The Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu

I'm not sure we knew what we were getting ourselves into; we rarely hike at home for an afternoon let alone 5 days of camping and 82km of hiking at altitude, but we were up for the challenge (we had to be, we'd already paid our money!). There are many options for getting to Machu Picchu but we chose the Salkantay trek for the diversity, the scenery and duration; it did not disappoint. Just to put things into perspective, the highest mountain in Alberta is Mount Colombia at about 3,750 meters...

Day 1 - 4:30am pickup and 3 hour drive to a little town called Mollepata where we started our trek (at 2,900m). The landscape was pretty and the hike was relatively easy except for a few steep, muddy "short-cuts" that the guides took us through. We arrived to our campsite in a little village called Soraypampa (3,850m) around 5pm and immediately bundled in all of the clothes we had packed for the trek - it was cold, even for the only two Canadians in the group!

 

arriving to camp on the first day

Day 2 - We were forewarned that this would be the hardest day of the trip, ascending to 4,600m and hiking about 21kms in total. Essentially we ascended for 3 hours to reach Salkantay then descended for 5 hours, which did a real number on my knees. With about an hour & a half left of the descent, I gave in an hired a mule to carry me the rest of the way which was a fun change of pace :) By the time we reached our camp in a village called Challway (2,900m) we were out of the snow and into the jungle.

Salkantay Mountain

Day 3 - We hiked for about 6 hours in a warmer, more jungle-like terrain and ended in the early afternoon for some 'free time' in the town of Santa Teresa. We spent the afternoon soaking our aching muscles and blisters in the crystal clear hotsprings - what a God-send!

 

Day 4 - We walked along the railroad tracks from a town called "Hydroelectric" to "Aguas Caliente" for about 3 hours, stopping for lunch along the way. My blistered feet were very relieved to make it to Aguas Caliente, and our aching muscles were grateful for a hot shower & a bed! We ate a big dinner with our group and celebrated being at the gateway to Machu Picchu with a beverage before calling it an early night to prepare for an early rise.

 

 

Day 5 - At 5am we began climbing the old Inca stairs up the side of the mountain to get to Machu Picchu; 45 minutes later we arrived just in time for sunrise. What a sight! Photos do not do it justice; it is really an incredible place

 

 

 

 

spent!

I've included a link to the full photo album from our trek for anyone interested :) click here: Salkantay Trek

Peru: Lima to Cusco

From Huaraz we caught an overnight bus to Lima, where we stayed in a nice, modern area of the city called Miraflores for a few days. We toured the city by foot taking in the oceanfront walkway, a cool outdoor mall, the Huaca Pucllana pre-Inca ruins and the 'largest fountain complex in the world' - which is lit up with lights and a laser show each night.

 

 

After Lima we moved down the coast to Huacachina - an 'oasis' in the desert. This tiny town is known for its dune buggy & sandboarding tours through the desert, which was so much fun but slightly scary with our crazy driver!

 

 

 

 

We also visited the local Tacama winery and tasted Pisco's at the Tony Labis property (Pisco is a grape brandy aged for 2 years in clay pots). I can't say I'm a huge fan of straight pisco but luckily it tastes much better when mixed in a cocktail, like the famous Peruvian "Pisco Sour".

Another long busride brought us to Arequipa, home of the 'world's deepest canyon' - the Colca Canyon - which is more than twice as deep as the Grand Canyon. We prepared for a difficult 2 day hike into the canyon but unfortunately we had to cancel the trip when I caught a bad case of food poisoning; instead of the canyon trek we just enjoyed walking around Arequipa while I recovered.

Our next stop was Cusco, the gateway to the Sacred Valley and Machupicchu. Unfortunately, Jody caught food poisoning here (two days after me) so we were delayed another few days regaining our strength for the 5-day Salkantay trek to Machupicchu. June is a big month for festivals in Cusco so it was nice to walk around town and see all of the celebrations.

 

 Today is our last day in Peru before we head for Bolivia; I hope to blog about the Salkantay trek soon!

Huaraz, Peru - deserves a post all it's own

The Cordillera Blanca mountain range is stunning. While the town of Huaraz itself could use a facelift, you couldn't paint a prettier backdrop. We did two different day hikes in the mountains and, other than the cacti and dry conditions, the scenery reminded us of the Canadian Rockies in many ways - except at a much higher altitude. The first hike we did was to the massive Pastoruri Glacier at 5,000+ meters above sea level; luckily we drove much of the way stopping to check out the Puya plants and glacial watering holes before walking about 1.5 hours to the glacier.

The next day we braved a much more intense hike to the infamous "Lake 69". It was a difficult, 3-hour, 9km walk up to 4,600 meters but the beautiful scenery along the way helped to keep our minds off the diminished oxygen supply! We passed local huts, loads of livestock, massive waterfalls, glacier lakes & rivers and pretty flora. The unbelievable aqua lake is located almost at the top of the mountains and is a rewarding surprise after a difficult ascent.

not happy about that sun-spot...

Back in Huaraz we spent a day recovering from these back-to-back treks and did a little people-watching in the park; I just love the traditional dress of the Peruvian women (and the alpaca's!).

We met up with a few friends and took the lazy-man's way up to a lookout over the city - by taxi - then enjoyed a pink sunset from the rooftop of our hostel.

Huaraz was one of our favorite stops in Peru so far... maybe because it reminded us of home :)