Holy Crap - We Hiked the Inca Trail: Part 3

The third day on the trail started at about 5:00 am (ouch) in order to avoid some vicious Peruvian mosquitos that are only out at dusk and dawn. We only ran into the critters maybe twice on the whole trek and only for a few minutes at a time, but a week later Kelly is still itching and feeling the pain of their ferocious bite. They were too small to see until they bit you, but they drew blood almost every time. Erick gave us the choice of sleeping in until later but we all agreed that we would rather lose an hour of sleep than deal with those things.

The original goal for this day was to make it over the third and final pass (12,037 feet above sea level) to the Winay Wayna campsite. Due to regulations, all Inca Trail hikers camp the last night at this campsite and then go through a final checkpoint early the next morning for the final 2-3 hour hike to the Sun Gate of the mighty Machu Picchu. The trail to Winay Wayna was like hiking through Wanda's or Janine's flower garden on steriods. Iris plants as tall as us, orchids (over 300 species can be found on the trail), ferns, and bamboo mini-forests were everwhere! Coupled with the views of the breathtaking snowcapped mountains, not to mention the ruins and Inca tunnels we saw along the way, the beauty of this stretch of the trail is undescribable.

Speedy hikers that we were, we arrived at the campsite at lunch. During our meal Erick hatched a plan to get us through the final checkpoint that afternoon instead of in the morning. He informed us that because all hikers have to stop at the Winay Wayna campsite, it can get quite crowded in the evening and also results in a hiking "procession" the next morning as everyone heads to Machu Picchu in the hopes of seeing the sun rise there (despite the fact that Machu Picchu is almost always clouded in fog in the am). Claudia, our German travel companion, had gotten come sort of bug bite on her eyelid during the trek. It was quite swollen, but not really that bothersome according to her, but Erick seemed to think that the injury may be our ticket to an early pass through the checkpoint.

Long story short, with our best serious, somber faces on display for the checkpoint guards, we made it through, and were rewarded with the joy of hiking the last 2 1/2 hours of the famous Inca Trail in almost total seclusion (we saw two other hikers). The last section of the trail is almost all original, and is noted for the fact that it is extremely narrow and literally on the edge of some serious cliffs. It was awesome!

After a final stretch of uphill climb that was like climbing a ladder it was so steep, we arrived at the Sun Gate of Machu Picchu at around 4:00 pm. There were other tourists there from the day train to the site, but not many at that late hour. Plus, it was incredibly clear. After taking a few silent minutes to process the breathtaking view that we had worked three long days to see, Erick took us to a secluded spot overlooking Machu Picchu and toasted us with a bottle of red Chilean wine. The appreciation that we both felt at that moment for the trail and the amazing human accomplishment that is Machu Picchu was overwhelming. We recommend, without reservation, that if you ever get the opportunity to visit Machu Picchu, you absolutely should (if you are able) arrive via hiking the trail. The appreciation that we gained through Erick for the Incan culture as we visited ruins along the way made Machu Picchu all the more special, not to mention that fact that when you hike 28+ miles to see something you are pretty much guaranteed to savor it.

After pictures and a few initial stories from Erick about the "discovery" of Machu Picchu we hiked down and straight through the site (we were coming back tomorrow so we didn't really wander around; plus we did not have the tickets yet) to a campsite in the valley about 3 km below Macchu Picchu. Once at the campsite, we (along with Erick and Jessica) decided to brave the cold water showers (our first shower in 4 days). It felt good but was damn cold. After our final dinner as a family, all 22 of us gathered in the mess tent for us to say goodbye and thanks to the porters and cook. (All but two of them were leaving that night to take a train back home to their families). After a great speech of gratitude by JP, the porters sang us a spirited song in Spanish to say goodbye. All the girls danced with a porter; Kelly danced with the cook. After their song, we (lead by Jessica and Kelly) sang "I Will Survive" in response (the only song we could think of all the words to). Despite the language barrier, they seemed to enjoy it (or maybe they were laughing at us, we'll never know).

After all that, the group decided to celebrate with a 20 minute walk (we truly are gluttons for punishment) into the town of Aguas Calientes, which is the tourist town that serves Machu Picchu. After almost 10 hours of hiking this was probably not our brightest idea and after several shots of tequilla (damn you Erick), cacacha (damn you JP), and a visit to a discoteque (damn you Jessica), not to mention all the cervesas, we were definitely hurting -- or a least would be after the alchohol wore off the next morning. If fact, a whole post could be dedicated to that fateful night, but we will spare the world the details, just in case one of us ever decides to run for public office. After dancing our buns off, we arrived back at camp at around 2 am only to get our wake up tap on the tent at 4 am to eat breakfast and leave for Machu Picchu. Argghh.