Adventures in the Great, Wide Somewhere// Machu Piccu

Inca Trail

Day 4--Machu Piccu

The day is finally here! The culmination of 4 days of blood, sweat and tears brings us to the mother load...Machu Piccu. I won't lie to you, I cried when I got there. The exhaustion, hard work, rain, lack of indoor plumbing, and overall satisfaction in making it was on another level of endorphins. Maccu Piccu is beautiful and mysterious and epic. See pictures below for the amazing.

While I found Machu Piccu glorious, I won't lie, after 4 days of brutality and hardly being able to breathe it was juuuust slightly anti-climactic because personally, the top of that peak and the Sun Gate were my moments of triumph. Not to take anything away from Machu Piccu and I can't explain why I felt this way except I think I was so excited I made it the finish line rope was great but the accomplishment of just making it there was worth more to me than my weight in Incan gold--is there such a thing? I don't know but it sounded good.

What I find both fascinating and frustrating about the Inca's and their Machu Piccu home is that nobody really knows anything about them. Throughout my touring of Peru the phrase, "it could have been used for this" or "we think they did this" was overwhelming. We are looking at a legit square of dirt and historians and archeologists, etc. over time still have not fucking clue exactly how they lived exactly. For me, I'd rather have you just keep it a mystery to my gringo ass than try and bullshit a reason for this particular room compared to the one down the dirt road. The stone buildings and how they were constructed is legit insane. Huge boulders were used and filed down to fit into each other perfectly and without modern technology to help them, it's mind-blowing to wonder how they did it. I'm fine with that. Tell me it's one of histories greatest mysteries and I will drink the Kool-Aid. 

My theory is firmly rooted in the belief of Inca magic. Seriously. I am not embarrassed or ashamed to commit to my theory that they had magic. There's not other logical explanation for how these ancient civilizations built and did what they did. Tell me it was magic and I find that infinitely more believable and fascinating than, 'we think they used a system of pulleys etc. yadda yadda yadda.' Don't care. It's magic.

And if you're thinking I'm crazy, think on my own experience with Inca magic for a moment. If you've read my previous posts about my first few days on the Inca Trail, you'll know how hard it was. Brutal hills, steep steps, little oxygen. It was basically a marathon workout all day, every day and these hills and steps would put any Jillian Michaels video to shame. With that said, I was anticipating waking up every day in immense muscle pain...yet I did not. For 4 straight days my muscles were not sore. Not one bit. There was no stretching class, yoga intermissions, breaks to rest and really let your muscles recover. It was hardcore every day. But I was never sore. Inca magic on the Inca trail I tell you because the morning after the Inca Trail...goodbye ability to walk like a normal human. Swear to God, 4 days of no pain and the day after we leave the magic of the Inca Trail I have never been so sore in my life. I'm talking can't walk down the stairs, can't walk in a straight line, this lasted for 3 days if not more. Tell me, that isn't magic...

I also should point out to fellow travelers that hiking the Inca Trail is not the only way to get to Machu Piccu! You can also take about a 2 hour train ride up to the ancient civilization! That's how we hikers get back down to present civilization. I HIGHLY suggest the hike if you are able-bodied. Don't let my posts scare you because there were older people on my hike and when I say older I don't mean 30s, I mean like 60s so don't psych yourself out! Take it at your own pace and you will triumph!

Travel Class of Inca Trail and Machu Piccu

First Class--this is a must do and see for all

Adventures in the Great Wide Somwhere // Inca Trail Day 3 & 4

Day 3
Day 3 is what is considered the long day and the day of the 'Gringo Killers' aka stairs so steep the gringos aka white people aka non-Peruvian people puts undo stress on all their joints trekking down these steps. The beginning of the day was rough. We traverse another peak, this only slightly lower than 14,000 ft but still very high. Again, the elevation kicking my ass and I wanted to die from being out of breath. And while the incline is a total bitch and I'm out of breath constantly, going down is a whole other beast. It's not as tiring but it's nerve-wracking. It was raining. I forgot that part. It started raining profusely about halfway up the peak and misery takes on a new name. Combine steep stairs, uneven rocks, and rain...no bueno. (FYI--that's Spanish for 'no good' heh heh).

After a large portion of steep stairs the trek evens out and it is a completely enjoyable and even-tempered part of the hike. I wasn't exhausted, the only shitty thing is that it was rainy and foggy as hell so the views were obstructed. Oh, well. It can always be worse...but it was pretty bad. Stopping for lunch was the highlight of the day. It was warmer, because the rain made it freezing, and we were told lunch was going to have a special surprise and I legit said, 'OMG, is it a cake?' and lo and behold at 11,000 feet elevation our chef made a fucking cake. I almost weeped with joy. Anybody that knows me knows how much I love cake. Close to as much as I love my Mom and Harry Potter and Beauty and the Beast...shit is serious. We also had soup which was hot and delicious, copious amounts of hot chocolate and tea...I'm only going into detail about the food because the weather and cold was so miserable it made an impression. So, the rest of the day is still going downhill so we had to be careful and we walked around some beautiful ruins overrun with grass and so much greenery, it was gorgeous...see pics...seriously. Words cannot express how AMAZING these ruins were. Add in the fog and it upped the creep factor and it was perfection!

 

Our third night is devoted to giving thanks to our amazing porters. We tip and offer any other items we might not use the rest of the trip, small flashlights, toiletries, etc. they are grateful for anything. They also dance and sing and it is so fun! It's a really beautiful little ceremony. The hike may only be 4 days but the struggle is real. You're all tired and dirty and wet and sore (well not really because, Inca magic) and emotions are high, at least for me, and you realize that the people you went through this with may have started out as strangers but you all struggled at times together. I'm an emo sap but I really loved the people I did this with and will always remember them. We tried to get to bed early because *shudder* the final day is a 330 am wake up call...no I did not type that wrong...330 am...ugh

Day 4 (!!!!!!)
Day 4 is the final day!! We reach Machu Piccu in a few short hours! I woke up, while tired and cranky, legit like a kid on Christmas morning. I was SO excited to get the final day started! So we wake up, quick breakfast, and its off to wait in line at the entrance to final leg of the trip. Why are we waiting in line? Because today's hike is a legit trail on the side of a mountain and if you fall, you're dead. They used to not close it off and people would try to hike this portion to be at the Sun Gate for sunrise but it is so dangerous in the dark that people died...so they closed it off and only open it up once the sun has risen. The fun part about this is you go up actual gringo killers. The stairs are so steep it's almost rock climbing a wall. So fun. Seriously.

After about an hour we get to the Sun Gate and hello, lovely, you sure are beautiful. The view from above Machu Piccu at the Sun Gate is one of a kind. We were blessed with a beautifully sunny day and it was incredible. Picture taking here is a must and go crazy but be polite. I had an encounter with a very rude French couple...and people dare say Americans are rude...fuck right off...no idea where they would get that impression...*cough*

After the Sun Gate it is all downhill and to say some of us were actually running towards Machu Piccu is not a lie. I was SO incredibly excited I couldn't go fast enough! Machu Piccu is gorgeous, don't get me wrong, but honestly, if you hike to Machu Piccu and don't just take the train, I feel like the MP is juuuust slightly anticlimactic because the hell you have endured for 4 days and getting to the peaks of 2 mountains, MP didn't give me as much of a high as getting to the top. But maybe it's just me. We spent a few hours at MP and I will talk about that...in my next post! Stay tuned!