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Peru – Hike to Machu Picchu - April 2010

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Roman, Karen and I on the road to Machu Picchu.

My first trip to South America was a dream vacation for me. I studied Mesoamerican culture and art for many years and was thrilled to be able to visit so many places of inspiration for me. I chose Peru for its rich culture, varied landscapes (rainforest to desert, mountains, ocean, urban metropolis to uncontacted tribes), and and amazing history.  Peru did not disappoint – it was truly a trip of a lifetime!

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A high mountain lake on the hike to M.P. Llamas grazing on the terraces of M.P. Ruins along the trail.


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We decided to do the grueling 4 day hike along the Inka trail – here was our group of hikers. Hiking up into the mountains – beautiful views in all directions. Llaqtapata – one of the first viewpoints along the trail. The chaskis were amazing, they carried heavy packs along the trail as if it was nothing.
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Dead woman pass – the highest point along the trail. Circular ruins. Beautiful wall details – look how closely cut are the stones. Amazing terraces – how the Inca farmed in the inhospitable heights.
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Amazing terrace walls. Here you can see the steps that connect the terraces. Mist and clouds appeared and disappeared constantly. More misty terraces.

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Our small group at the top of dead woman’s pass. A wild deer we spotted along the trail. Exhausted, we reached the Sun Gate and had our first view of Machu Picchu mountain. Roman and I – tired but amazed.

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Llamas. Llama! Little lizards scampered all over the ruins. A beautiful high altitude lake where we had lunch.

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Lake along the trail. Rainforest flowers. Desert flowers. Aquas Calientes – an amazing town at the base of M.P. mountain.
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Duck Vessel at Pre-columbian museum in Cuzco. Bondage deer vessel. I love pre-columbian art. This art has always been a great inspiration to me!
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Typical small city streets. Being taught about natural dyes used on llama wool. Do I really need to caption this one? Faces in the stone – Sacred Valley
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Detail of face carved into the mountain. Can you see it? Peruvian locals. Even the cows are cooler in Peru! School parades in Cuzco town square.
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There were lots of dogs wandering the streets. Paucartambo square. Incredible rooftop tiles. March!
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Peruvian school uniforms. Coricancha tower. Sacsayhuaman fortress.  

The Andes are absolutely beautiful and inspiring.  The size and scope of everything is something that truly has to been seen in person to be experienced. For its amazing flavor, I highly recommend Peru!

The Inka trail was very demanding – I didn’t expect to be as affected by the altitude as I was.   We hiked the four day trek through the mountains along the original trails to Machu Picchu, carrying our own packs and camping overnight. It was a definite test in endurance. We arrived at the Sun Temple early in the morning to be some of the first visitors to Machu Picchu that day and took a wonderful tour (though we were quite exhausted at the time!) of the ‘lost city’.  We also took some time to explore the cities Cuzco and Aquas Calientes.  We tried guinea pig and alpaca – two local cuisine specialties and had the time to take in some local music.