Machu Pichu

It was going to take us three days to get to Machu Pichu, Day 4 was going to be in the ruins with more optional hiking. We were going to hike this trail: http://www.donquijote.org/tourist/maps/peru/img/cusco4.gif

I tried looking up the cumulative elevation gain since there was a lot of up and down even within a day. To my surprise there is no information on the internet about cum gain. Oh well, suffice to say it was a LOT!

Day 1: We started off at 6AM in a bus ride towards Ollantaytambo. After breakfast at a scheduled stop, I bought a warm hat and also a walking stick even though I don't like sticks on hikes (did so at the insistence of John and Abraham our trail guide. I made John carry it about half the time). I also bought a poncho for the inevitable rain, the best purchase on the trip. It would have been too hot to hike in my rain jacket, even though its rather thin.

We excitedly got our passports stamped at the entrance, took a "before" group picture and started up walking by Rio Cusichaca. Before I forget the river Urubamba is the major river, it changes names as it winds about in the Andes and was sacred (but ofcourse) to the Incas. It was a sunny day and hike was not very steep. I have been on some lovely hikes in the Southwest and NY USA, and have been impressed by the scale and depth of the mountains and valleys. But this was unmatched. The valley overlook, while not any deeper than, say Grand Canyon (perhaps less so), went on and on forever. I have this memory of us stopping very close to a cliff (he had a tendency to always stand close the edge while talking to us, used to freak out one of the girls in the group) where we could see an Inca site below and we all sat down like students and Abraham stood close to the cliff edge and lectured us on Inca facts and history. The Inca trail is about 25000km and we were about to hike about 45 km of it. It was lovely to look around on a very sunny (though cool) day. I had read that Inca blood has been diluted beyond recognition and most Peruvians today are mixed blood. Abraham, however, insisted he was Inca blood. I asked him how he knew. He said in all seriousness, “Because I chew coca leaf and drink chicha (corn beer)”. I told him I had had had coca and was hence halfway there myself!

Lets talk a little about the porters. We were joined by 6 other people, so the tourists were 12, and then there were 3 guides (John, Abraham and George) which brought the visitor total in our group to 15. We had 20 porters (including a chef with a hat!) who carried our things, tents, food supplies and everything we would need for the 3 days to get up there. They carry 25-30 kilos of weight on their backs and walk the same path as we do. Oh I am sorry, they sprint up the path while we drag on. By the time we got to lunch site, the dinner tent was already up. There were individual bowls of cold water with bar soap for us to wash up. Hot soup was served by the waiter followed by about 4 dishes of vegetables, rice and meat, all freshly made. And then as we, the royalty, went on to the hike, they cleaned up, packed everything and overtook us to make it to dinner campsite to have tea, cookies and fresh popcorn ready. In the morning they would wake us up with hot coca tea and have warm water bowls outside the tent for washing up. They would boil water twice a day so we could carry clean water for the trail. Positively luxurious! And here I was with 10 lbs on my back struggling to find a way to reduce a few more ounces so I could be light.

Anyway we moved on, Abraham was a little quick for me. I was roughly in the middle of the group which was nice since I usually am a straggler. Later we all argued on who was lagging behind more than the others and complimented each other on how good the other person had been that day. I lost my sunblock on the way, it just fell out. I asked Abraham to please tell the Lost and Found department of Machu Pichu to keep an eye out for it.

Day 2 of the hike started at 6:30AM and was going to take us into the high jungle and was promised to be the most difficult. Steps all the way and we would get to the highest point on the trail at 4200m, Dead Woman’s Pass. George started wearing a t-shirt that said “I survived Dead Woman’s Pass”, I really wanted a similar t-shirt, but alas I never found it. So high jungle it is. This part of the hike was hard, very hard. It was steep steps all the way. And we were truly in the dense forest. It was misty and rained gently for hours. I think we got terribly lucky, I had read stories about downpours and a submerged trail. I loved the weather and the misty forest around us, I was prepared for the wet and it was cold but not freezing. But the steps, oh those steps! My legs ache to think of those Inca steps. At some point, about 20 minutes before we got to Dead Woman’s Pass, you could look up and see the end of the steps. It was very motivating to drag yourself upto the end…. Only to find it was a clearing with a flat path and more steps further up. As I walked on, I heard the loud groans of others who had made a similar discovery. Actually it was more like shouts of “What the F$@*”. Whichever Inca built that part of the trail had a mean streak in him. I had taken my walking stick from John and was using it to haul myself up the steps. I was doing switchbacks between the steps, carefully studying the trail looking for the shortest step. Whenever there was a tiny path to the side of the steps, I took it. Every step up had to be carefully measured. John and George advised singing in our mind as a motivational technique. I couldn’t focus on a song so I kept repeating “I can do this”. Which was motivating, but got boring after a while. Note to self: find inspirational phrases. There was a time I asked myself: “Why am I doing this to myself, when I could have been at home listening to some fine music, reading a fine book and drinking fine tea. Or regular tea, I am not picky. I could have enjoyed the free pizza they were going to serve at work that week. Why Uppal, Why?”

We finally made it to Dead Woman’s Pass, which was a bit of an anticlimax since we couldn’t see anything, it was so misty. Its so called because you can see the shape of a woman lying down in the mountains. I saw the face with nose and a breast, but nothing much else. You can see more from different views. And then unbelievably enough, it got worse. We had to climb down steps. Definitely not good on my knees, I kept thinking of how much damage I was causing to my knees that I will pay the price for years later, more importantly the next day.

Abraham usually led the group and George acted as sweep. John flitted back and forth looking after his group. At some point he caught up with me and started talking about his life and culture. I was happy to listen and was trying not to talk too much, because then I get distracted and you know what happens when you are distracted. Sure enough, as I was in the middle of answering John’s question about whether it was true that Indian men have many wives, I slipped and fell. Never mind, no harm done. I picked up, brushed off and moved on. And continued my cultural education of my guide John. At some point he started telling me about the deaths by accident of tourists and porters on the trail. I asked if we could please continue that conversation later (maybe back in the lobby of that nice and safe hotel in Cusco over coca tea)

Anyway we made it to dinner camp at around 3pm. Dinner was, as always, a lovely affair, tonite there was hot virgin sangria. Abraham passed around a bottle of rum to mix with sangria as reward. It was over in no time. We played cards, I went out later to see the starlit clear night with a thin sliver for a moon, the bright milky way and the southern cross (which you can only see in the southern hemisphere). Before dinner Robyn and I found a flat ground away from the camp and did yoga. It was very relaxing and may have contributed to my near absence of soreness the next day inspite of the grueling hike. I asked John how the porters feel about us foreigners coming into their country and leaving behind all that mess. He said that they probably appreciated the money but made fun of everybody that wasn’t one of their own. He said they made fun of him as well since he is not a native. He said they appreciated when someone made an effort to talk to them. They speak Quechua, the language of the Incas. We learned that George was nicknamed Arnold Schwarzenegger by other guides and he is indeed buffed up and talks and laughs like Arnold. It was a good bonding night throughout.

Peru has 4000 varieties of potato, we had potato in almost all our meals on the hike, sometimes more than one variety in one meal. We also had quinoa. Quinoa was considered mother of all grain by Incas, it is very healthy and I have become quite a fan. They also served freshly popped popcorn and cookies, at tea time and though I am not a fan of popcorn, it was hard to stop eating.

Day 3 had an early start as well and was on and off sunny and we saw the back of Machu Pichu mountain. There was more culture talk at Phuyupatamarka, Abraham talked of possible human sacrifice by Incas to please the Gods, the person being sacrificed was usually prepped with hallucinogenic. There was a lot of walking down steps as well as a flat sloping trail. I really hated the steps down. We reached our last camp site soon enough, there was actually a hot shower there! Yoohoo! The night before I had ambitions for a cold shower, which was the only option on the trail, but one toe in the cold water convinced me otherwise. I had whined about the lack of shower options on the trail causing Emily to say I was "picky, picky, picky". I just wanted to be "clean, clean, clean". I had so far managed with a cold sponge. Brrrr.

We camped near Winay Wayna ("forever young" in Quechuan) Inca site which is called mini Machu Pichu, it’s a large concave site built into the side of a mountain. We went for a walk and pictures. Dinner was going to be served in a restaurant though it would be cooked by our chef. This was the night I got an appreciation of how crowded and busy the trail is. No more than 400 people are allowed to start the trail at a time, we were all there in that one campsite. There was alcohol for sale at the restaurant and as you can imagine the place was trashed with empty bottles and was very noisy. This was also bid your porters good bye night since they were taking our things back to Aguas Calientes (town at the bottom of the mountain) the next AM and we would not see them again. We tipped them and then shook hands with each of them. A few bold ones helped themselves to a kiss on the cheek with the women. They were mostly shy and there was no real interaction between us.

The next day (Day 4) we woke at 4:30 and started at 5:30 when the entrance opened to Machu Pichu. In about 2 hours we were at Sun Gate. Once again lady luck smiled at us, there were no clouds at all. Machu Pichu itself was visible, albeit overcast making it look grayish. As we walked down, the sun played hide and seek and I got some good pictures of the ruins in the sun. We were reunited with Eva and Barry who had bused up from Aguas Calientes early morning.

There is a mountain called Huyana Pichu which serves the backdrop in all the shots of Machu Pichu you will see. It’s a steep 45 minutes climb up and at the start of the trip we were all very keen on hiking HP. Abraham and John were not sure we would have time to do that and the MP tour and lunch at Aguas Calientes and still catch 2:30pm train back. They said we’ll see. Anyway, we stopped at the restaurant section of Machu Pichu and there is an $500-$800 a night hotel that celebrities stay at. We got a pretty Machu Pichu stamp on our passports. It was busy by the time we took our breakfast break, many of the train and bus travelers had arrived by that time, I will say that Machu Pichu is very touristy. Like I said, a road very well traveled.

Anyway we went onto the tour of Machu Pichu, which was a holy city for the Incas, the workers who built the city were also of the higher class. It has temples as well as homes for the highest nobility. The difference is in the quality of the stones and how they are laid together. The stones in the temples connect perfectly, you couldn’t slide a paper between the cracks. Machu Pichu was (re)discovered in 1911, it was saved from the destructive Spaniards (conquistadors) since it had been lost when they arrived. We visited all the major sites and temples (including sun dial, sun temple, temple of three windows) with Abraham pointing out the significance of each and the architecture. The Incas worshipped the Sun God Inti. Come to think of it, all old faiths have a different name for the Sun God, but the Sun was universally worshipped. Machu Pichu has over 200 structures and is believed to have housed 700-800 people during Inca times. By far this was the largest site we saw on the hike. Machu Pichu means old peak and Huyana Pichu means young peak in Quechuan.

And then out of the blue John and George said “lets go climb Huayana Pichu” and I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly. A few of us went, the rest either stayed in MP or went back to Aguas Calientes. I think the elevation gain on Huyana hike was between 1200 and 1500 feet, the round trip takes an hour and half, we started @11AM and had a 2:30PM train from Aguas Calientes though we had to be at the station at 2 (it’s a 30 min bus ride there form Machu Pichu). It was going to be tight, but we started off anyway. I am still amazed with myself that I did it. The good thing about the hike was that it was short narrow steps and I found myself going up on all fours on sheer willpower. I actually made it to the top in under 40 minutes. Tim, John in less than 30. When I got to the top I felt this indescribable sense of accomplishment for the first time on the trail. I didn’t have that when we got to Machu Pichu, day 2 was by now forgotten. It was a lovely view, you can see the whole of of Machu Pichu (even portions you cant see from Sun Gate) and it indeed looks like a condor. I just sat on the top for several minutes soaking it all in quite unable to move (combination of the splendor and exhaustion) .Coming back down the exact same path was not bad, short steps are fine. Its those darned steep ones that kill you and your knees.

Anyway, we made it to lunch at Via Jores in Aguas Calientes where I ate like I have not eaten in years. Second and third helpings and 2 helpings of desert. I had worked hard and was hungry. The sweet potato dumplings were delicious. The train ride down was nice, everybody in my compartment dozed off without exception, I took my 40 winks and then enjoyed the view past the window. It was an hour and half in the train and then another hour and half bus ride back to the hotel. And that was it, the adventure was all behind me (or so I thought).

The Experience

Machu Pichu is associated with spirituality, many feel the presence of God and spirits there. I think the fact that it is high up (about 2400m) makes you feel like you are close to the Gods (one reason why the Incas built it so high). Besides there is always a cloud presence. Most mythical stories (atleast the Hindu ones I grew up seeing in pictures) show the Gods in heaven among clouds, I think the clouds give it a mystical quality which lends itself to spirituality. Ofcourse when one is spiritual, you can feel the presence anywhere but the natural beauty of the place helps. The hike in the high jungle was my favorite part. I had to stop every few steps to rest for a few seconds which helped me admire my surroundings, and I chose to hike by myself for a large portion. It was amazing to “hear” the forest and see into the clouds. You could look down the valley one minute and then the clouds would move in the next blanketing everything, making you forget where or how high you were. By the way, I had done very well with the altitude. I chewed coca leaf mixed with sweetening ash (you hold it low in your cheek and let your saliva do its job) once more for fun than need. The porters would wake us up with hot coca tea every morning and that was about it. No headches, no nausea. I did well.