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Sacred Valley: The Inca Trail (day 4)Dec 11, 2003
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Finally, Machupicchu! very early morning on the 4th day, surrounded in mist.
Machupicchu: a little clearer at 8am
Machupicchu: The Inca noble tomb under the Temple of the Sun
The final day... Machupicchu, at the end of the Inca Trail, and the most grand and important of their cities.
We woke at 4am again to pack and get to the check point by 5am (opening time from the Inca Trail). It was tricky going as it was still pitch black and torches were needed to make sure we didn´t fall over the cliff edge in parts. The climate was noteably hotter and more humid as we stripped off to T-shirt and shorts (with plently of insect repellent). After an hour or so, and some steep climbs (50 steps) we reached the Sun gate. This is the first point where Machupicchu is visible, but, for us it wasn´t as the whole mountain range was covered in cloud. We didn´t hang around much, so we began the descent (no steps this time) to the Inca city.
The great thing about reaching Machupicchu is that it suddenly becomes visible as the edge of the terraces next to it are reached. The first picture above is my first view of Machupicchu. Luckily as the morning progressed the cloud lifted and the view became so much better, just in time before the crowds from the town of Aguas Caliente arrived!
Our guide gave us a tour of the ruins and explained all the main features... Sun temple, temple of 3 windows, Sun dial, Tomb, stonework etc... Then we had 4 hours to explore. Unfortunately by this time (12 noon) the ruins were packed with tourists who took the train from Cusco to Aguas Caliente. I decided to escape the crowds and climb the neighbouring mountain of Wynapicchu (home of the temple of the moon). The record was 9 minutes, but it took me 19 minutes and I was soaking and exhausted by the end of it. The view at the top was amazing, and the Inca terraces and buildings were pearched right on the edge of the mountain! I had a good hour relaxing on the rocks at the top watching Machupicchu below.
By the time I had reached the exit of the Machupiccu ruins I had missed the group, plus, the skies had opened up (it was rainy season after all!). So, given the amount of rain, I decided to forget waterproofs and with full pack ran down the steps to Aguas Caliente. I managed the 1 hour 30min journey in 45mins, and had a few near misses in the rivers of mud. By the time I reached our meeting point (Pachamama restaurant) I was drenched, but absolutely buzzing from the run. Luckily I had a full change of dry, clean clothes, and the Bistec ala Poblo (steak with everything) was just amazing! so was the hot chocolate! Needless to say I slept on the 4 hour train back to Cusco before getting a second wind in time to head out for a few drinks!
In summary, the 4 days on the Inca trail were the most amazing trekking I have done yet, well worth it for anyone coming to Peru!
