Machu Picchu Day 1

Wednesday May 18

Yikes, our day started at 3:30 this morning as we got up and hopped into a Mercedes Sprinter van that was piloted by a future champion of the Sprinter Van race series. Fortunately we did have the road mostly to ourselves and really the only concern was when the condensation on the inside of the window dropped the visibility to near zero.  Being occasionally scolded be Patti for my side seat driving comments I declined to speak up from my position all the way in the back of the van.

The van race ended in Ollantaytambo where we hopped a train for about 90 minutes then jumped off in the jungle to begin our hike at the 104km mark on the Inka Trail.

We had three options to get to our destination; a 30 minute bus ride to the top, a 1 day hike with the 30 minute ride to the top tacked on the next day, or a 4 day trek. Initially, Patti and I considered the 4 day trek but decided that it would be miserable for the kids (and as a result us) if it were raining, so we went with the 1 day option. 

Machu Picchu is of course well known for the amazing man-made engineering feat that it is. However, during our 8 hour hike we marveled at Gods handiwork in the dramatic scenery as climbed out of the valley floor and up onto the Inka Trail which hung off the side of the valley wall presenting spectacular views at every turn.  If Machu Picchu is on your list I strongly recommend the hike and it really made our first view of MP rewarding.

We spotted the ruins of Winay Wayna, aka Baby Machu Picchu, from several kilometers off. At first it appeared just as gray opening in the green hillside with the characteristic terraced surroundings. The details further revealed themselves with every corner we rounded.

The tour company we chose, Alpaca Expeditions, keeps the group sizes small which we really like for obvious reasons. Our group of six set out but returned only five.  Just kidding but that could have happened with an easy tumble to the valley floor. We were joined by a great couple from Brussels, Isabel and Michele, whose company we enjoyed for our two day adventure.  The kids always get a kick out of chatting with folks and hanging our with people other that their parents for a change.

After our tasty hot lunch, which was hauled up the mountain by porters, we hiked for another 90 minutes to the sun gate for our first peek at Machu Picchu. From there we made our way down into the ruins for some poking around but saving most of it for the day before.

I am out of time to today, more tomorrow.

Oh wait...no Machu Picchu Day 1 Post is complete without a Llama Selfie.

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