Machu Picchu
Overseas Journey to Peru
June 2010 (4 days)
The challenge was set for me by my oldest daughter, now in her thirties, living in London and running marathons. ‘Let’s do the four-day trek to Machu Picchu in Peru.’ Last January I made the bookings, having checked with my GP that a 59-year-old with hypertension could handle the two passes that are higher than Mt Cook. Two weeks after our bookings were made, Cusco suffered a huge flood and the only railway access to Machu Picchu village was washed out in many places along the river. In June when we trekked, the line was still broken, and the train could only shuttle the 28 km from the beginning of the trail to the end, instead of going all the way back to Cusco 110 km away. My daughter Maggie and I arrived and spent an important couple of days acclimatising in Cusco which is 3600m altitude. It’s quite a shock to be panting after climbing 12 steps to the first floor of your hotel. The town is fascinating - there are salt mines and ruins all around, along with changes made with by Spanish invasion. Our group was bussed out to the beginning of the trail, and we were encouraged to keep our packs below 13kg as we didn’t need food or tents. Numbers on the trail to Machu Picchu are controlled by guided tours.
Day 1
The steady climb from the river to the first camp under Dead Womans Pass was punctuated by pack horses and asses pushing past and threatening to knock the hapless tramper flying with very wide loads. The porters had powered on ahead and a hint of the climb was given when the guide hung an oxygen bottle around his neck. At various times different members of our group felt the effects of the thin air and took a breather. We had been drinking coca tea which helps and is quite sweet, like camomile. The weather and views were amazing. The temperature climbed to 20º in the afternoon and in this tropical zone the snowline stays at 5200m. The air was very still, only a hint of a breeze over the passes. The surrounding mountains soared to over 6000m and looked so cool. We camped and ate avocados and rice for dinner. The local rural diet was small potatoes and maize and had been so since the Incas’ time - much of the stone terracing in the mountains had been devoted to these crops. The potatoes were grown in the wet season then harvested and squashed on the ground where they lay so that they would dry in the sunny season, from May to October.
Day 2We awoke having got into sleeping bags fully dressed - the overnight temperature was 2º and I even had a balaclava and gloves on. The balaclava fascinated the porters and there were a few glances at my small, self-inflating mattress as well. Three hours later we were at 4215m, the top of the first pass. We would drop down 600m for lunch and rise another 300m to the second pass. The whole trek was just over 40 km, all of it without any mud. The stones of the trail were laid like uneven crazy paving, so you were constantly eyes down looking for good footing. Much of the trail was cut into mountain faces with huge drop-offs - standing on the inside of the trail when being run down by herded llamas was a necessary survival trick.
Day 3By now we knew that the stone ruins that we had seen - and still more are being uncovered in the Andes - were proof of an Inca population of 10 million people, decimated by disease and war when the Spanish arrived. Temples had been pulled down and rebuilt as Catholic churches. The ruins were humbling proof of an enduring people who could adapt in such an environment. At lunch time, one of the porters needed a swollen foot bandaged. When I mentioned antibiotics, out came some honey, which was smeared on first. We were descending now towards the ruined city of Machu Picchu, and would camp on our last night within an hour-and-a-half of the Sun Gate. More and more evidence of settlements in the mountain environment came into view. We were now in rain forest, and became aware of snakes (none seen), the 2m spectacled bear, (2 cubs seen), and puma. The bush became more NZ-like. The last camp was on quite a narrow ledge, not an area to wander, and our group of six bedded early for a 4.00am start.
Day 4This day was going to be a lot longer than I had expected. We rose at 4.00am and were tramping by 5.30am to get to the Sun Gate by dawn. The Sun Gate is on a ridge that looks down on the Machu Picchu site and shines solstice rays through temple windows. The trekkers who had arrived had the whole city site to themselves. A two-day strike meant that the day trippers had not come in on the railway which was not going to be running again until the next day.
We spent the day looking at the sacrificial altars, the structures and the terraces - even the guide commented that he had never been there when the site had been so quiet. But back down at the village I realised that I was not going to catch my 9.30am flight the next day. I asked our guide if he wanted to walk the 28 km railway line back to the road end where the trek began; I hired a porter for security as well. My daughter stayed with the team at the village and came out on the train the next day for a later flight. She was going back to England. At 5.15pm we started walking the line. There was no track, just rocks and sleepers; a tour company van would meet us at the other end. With the roar of the river in our ears, we trudged past settlements but were mostly in pitch black. A pair of eyes lit up ahead. My companions froze - a puma? No, a mongrel dog! At 12.45am we climbed into the van for the trip back into Cusco. We had maintained over 4 km an hour, for 6-and-a-half hours, climbing 500m along the way. My trek was now over - 70 km and the circle was complete.
