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As soon as we arrived in Cusco we started to research the best ways to trek to Machu Picchu. The famous "Inca Trail" was sold out but there were lots of other possibilities on offer giving a similar tough trek over a few days but mostly much cheaper and less crowded than the Inca Trail. We eventually decided to hike the "Salkantay Trail" and booked through the company
Hiking Peru, which has an office on the Plaza de Armas. They gave us the cheapest quote and we could see no reason as to why we should pay more to go with another agency (of which there are many in Cusco).
So, after some intense supermarket shopping, bag packing and last-minute panic we were ready to go. Below is an account of the four days of our trek. Day 5 (at Machu Picchu itself) will be in a blog all of its own.
Day 1 We were picked up from our hostel at some ungodly hour in the morning (I think it was 4:30am) and driven to a random street out of town where we were bundled into a bus for the few hours journey to Mollepata. Unsurprisingly, most of
the journey was spent dozing and so at least it passed pretty quickly. Once in Mollepata our guide Hubert took us to a cafe for breakfast and we were all able to chat and get to know one another. A quick rundown of the group is as follows (in no particular order!): Me (Wales); Barry (Ireland); Mark (England); Sebastian (France); Tiffany (USA); Trang (USA); Arthur (Brazil); Leticia (Argentina); Natalia (Argentina); Robert (USA); Danke (USA).
Over the next few days we were all to get to know each other very well, chatting whilst trekking, chatting whilst eating and generally just chatting! I had been a bit wary of being in a big group but actually it turned out to be great fun. Of course everyone was at different fitness/hiking levels, but it didn't seem to matter too much.
From Mollepata (2,800m altitude) we walked northwards uphill, gaining better views of the town below and the countryside beyond. The weather was pleasantly warm and sunny making me seriously question my decision to pack my alpaca hat and 2 fleeces. Lunch finally came when we arrived at a small grassy area named Sayllapata (3,450m). Our cook and his assistant had set
out a table with chairs for us and served up a tasty lunch including the Peruvian speciality lomo saltado. A good taste of things to come!
The afternoon was spent walking along the side of the valley of the Rio Blanco. The scenery was stunning - very green, lush and high! By late afternoon we were near the head of the valley and beautiful Mount Salkantay came into view. This is the kind of mountain that causes you to take a sharp intake of breath and then take 50 photos in the space of five minutes.
At 5:30pm we reached our campsite where our tents were already set up and waiting for us and we were told that coca tea and popcorn would be ready in a few minutes time. This is not the rough trekking life I have become accustomed to! We passed a nice evening with the rest of the group, eating lots, admiring the night sky and shivering against the cold (lucky I brought all those spare clothes with me!).
Day 2 This was definitely the hardest day of the trek. We were woken at 5am with a cup of coca tea and then
went for a breakfast of pancakes. By 6:30am we had set off on the trek, further following the Rio Blanco up-valley. The aim for the first part of the day was to walk upwards constantly until reaching the Salkantay Pass, at a heady 4,600m altitude. The going was tough and then made tougher as the rain started. Just as I thought it couldn't get any worse the rain turned into driving snow and I thought my hands had fallen off in the cold. Ouch! Still, by 10:15am we were all very relieved to have made it to the pass and to be heading downhill again.
We took a left after the pass and started walking down the valley containing the Rio Salkantay. Unfortunately our views of the surrounding mountains were completely obscured by mist and rain. So there was nothing for it other than put our heads down and walk. The weather seemed to clear a bit around lunchtime, when we all huddled into a big tent next to the river. However, soon after we started walking again the rain returned and wouldn't leave for the rest of the day. After a while we all realised that our "waterproof"
clothing was nothing of the sort. This became especially obvious when, later in the afternoon, the path became very narrow (maybe 1 metre wide) and water was flowing along it as if we were in the middle of a river: cue soaking wet feet!
Finally, and very relieved, we came to the bottom of the valley and reached our campsite for the night at Chaullay, just a short while before sunset. The rain had stopped and we were able to dry our feet and hang our clothes and boots up to dry. What a day! Another evening was spent huddled around the table eating and chatting.
Day 3 We were woken again with hot coca tea and this time the sun was shining and we were surrounded by clear blue skies. By 7:30am we were hiking and enjoying the improvement in weather. Soon we had reached the confluence of varous rivers and set off to follow the Rio Santa Teresa. We were now walking through Peruvian tropical "cloud forest" which contains lots of interesting and colourful flora and fauna. I was amazed at how much the landscape had changed in just the space of two days. Our guide
Hubert even bought us passion fruits to try which (whilst looking very bizarre) are actually very tasty.
At 2:15pm we finally reached the town of La Playa where we were able to relax over a leisurely lunch. That was all of our walking for Day 4 as we were then taken by minibus to the nearby town of Santa Teresa where our tents were set up and we could get ready for an outing. Most of us decided that we were very smelly after 3 days without showering and so went to the local thermal pools for a well earned soak. These are in a great location, outdoors, underneath massive rock cliffs with plenty of hot and fresh water. We were even treated to a thunder and lightning storm whilst there - great stuff!
That evening was the most relaxing of the trek. It was warm and so we were able to relax (and not huddle) around the dinner table. Our chef cooked up an absolute feast and the campsite sold beer and wine. When Barry got out the "Uno" cards, I knew that this would be a fun night and indeed it was. The only problem was
that we were all exhausted from the walking and so couldn't stay up as late as we usually would!
Day 4 The final day of the trek and we were all in high spirits, especially as we were given a lie-in until 7am followed by a breakfast of pancakes, papaya and yoghurt. We left the campsite at 8:50am and walked down through Santa Teresa village towards the river. Then for the fun bit - we had to cross the river by sitting in a small metal basket, which was attached to a wire connected to either bank. All lots of fun and I think everyone would have loved to go back and do it again if possible!
After the crossing we walked up the Urubamba Valley, following the river of the same name. On the way we passed lots of interesting plantations including such diverse products as coffee beans, bananas, papayas, coca, peppers, etc. At 11:30am, Machu Picchu mountain came into view which was an awesome sight and spurred us on for the final push. An hour later we had arrived at our lunchspot - near the Hydroelectric Plant beside train tracks. We were treated to another great
meal and I even bought myself an ice-cream for dessert.
After lunch, 7 of us decided to walk the final stretch to the town of Aguas Calientes rather than take the train. This turned out to be a longer and more difficult walk than any of us had expected. Most of the time we had to look at the ground to make sure we were stepping on the wooden planks holding the train tracks up. When we finally arrived at Aguas Calientes I felt a strange mixture of relief (we made it!) and disorientation (so many people and shops and restaurants!). This is the main access town for Machu Picchu and so all day trippers or 10-day trekkers (and everyone in between) eventually end up here. We checked into our hotel to greet a bed and a lukewarm shower - heaven!
The End Over four days of hiking the Salkantay Trail we walked some 70km, faced all possible weather conditions and made some great friends. A highly recommended experience for anyone with a sense of adventure and I would definitely go back and do it all over again. Next blog, the great Machu Picchu itself....
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Kataline
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Wow..
Sounds like a really great adventure. I originally wanted to hike the inka Trail, but now I think the Salkantay Trail is the way to go. Thanks for sharing Kat