun at
Its raining too hard
Since I was advised to take breaks every 10 minutes Edmundo made sure we stopped for a photo and another story. first. The first part was pretty mellow, I stopped often with Adam and James who stayed behind with me to take pictures. Ofcourse being around James we had to stop every 5 minutes to take pictures of every bug he found. This time Marcial stayed behind with the group and let us take pictures of the Cordillera Vilcabamba and told us stories about the Lost city of the Incas (you know the El Dorado story), that is believed to be in the Cordillera.
So after the climb to the 3rd highest point on the trail at 3700 meters/12,136 feet, and a view above the clouds we began to decend what was told would be 10,000 steps or some nonsense like it. Atleast this time it wasnt raining as much so I wasnt slipping and falling on my ass alot. But my legs at this point didnt want to move anymore and they had turned into jelly. Going down hill for a second day was really bad on my knees and I couldnt even stand up anymore my legs had given up on me completely. Ofcourse at that point you tell yourself your almost there and you keep walking against
Keeping Warm
This was campsite number #2, by the time I reached this point everyone seemed to have been there for hours. I was finishing my chocolate before bedtime to stay warm. your better judgement.
And we figured since it was a shorter day we would be at the last campsite by 2 or so. This is when I started to get really annoying and I could see Edmundo wanting to push me off the mountain, because I kept wanting to know how much further and what time was it. All I wanted to do was get there so that I could give my legs a rest.
At one point me, Sarah, Juliet and Adam were the last group behind with Edmundo and Marcial radios him to take us the short route to the campsite. And I could hear everything that was being said, and Edmundo was looking at me like he didnt want us to know what was going on. Apperantly at that point the rest of the group had already made it to the next ruin site and we were still an hour away. Which meant that if we went to the site the group would have to wait atleast 2 hours before they could eat lunch because of us. So they fucked us out of our site seeing and sent us down a short cut to the
Morning showers
Porters would daily give us warm water to wash our face and hands with every breakfast, lunch and dinner. campsite. When we got there we were all pissed because there was no one at the site and lunch would not be ready for another few hours. That was fucked up.
After waiting around for the rest of the group to get back, we were told we could have hot showers but we had to pay for them. I opted not to, I felt stupid taking a hot shower when I'd end up putting on the same dirty and smelly clothes on. I'd figure Id wait till I got back to Cuzco, besides I had been bathing myself in wipes for 3 days now I couldnt smell myself anymore. Plus the others came back saying it wasnt so hot and that there were giant roaches in the showers.
Again after lunch we were taken on another short walk behind the campsite to another site WINAYWAYNA, that place was cool. Once we got back we were told that during tea time we would have a good-bye ceremony for the cooks and porters.
It was a bit sad and we had Adam say thanks in their Quechua language. Marcial explained to us that the money that we spend on
So where do I put my feet?
So you couldnt forget to go to the bathroom before you went out because it would be a long time before lunch and you couldnt go on the trail. Im so glad I wasnt still feeling sick. the GAP trip actually goes to help the children of these men. And then the waiter said a few words about how greatful he was for us being there and how he hoped that we got a little more understanding about his culture. It was nice, then we all went around in a circle and said our names and we heard from all 16 of them I think. We also put together our snacks that we hadnt eaten and gave it to them, and then we shook hands with them all, it was a nice good-bye.
After our last dinner together we were told that we would wake up at 4am the next day to beat the crowds down at the last post before entering the last stretch of the trail. The idea was to make it to the sun gate to watch the sunrise over Machu Pichu.
DAY 4 (the last day on the trail)
So we were no longer going to see our porters or cooks and our bags would be delievered when we got to the town of Aguas Calientes which is the Machu Pichu village that you reach by train. After a quick
breakfast we realized we were a bit late and so much for getting up early, because we were now just another group standing in line for almost an hour waiting to get in the last part of the trail. So much for watching the sunrise.
Man, it got crazy after that. I remember Juliet, Sarah and I kept laughing at some of these people. Mind you we stayed behind with Edmundo and took our sweet ass time to get there, but there were these people on the trail literarly running past you. There was this rush hour traffic thing going on, and at times we had to stop altogether because we didnt even fit on the trail. And I remember shouting to Edmundo behind me over the crowds of people, is Machu Pichu being moved, is it going somewhere anytime soon, are missing out on something if we dont get there now. And he just laughed.
It was insane, because we were all headed in the same direction and yet people were running like they were gonna miss out on a sale or something. It was weird.
Then after a few steep steps that I could no
STRUGGLE, STRUGGLE
Day 3 sucked ass, and going down steps all day really hurts your knees. longer climb we finally made it up to the Sun Gate after what seemed a few hours. HOLY, SHIT! Is all I could say. Man, it was an overwhelming experience and everything on the trail leadin up to it didnt matter anymore. That was an incredible view just being able to see Machu Pichu in the distance was enough for me. I was there, and even though we still had a bit to decend, I was already there.And my first obstacle decending was a Llama blocking the trail on the way down.
Once we got to the entrance gate we all got our passports stamped again, and had lunch. At that point we said good bye to Edmundo and Juliet thought it was only fair that since I had given him such a hard time that I give him the tip and say thanks on behalf of the group. Then to my disappointment we were told we could take in our walking sticks up to the ruins, and I didnt want to part with my stick just yet.
So for the next 3-4 hours we would spend learning tid bits about the Incas and Machu Pichu. Ofcourse you
Making it hard to smile
Yeah, lets see you try to go down a mountain sideways all day. But its wasnt ass hard when you had someone telling you stories that made you laugh the whole way. learn that Machu Pichu is not the lost city, and the reason for its importance is because its the biggest site and ofcourse the Spaniards couldnt find it. Then the whole time your there you get to hear about Hiram Bingam the american explorer who found the site in 1911 with the help of an 11 year old boy.
Then ofcourse after much history you learn that the mountain next to Machu Pichu (old peak) is Huayna Pichu (young peak) and looks pretty steep to climb but you still have that option to do so if you want. Ofcourse I wasnt and so Allison, Jackie (gimpie-sprained her ankle on her way to the sun gate and was hoping around on one foot) and I decided to go in search of the Inca bridge. Fuck, after what seemed and hour and climbing over stuff we noticed the trail getting smaller and narrower and figured it was time to go back. We never found it.
So there is a bus that takes you from aguas calientes up to the site and back down the mountain. Ofcourse I had to go in search of my stick first and was told to
Yey, 1 more night of camping.
So this was our last campsite and from here we would leave at 4am the next day to get through the rush hour traffic up to the sun gate. check behind a sign were they all collect themselves before being taken back to town to be resold. Man, there must of been hundreds of sticks and I grabbed the one that looked kinda of like mine and got on the bus.
Right before going to sleep on the bus Allison and I noticed a bunch of kids sitting around a bend at the top of the mountain. Shortly after I remember waking up to the sound of a screaming kid waving at the side of the bus. Then you realize that this kid is running down the mountain to catch up with the bus and wave good-bye as it passes by. Man that kid was fucken fast. Ofcourse once he reaches to bottom he gets on the bus and in his loudest voice screams something like thank you for coming or good bye, I dont know. Then we all clapped and gave him money.
After reaching Aguas Calientes and reuniting with group and more food and gettin our bags we boarded the train back to Ollantaytambo. Once on the train I remember just wanting to sleep for a few days cuz my legs were so fucken heavy.
Saying good-bye
So Adam as I so pourly took this picture is attempting to say thank you in Quechua to the porters and cooks. These guys were amazing for the shit they had to carry on their backs. An ofcourse the whole train cabin we were in exploded in a loud roar when we passed KM 82 were 4 days before we had started our journey. That was an awesome feeling to know that I had actually survived the Inca trail.
So the 24 hour challenge was still on and ofcourse the idea was to stay awake till 4am. After a nice hot shower in my hotel room some of us decided to go out for a few drinks at the local Irish pub in Cuzco, then after closing time and way too many beers we headed out to a club that was down the hill from my hotel. Lets just say that I walked back to my hotel sometime after 4 by myself on a deserted street and was drunk but still coherent to miss my hotel by a few doors. And I thought the hotel guy was a genius for figuring out what room I was in, and then I realized it was probably the only key still at the reception.
The next day hungover and all I called my mom to let her know I had survived and was very sore. So I
Last dinner together
Yeah, we werent really roughing it when it came to food. I was actually expecting to eat jerky and drink water for 4 days. The food was always great. spent the entire afternoon going around town barganing for a 1 hour massage. Man, that felt so good and so well deserved. I didnt care if I had no more money left to eat but I was going to pay for a massage. After one last get together with the group, I said good-bye and headed home to pack because I would be in Buenos Aires, Argentina the next day.
Sorry I know this was a bit long, I think thats why I procrastinated.
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Marlon
non-member comment
what kind of excuse is that?
you dont know what a poncho is because youre from the hood? everyone knows a poncho is one who sells flan, fake gold, and watered down liquor door-to-door. congratulations on making it out alive, but for 750, wouldn't it have been easier to just rent a chopper to make it to the top? Im just saying, craig...