The View on Top

Part 3 of Machu Picchu: The hike up Huayna Picchu.

For one of the best views of Machu Picchu you have to hike up Huaynu Picchu. HP is the mountain you see in the photos of MP. They only allow 400 people to hike it daily. IT IS INTENSE! First of all, it is a whole lotta steps....and giant ones too. As you can see with the photo below there are times that you need to hold on to the rope to get up the steps. The people with long legs really have any advantage here.

For those with Acrophobia, this hike isn´t for you (you know who you are) . You are basically hanging off the edge of the mountain and it is a LONG way down. But along the way there are cool ruins and BEAUTIFUL VIEWS.

Half way up I was hurting. My lungs and my legs were aching. The sun was blazing hot and my endurance was fading (I should have eaten more breakfast or had some energy gummy worms!). It is probably one of the toughest hikes I have done! Luckily the guys I was hiking with pushed me on and wouldn´t let me quit! So I kept on! Which I´m glad I did because you go through the cave on top where the Incans built steps inside....Prettttttty cool....

Finally I reached the top! The view is AMAZING! You can see all of MP and the surrounding mountains, valleys, and rivers.

After spending a little bit of time on the summit, we started on our way down. Which turns out takes just as long because it is freaky. And your legs are a little shaky from the hike up. So you really have to be careful. As you can see from the photo below, you can see what happens if you misstep on the way down. In some parts the stairs are so narrow you have to twist your foot sideways on the way down.

Climbing Huayna Picchu was a great end to my trip in Machu Picchu! It really put the cherry on top of the entire trip!

THE END (of my adventure at Machu Picchu)

Wonder of the World

Bright and early at 4:30 am I got up to wait for the bus up to Machu Picchu. The sun gets up at 5 am here so it is actually not that early. Surprisingly there were a lot of people up waiting for the bus. You know what they say the early bird catches the worm or in this case the early tourist catches machu picchu at sunrise without all the crowds.

The bus takes you up a winding road with a whole lotta switchbacks. Revealing the BEAUTIFUL mountains that surround MP. Even if this was it and I didn´t see the ruins. I would have been content because the mountains are AMAZING. Once you arrive at the top you wait in a line to enter the ruins. Inside you peak around the corner to reveal MP. It is stunning. I mean photos prepare you, but the 360 degrees of the mountains and the ruins are just indescribable.

I met up with my tour group to go around the ruins a few hours. The tour was okay. I was only half listening because I wanted to take pictures and EXPLORE! One of the main ideas behind MP is that the Incans were big in respecting nature. They believed in building our world around nature, not against it. The photo below shows how the rocks on the left are mimicking the two mountains in the background.

Llamas! We ran into llamas on the tour. The guide said that there are about a dozen of them at the ruins. I know in Yellowstone people ask if we let the elk out at certain times during the day. Ummm...I think they do let the llamas out here at certain times during the day. Because it is just a little too idyllic.

The entire day was gorgeous. No rain the entire day. Which for MP is RARE. I felt extremely fortunate. After the tour I went exploring. There are so many interesting vantages, corners, and wide open spaces. Beautiful views all around. I went around taking lots of photos. Probably overusing the self timer on my camera. But you are only in Machu Picchu once! Proof is needed!

One thing those Inca's loved was steps. Whew! There were many around that place. I think I read that in all of MP there is something like 3000 steps! They must have been in amazing shape. The whole place was so interesting. The rooms, the stonework, the VIEWS! They say the first rule of real estate is Location, Location, Location. Well, the Incans probably had the best real estate in the world!

A couple of funny things about MP. There are guards all around that are constantly blowing a whistle when someone is where they shouldn´t be or doing something wrong. Kinda messes with the ambiance. There were a lot of people, but not as many as it could be since this is off season.

(The view down. FYI Terraces were used in MP for erosion purposes)

Our guide also told a funny joke. He would tell us ¨do you know what the fastest way to get down from Machu Picchu is? Bungee jumping. And all it will cost you is your life.¨ Haha...yes, yes. Funny yet not. Because it was SOOO high up.

(One of temples)

And then it was time to climb Hauyna Picchu. That is the giant mountain you see in all the photos. This was quite the task. I think I will make these Machu Picchu posts a trilogy and talk about the hike next time. To be continued (again).....

(Double door entry means entering a sacred place)

The Train to Machu Picchu-choo-choo

I had an UNFORGETABLE weekend visiting Machu Picchu. Everything was AMAZING! There is so much to talk about it would be hard to talk about it in one blog. So I will split it up into the two. First, the train ride and town Agua Calientes. And then MACHU PICCHU!

The train ride ride to Machu Picchu is probably one of the most incredible train rides. It is about 57 miles and 4 hours long. I was in a train with dome ceilings, so the mountains and scenery were especially impressive. Peruvian background music was playing in the background to set the mood (although one song was ¨Killing Me Softly¨ on flute?).

You start out in rural peru. Surrounded by farming and mountains in the distance.

Then you go through a dry desert canyon with cactus.

The mountains slowly start closing in on you. We passed by a few snowcapped mountains with glaciers on them and everyone ooooed and aaaaaed at them.

Following the river the entire way, the jungle slowly approaches.

And we arrive at our destination. The town of Agua Calientes.

Agua Calientes is the tourist town base to go to MP. The setting is amazing. By the river, with giant jungle mountains surrounding it. The town itself ehhh. Not so great. Touristy. Agua Calientes means Hot Water. That comes from the hot springs in the town. I did not go to the hot springs because I heard they were kinda gross and not so hot. Plus I really have my doubts that any hot springs is ever going to be as hot as Chico Hot Springs (or boiling river).

Instead I went to the musuem for Machu Picchu that was just outside town a mile or so. It was a neat musuem (Am I a dork for using the word neat with musuem?). It explained a lot about MP and had some exhibits. I´ll give a short history lesson...now that I am a teacher :).

MP is kind of a mystery. They are not sure exactly why it was there or when. It is guessed that around the mid 15th century it was built by the Incans as a winter retreat. Quite a lovely retreat I would say. Anyway, it wasn´t discovered until 1911 when Hiram Bingham stumbled upon it searching for the lost city of the Incas (which MP wasn´t). Hiram Bingham was a Yale archeologist (the inspiration for Indiana Jones). Bingham brought a team back with support from Yale and National Geographic to excavate the ruins. Over 80% of the current ruins are original. That is some of the stuff I learned. They also had exhibits of tools and artifacts from MP.

(one of these things doesn´t belong!)

In addition to the musuem I went to the botanical garden next to it. They had different trees, flowers, and plants.

I love nature. It was nice to be outside with the plants and trees. It´s my happy place. They have these crazy walls that have rock steps that protrude out from the wall.


Then I found a plant with my name(well sorta, they spell it without an H)-Who knew?



Anyway, it was a gggrrrrrrreeeeeeeeaaattt pre-game day. But the next day was where it was at: MACHU PICCHU! To be continued.....