The day had finally arrived. We woke up really early so that we could be at the Sun Gate overlooking Machu Picchu at sunrise. A short walk of only 2.5 miles and we were there, seeing the most often photographed spot of the Trail with our own eyes. This may be the understatement of the century, but this overlook was quite spectacular. We stayed for awhile at the Sun Gate soaking in the valleys, mountains, and Machu Picchu.
We descended down the final steps of our journey and into the heart of this magical place for the rest of the day.
Our main guide Carlos gave us a private tour of the complex, hitting all of the major places. The three primary structures at Machu Picchu are the Inti Watana, the Temple of the Sun, and the Room of the Three Windows. You'll notice a couple of pictures of people on ladders. They are scrubbing the stones with toothbrushes to keep the them free of lichen. If not constantly maintain, this site would be overgrown with jungle in a few short years.
The third picture in this row is taken at the base of the temple of the sun. As I mentioned in an previous post, the Inca worshiped "Inti", the Sun god, as their supreme deity. This temple was built right on top of a natural cave/rock on the site. This is significant because the Inca believed the first of their kings entered this world through caves. Notice how straight, smooth, and tight the joints of these stones are. The Inca spent extra time making sure that these stones used in holy places were perfectly cut and arranged.
These pictures are of the cave below the Temple of the Sun (check out the hourglass stonework), the Condor Stone, and the outside wall of the Temple of the Sun.
The first two pictures are of the Inti Watana stone located at one of the highest points of the site. It is one of many ritual stones in South America. These stones are arranged to point directly at the sun during the winter solstice. The name Inti Watana
is literally meant to be a place to "tie up the sun", translated in English as "The Hitching Post of the Sun". The Inca
believed the stone held the sun in its place along its annual path in
the sky. At midday on 11 November
and 30 January, the sun stands almost exactly above the pillar, casting
no shadow. On 21 June, the stone casts the longest shadow on its
southern side, and on 21 December a much shorter shadow on its northern
side. Structures like this and others that line up with the solstices are great examples of how well the Inca understood and revered the sun and its movement.
The above picture is of our two main guides, Carlos (left) and Emerson (right). In case you're wondering what it looks like when millennials first have access to the internet after 4 days of being disconnected, this picture from the cafe at Machu Picchu says it all. After a very early start to the day we caught one of the last trains out of Aguas Calientes, the town located at the base of Machu Picchu.
After a late train ride back to Ollayataytambo, and and even later bus ride back to our hotel in Cusco, we finally got to sleep at about 1 a.m. We were probably awake and hiking for traveling for 20 - 21 hours. The next day we woke up early, did some last minute souvenir shopping in Cusco, then headed back to the airport for our eventual red eye flight from Lima to Miami, then to Dallas, then to Colorado Springs.
After 12 days of traveling we had arrived back home with the kids safe and sound, filled with some pretty unforgettable memories of Compassion children and projects, Peru, the Inca Trail, and Machu Picchu.
The third day of the hike, from Pacaymayo to Winaywayna, was by far the longest day at just around 10 miles. However, it was also my favorite day of the entire hike, and not just because it was also my Dad's birthday. We were deep into Inca territory and getting ever closer to Machu Picchu. During the entire hike we were bombarded with scenery, epic archeological sites, and the mystic ebb and flow of slow moving, ever changing clouds.
We woke up in the morning to light rain and clouds. As I just mentioned, this actually added to the experience. I know in past blogs I've written a lot, but this time I'm just going to let the pictures do the talking. Take some extra time in each photo to look at the details and realize what you're seeing, imagining what it must be like to have seen this in person. Pictures never really capture the full experience.
The previous and next picture are sights from the first small pass and archeological site with the same name, Runkurakay, situated at about 13,000 feet. It is believed that this small oval structure purpose's was a watchtower. We descended towards Yanachoca (Black Lagoon), entered the cloud forest, and finally arrived at Sayacmarca. The steep staircase picture onward was taken at or near Sayacmarca...which was probably the most impressive area of the entire hike not counting the final day at Machu Picchu.
We then continued up an easy climb to the third mountain pass and archeological site, Phuyupatamarca. This name means "town over the clouds". We then followed the trail father down to Winaywayna, another impressive Inca complex and near our final campsite of the trip. A special note about the last two pictures. At one point near the end of the day we came upon a very cool looking spiral stone staircase. The last two pictures were taken from the top and bottom of the stone paved stairs. I couldn't help but thinking the last picture reminded me of something straight from a Tolkien epic made into a movie. If you look extremely close, you can actually see Frodo Baggins hiding in one of the many shadows...
Day number two of the hike was all about going up. I jokingly told Stacey that she would soon find out why the highest point of the entire trek at 13,828 above sea level was called Dead Woman's Pass. In reality, it is called this because the ridge line resembles a woman laying down. You can see the profile of a face and breast by clicking on this link.
But first, a word from our sponsors. I want to take a minute to talk about the porters and cooks who carried all of our heavy things the entire four days. Each day they would hike ahead of us and set up the dining tent for every meal. At the end of a day we would arrive at our campsite with our tents fully set up with all of our other gear and sleeping mats/bags inside. Usually there was someone handing out wet washcloths and setting out bowls of clean water and soap for each hiker. In the morning a group of three of them would go tent to tent with a coffee and tea tray. Before we started hiking again the next day, they had boiled us fresh water and passed out extra snacks. This is why we called it "glamping".
Probably the most impressive part were the meals. We were given 3 solid hot meals every day on the trail. It was more food than I could eat. We had a tent just for dining. Also, the food they cooked on the trail was really good. It's not like the food was instant anything, it was food just like you'd make at home if you were cooking in your own kitchen. You can see by the below pictures what I'm talking about. The third day of the trip was Macy's (one of our group members) birthday, so the chef whipped up a quick birthday cake to celebrate.
After a good breakfast we began our assault on the almost 4,000 feet climb to the pass from our campsite. It was a good workout, but honestly, this was easier than the climbs we do back here in Colorado. I can remember my first couple hikes up 14ers and how hard they were. So, it's definitely difficult for people that aren't used to this sort of thing, but it's really not that hard if you're experienced. In preparation for the trip Stacey and I hiked 14ers like this without taking but 1 or 2 breaks. Because we were with a group, we stopped often, which is probably also why it seemed easier.
There weren't a lot of pictures to be taken on our way up the pass. The scenery was the same for most of the ascent as we funneled up the mountains on either side of the trail. I was really looking forward the view at the top of the pass. I had heard great things, but as we got closer to the top the clouds moved in. Weather is just a fact of life in the mountains. Or like a box of chocolates. You never really know what you're gonna get. Unfortunately, the great view at the top was obscured by clouds.
On the way down the scenery started to get much more interesting and jungle-like. For those of you prairie dogs, this is pretty standard for large mountains. There is usually a dry side and a wet side, depending on which one bears the brunt of the incoming weather (the wet side) and which one it rolls over (the dry side). This is true in Hawaii, in Colorado, and in Peru.
You'll also notice from these pictures on the other side of the pass we began seeing (and walking on) original Inca roads paths. From about this point until Machu Picchu most of the walkways were paved with stones. There were countless steps up and down the terrain the rest of the way. This section of the trail is a small sample of roads/paths that the Inca built all over there empire. By hand. One rock at a time. Covering who knows how many thousands of miles across South America's west coast.
Our campsite on the second day was spectacular. The last picture doesn't show it, but you can sort of get the idea. Our tent happened to be at the front of the row, so we had an unobstructed view of the entire canyon in front if us from our spot at almost 12,000 feet above sea level. We were able to sit at the front of our tent and watch the low clouds and mist move in and out of the valley. The next day would prove to be the longest (and probably hardest on the body), but also the most impressive and interesting of the entire hike.
