I fought the trail ⇒

And the trail won! We were supposed to do the trail in 4 days, but because our group was so strong, we manage to get there (to Machu Pichu) in 3! In day one, we bought the all important walking stick (for 3 soles) and met our porters. All we have to carry is a little day pack and the porters carry everything else! Doesn«t sound to hard does it? The first day wasn«t too bad...a little up and a little down. Not too bad. Lunch was a pleasant surprise...a 3 course meal! First some nice soup, then the main course and then a little dessert! Turns out this is the norm...so much for roughing it! We decided that since we were all feeling well, we would hike for an extra couple of hours to make the dreaded day two easier. By the time we got to our campsite, at an altitude of 3350m, our tents were already set up and afternoon tea was ready. As we arrived late dinner was shortly after that. There isn«t much to do in the campsites, so we just played some cards, had dinner and then went to bed. Tomorrow would be the hardest day of the hike.

Day two was everything I thought it would be...farking hard! We had to go from our campsite at 3350m to the first pass at 4200m in only 5kms!! We managed to do it in about 2 hours, but I think I pushed myself too hard (more about that later). The last hour I could only manage to put one foot directly in front of the other...seemed like I would never get there. The altitude decreases the oxygen flow in your blood so you feel really slow. We waited at the top for about an hour for most of our group, but we had to leave as it was getting really cold. Unfortunately, 3 members of our group were really struggling so they were taking their time. Lunch was 2 hours down at 3600m and then we headed up to pass 2 at 3900m!! After that I don't remember much as I "hit the wall" on the way down! That has never happened to me before...not a pleasant experience. I pretty much just turned into a robot...one foot in front of the other until I reached the campsite at 3600m. I did manage to recover, but I was not feeling well. Everyone noticed something was wrong with me as I suddenly went silent! Another great dinner, more cards and an early bedtime (about 8pm!). One of our travel mates, Chihiro, was so affected by the altidude that she was literally carried down by the porters! Poor girl! She did get better though and was able to do the rest of the hike herself.

Day three was mostly easier. I had recovered from the most serious symptoms of the previous day and I was *only* exhausted. It turns out that our next campsite was only 1.5 hours away. This was not good as then we would have a long hike (not to mention having to get up at like 2am) the next day to Machu Pichu. So our guide, Julio, "fixed" things so we could stay in a private campsite in Aguas Calientes. But first we had to get there! The first part of the hike was great...all the way up to the 3rd pass (at 3650m). After that we went waaaay down to Winay Waya (2700m), where Bernie had cold beer for us! That hike down was not pleasant as it was a loose dirt path with loose rock...very slippery! After lunch we headed up and down and up and down to Inti Punco, where we got our first view of Machu Pichu!! What a view...the pictures should be great! A quick break there and then down 400 more meters to Machu Pichu (more about that later). We hung around there for a while and then took a bus down to Aguas Calientes where we visited another spa. This one had much more "character" as it looked like it was the place the locals went for their weekly/monthly bath! But the hot water sure felt good on our tired bones. Then a short hike to our "official" campsite for a much needed rest. It turns out that this used to be a campsite and it is no longer one. We figure that Julio "arranged" our camping with the local authorities when they came by to check up on us. Later in the evening, the mayor was passing by us by train and we were not allowed to be there, so we (the porters) had to take down our tents and we had to turn out all the lights when we saw the train coming! One of the highlights of the trip for me!! After dinner a few of us started to celebrate our 3 days of hiking. I think it was the 10 soles ($5!!) rum that didn't agree with me the next morning. Or maybe it was the vodka. Or the beer. Either way I wasn't feeling that well for our 4am wake up call the next day!

Day 4 brought us to Machu Pichu!