Wake up call at 6! To meet Alpaca Expeditions at 7. Final packing, etc. Our guides come find us and we’re out the door of Kampala Guesthouse. Carrying our bags and leading us to the bus.
After a ride, we end up at the first checkpoint. All of the Inca treks start here. The porters need to make it through first, and once we have the okay, we’re good to go. Last second insect repellent, 30 soles. And a hat.
After a quick breakfast of bread and fruit, we are ready to… Go! Nervous. We take a team photo of the 14 of us and then go and line up to show our entry tickets and passports. Then immediately, start the hike! Obviously, a lot of breaks. Fairly level, but a bunch of ups and downs. Beautiful. Breathtaking views.
The first ruins were seen from across the river, by the commercial train tracks. Just some house ruins, from… Who knows when. Built in the rustic style, apparently by the way the walls are built. This was discovered by a westerner on an expedition to find the lost city. Hiram..?
Moving on, steps and steep hills. The last view of the sacred valley where we stop and take pictures.
We end up within some ruins and take a break while our tour guide, José, tells us a little about his life and the history of the Inca and Kechuas..? I don’t remember much, but the Inca are actually the leaders, 12 of them, and the culture is Kechua. And they’ve only existed for ~200 years while other civilisations for thousands before that all eventually became Kechua. Rain. Wind. Cold.
Keep going. Still a couple of hours until lunch. We pass an Inca bar, marked by a stick with a red bag at the end. They’ve got Chicha beer!
We finally make it to our lunch spot, welcomed with clapping and congratulations from our porters who have probably been there for an hour or so already. Haha. Wash up a little and rest, and lunch is served. Start with a stuffed tomato, followed by soup…….. We were told that would be it, while the chef walks in with ceviche, rice, roasted corn, guacamole, and stuffed trout. Wow. Impressive and really good. We are stuuuuuffed. Muna tea, which can apparently sterilize a woman if they drink it everyday for 15 years. Otherwise, good for digestion. Rest for a bit longer and refill our water.
We slowly head out again and oh man, so heavy with all this food. Two more hours until we get to our campsite. And half an hour of that is supposed to be “easy” to the second checkpoint. Yea, no. The next part, steep. Steep. Steps and steep. Although, there a lot of level areas as well. But steps hurt. We were to go our own pace this time and not follow anyone, the tour guides would stay behind and start later in case anyone needs help. Some parts, your heart just gets pumping. Beating out of your chest. Drink lots of water.
Finally make it to camp. Claps again! 🙂 Our tents are setup, our bags laid out, we rest, clean up, and meet up for happy hour, before dinner, for tea and snacks. Popcorn and biscuits. An hour later, 7pm, it’s pitch black outside and dinner is served. Rice, stuffed potato, chicken curry, some pea thing. And a surprise. Banana flombe. So cool. Sleeeeeep. Wake up call at 4:40 for our most challenging and longest day. Wish me luck. I hope there’s a followup post. Although, you won’t see this one if I don’t make it through anyways. Goodnight!
Post a Comment