Machu Picchu!

Onwards to Cusco for a trip we had been planning for since last July - Machu Picchu (Picasa link). Machu Picchu was one of the destinations Awanti had wanted to visit for years and frankly, by this point, I was really excited too. The right way to approach Machu Picchu is on foot via a four day hike on the ancient Inca Trail, which is regulated by the Peruvian Government to just 200 hikers a day. In order to ensure our spots on the trail, we booked the hike over five months ago, and even then we were only offered our second choice of dates! Asmiti and Samit, Awanti's siblings, were to join us for the hike - so it promised to be an interesting family trip.

Machu Picchu!

Machu Picchu was built by the Incas between the 12th and 14th centuries and while its exact purpose is a mystery, it is hypothesized that it functioned as a religious center as well as agricultural laboratory. When the Spaniards arrived in 1532 AD and grabbed control of the Inca empire, the ease and speed with which they accomplished it, resulted in utter confusion and panic throughout. However, the one smart thing that the Incas did do, was to destroy the initial section of the trail leading to Machu Picchu. As a result, the city, in spite of being less than 2000 mts away from the primary route used by the Spaniards to explore and conquer the Inca empire, was never discovered and has survived the centuries relatively unscathed. It was only in 1911 AD when an American historian by the name of Hiram Bingham happened to stumble upon the ruins, was Machu Picchu rediscovered. Ever since then there has been a stream of tourists - 3000 per day - paying homage to the Inca's stunning skills and we were next in line.

Post lunch climb in the distance

The trek, which covers 45 kms over 4 days, is not too hard in itself - its the altitude that's the kicker. Ranging from 10,000 ft to almost 14,000 ft, packing an extra set of lungs is definitely recommended. Failing that, you just huff and puff your way past the multitude of ruins and passes enroute. This being a regulated trail, you are required to go with a tour company and we had forked over a large chunk of our travel budget to one of the supposedly more reputed agencies. Well, who said you have to rough it out on a hike - imagine hot water wash basins upon entering camp, morning wake up calls with hot coca tea, two four course meals a day, tables and chairs - and you just about begin to get an idea of the hardships we had to endure. We got an idea of what lay ahead when we showed up at the trailhead and the eleven of us hikers were vastly outnumbered by the seventeen porters - and that did not include the guide, assistant guide or the cook!

Day One was fairly relaxed with a couple of stunning ruins on the way and a moderately strenuous climb to camp. We got to camp by 4PM and since it got dark around 6PM, we ate an early dinner and settled in for the night. Day Two was the big day, and in preparation we were woken up at 5AM. After a hearty breakfast, we started off on the trail by 6AM. Right out of camp was a 3000 foot climb to the aptly named Dead Woman's Pass, though in all fairness they should make it gender neutral. The climb took too long to recount, but the views from the top just about made it worthwhile.

Sayacmarca

From the pass we plunged down to the valley below and after a largish lunch headed out for the second pass of the day. This one was a bit lower, and a couple of stops along the way to check out some more ruins and an alpine lake made the going a bit easier. From the pass we made our way down to yet another ruin - the Incas apparently loved building mini-cities, checkpoints, towers etc. - which deserves special mention. The ruin is called Sayacmarca (The Inaccessible Place) and its location atop a mountain itself ensured that it made my list of all-time best ruins. Its orientation, however, is what sets it apart from all else in my mind. On-site was an oval shaped room that seemed out of sync with the rest of the site. Turns out, on the day of the summer solstice, the first sun ray appears exactly through a notch in the afore-mentioned pass and lights up the center of the room. Just thinking of the accuracy that must have gone into constructing a structure in so difficult a place, with only your hands, and in-line with an event that occurs only once a year, in my mind displays the mastery the Incas had achieved over the solar calendar and their environment. Having explored the ruins a bit more we finally got to camp and after another extensive dinner, gratefully crawled into our sleeping bags. Day Three was a relative walk in the park, as by this point we were well acclimatized and the walking was relatively flat. We got to camp by lunch time and spent the afternoon visiting another impressive ruin, lazing around and building up anticipation for the big day.

Hiking at dawn

Day Four was the day we finally made it to Machu Picchu and given that it was only a two hour walk to the ruins from camp, you'd think we'd have it easy. But no. Turns out the rangers open the trail at 5.30AM and in order to not be stuck behind the other 189 hikers on the trail, we were up at 3.30AM and at the ranger station at 4.30AM, waiting in the bitter cold for the rangers to show up. Once they did, and we started hiking though, we were treated to one of the most amazing dawns I have seen. I say dawn, as there was no sign of the sun as yet, but the early morning hues of blue were out of this world. Two short hours later we were at the Sun Gate and were treated to our first views of Machu Picchu - and what stunning views they were. The city is built atop a hill that falls off steeply in all directions. It contains of a number of farming terraces surrounding the administrative and religious buildings, that are in great condition considering that they were built over 700 years ago. We spent the rest of the day getting a short guided tour, climbing the neighboring mountain of Wayna Picchu for some more great views and just aimlessly wandering through the ruins, taking in its magnificence. Finally, as afternoon rolled around, we caught a bus down the mountain and after four peaceful and stunning days entered the world of gift shops, internet, and mechanized transportation.

To sum it up, we had a fabulous time on the hike and the ruins are definitely worth any amount of time and money that it might take to get there. So quit making excuses, and make the trip.

- Ashish