travel

Would you believe that even though we've had an entire year off we are running short of time? There's just so much to see and we have so many "must do's" that it's sometimes a bit tricky to fit them all into the time that we have left.... Hiking The Inca Trail to the ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu (Peru) has however been one of our goals from the outset. We were so committed to this that we dedicated ten of our precious days left to it.

For conservation reasons the numbers allowed to walk the trail are restricted which meant that we had to wait six days before even starting the trek. This was not such a bad thing because it gave us time to explore the beautiful city of Cusco as well as its surroundings, and time to acclimatise to the altitude, a dizzying 3,326m above sea level. Cusco was the capital of the successful but short-lived Inca empire. From there they controlled land stretching North, East and West covering what is now Peru and Ecuador and South into what is now Bolivia and Chile. The city was rebuilt by the Spanish invaders but still retains some attractive Inca features, most notably its plan form shape of a Puma, one of three sacred animals to the Inca culture (the other two are the condor and snake). What was it with South American civilisations and their desire to make things visible from the air? There were no planes back then! The narrow Inca streets are also very attractive and make walking around like navigating an intriguing maze of history and quaintness.

Cusco occupies a valley surrounded by some stunning mountains, we hiked up these to get a good view of the city and visit some ruins. From these heights you can see the valley of terracotta roofs, unspoilt by huge roads or ugly advertisement signposts. You can also see the centrepiece of the city, a very attractive Plaza De Armas with accompanying cathedral. The Inca ruins are sadly not so well preserved. Would you believe that up until the 1970's Cusquenians were still allowed to remove the blocks from these monuments-to-an-ancient-civilisation and use them to build their own houses!? Indeed, you can see a lot of the houses do have Inca stone blocks as their foundations. It looks very nice, but that's not the point, they'd look a lot better on top of the hill where they belong. Having said that, generally we have to credit the locals for granting unequalled respect to their indigenous people's culture, it is unrivalled anywhere else in the world! What's with this invasion business?.... Ok, ok we'll stop there - back to what we saw at the ruins! The Incas were clearly very skilled stone masons because the accuracy with which the stones are fitted together with no cement is incredible. Enormous bits of granite carved into perfect angular shapes creates an excellent visual aestheticism as well as a formidable wall which can withstand great earthquakes.

Hiking up to several of these ruins provided some good training for the Inca Trail as just "plain" walking at this altitude can leave you out of breath. So, feeling ready for it we met our guide and group that we would be spending the next four days with. We were lucky, we had a guide who spoke good English and 3 friendly co-tourists, an Australian couple and an English lady. The first day is really only half a day's walking because the transfer to the start of the trail takes 3 hours. So by lunch time we were raring to go. The route starts at the famous "Km 82" where two original Inca trails lead to the great Machu Picchu 45 kilometres away.

Day one starts 1,000m lower than Cusco so we were happily acclimatised but it was still fairly tough going with our backpacks loaded for the fours days. Really glad that we spent a while in Decathlon choosing good packs, they really paid off. The path took us through fairly arid hills, cacti lining either side and we had a great view of a 6000m snow-capped peak, Mt Veronica. Not long after setting out we stopped for our first meal and had a taste of what we were to expect from the catering department, a team of four porters/chefs. Wow they were good! We were grateful we had paid (nearly) "top dollar" for them to look after us because they did a great job. We heard rumours that some of the cheaper companies skimp on food and the tourists go hungry. Nightmare! For every meal we had, the team set up a tent with table and chairs and plied us with excellent food. We even got masses of popcorn and fried wontons at 'teatime'. Groovy! (And we thought the trail would be hard. Pah!) So with full bellies we waddled the rest of day one to our campsite where again we were fed very well, which was quite unfortunate because our campsite only had one hole-in-the-ground toilet without a door for privacy. Ugh! We love making new friends and all, but we didn't really want to get THAT close, you know!?

Day two started early for us, not because we had to get walking very early but because of the "commotions" in the tent. Just for a change it was Chris' turn to be ill, although in fact it was Emily who really suffered. The tents provided by the tour company were very good, they didn't leak at all, no holes to be seen. Shame! We would have been appreciative of a little more ventilation that particular night! Methane poisoning was a distinct possibility!.... It was unfortunate that this particular night gave us little sleep because Day Two was the hardest walking. We made the decision to get porters to carry our bags for half the day because we were both pretty fragile with not much sleep and one of us still "puckering up".

Day Two took us over the highest pass at 4,200m and gave us some spectacular views of the valley we had just walked, despite nearly killing us. They don't nickname this the "Inca TRIAL" for no reason! The going was tough but our group set a good pace and kept us moving in the right direction. It's amazing how your heart rate picks up when there is low oxygen. The symptoms of altitude sickness are mostly headaches and queasiness along with stomach cramps if you're really unlucky. To counteract these, a local remedy of chewing Coca leaves is recommended. Yes, Coca is the leaf you get cocaine from but it's not the same thing in its natural state (honest mum). Chris decided that the introduction of any herbal products to his bowels would be bad for his constitution but the other four members of the group formed the "Coca Club" and chewed their way up the mountain! They munched the leaves with a catalyst to release a stimulant that keeps you moving, settles your stomach, relieves hunger, makes you immune to pain and cures all manor of ailments. You lose weight, get along with your in-laws and make more money at work! In fact, in South America Coca leaves are the remedy to everything. Chewing also makes your mouth go numb, makes you dribble and fills your teeth with bits of green leaf. Lovely! Chris observed these things and tried to point them out to the Coca Club but by then they were "at a higher altitude"!

We consider ourselves fairly fit, we've been walking everywhere we have been in the world. However, we were put in our place fairly quickly by the porters! They have to be some of the fittest people in the world. They hike (run) the trail in at least half the time we do, but loaded with our bags, camping equipment, gas cylinders and cooking gear with only sandals on their feet. Our guide even told us about a 220lb guy and his equally well-built wife who could not hack "the trial" so the porters had to carry them too on stretchers! In fact, every few years, all the porters race each other to do the trail as fast as they can. Bear in mind that it took us 3-and-a-bit days (walking an average of 8 hours each day) to cover 45kms......the best porters do it in 4 HOURS! Cripes! Maybe we're not that fit after all? Can't be!

Proud of our own self-achievement we reached the top of the pass, an extremely satisfying feeling after a steep 1,400m climb! From there we could see the fairly arid valley we had just walked up and on the other side the cloud forest that awaited us. These parts of the mountains showed us some beauty we had not seen before. The peaks in the Andes can be very steep, covered in vegetation and have clouds rolling around them which give them a very mysterious and magical feel. We have seen plenty of the Alps before, they are beautiful but the Andes are "just different" in a spectacular way!

With the hardest part of the trek completed, we enjoyed another excellent meal and a good night's sleep preparing us well for day three. This was actually the most fun to walk because Chris was feeling a lot better and although there were some tough hills to climb, the altitude was slightly lower so the going was easier. We walked through some cloud forest and saw some 'minor' Inca ruins. The path condition notably improved with some fairly well paved sections that have remained intact for over five hundred years. Hummingbirds hovered around us and wild orchids could be seen alongside the trail. Arriving late at camp three we had an equally good third night in the tents with some beers and wine helping us sleep. Bla bla bla...everything was beautiful and gorgeous, but the highlight HAD to be our first shower in 3 days! Emily was most encouraging and supportive (despite the hefty dollar fee!) and in fact refused to let Chris anywhere near her unless he showered profusely. Pew!

Day four started very early (4 am) because we wanted to make it to the Sun Gate overlooking Machu Picchu for sunrise.... and wow was it worth it! The sun came up behind us illuminating the valley that the ruins sit in. The yellow stone turned to gold as the sun illuminated the ancient Inca city and contrasted the deep green vegetation surrounding it. A few wispy clouds rolled around adding to the atmosphere. It's a beautiful sight and easily amongst the best views we have encountered in the last 10 months(and we've seen a couple)! What must it have been like to discover this place buried in the forest?

When our jaws finally returned to the normal position we hiked the last few hundred metres down into the ruins. By walking the trail we had arrived nice and early before the tourist buses from Cusco so we were keen to look around. Our guide gave us an excellent tour showing us the impressive stonework, some lovely temples and even aqueducts still running through the city. The Incas were skilled builders, the walls are perfectly knitted stone and they clearly had a good grasp of physics even designing for resistance against earthquakes. The authorities have kept Peru's greatest asset well, there's no litter, no recent graffiti, no smoking or eating and they are doing a good job of restoring some buildings that have collapsed. To round off our visit and completely finish off our sore thighs we climbed the adjacent peak Huayna Picchu (another 400m) to get the "best view" on the city. And it was. Spectacular!

Our group agreed that walking the trail was the best way to see this beautiful place. The build-up made it even more special. No radios or phones to get you out of trouble, no doctors or help at hand if you're hurt (mmmm but those coca leaves work a treat!). It's just you against the world. Great! If you visit we highly recommend it. The trail is challenging in many places but just one of those things you should do before you die...