I ended up joining a group of 24 people, eventhough the office had told me a maximum of 7 people, from all over the world. We were an amazing mix of personalities and nationalities (Japanese, English, South African, New Zealanders or Kiwi, Chileans, Argentino, Australian, Spaniards, German and me plus the peruano guides, cooks and helpers). It was fun and I had many more memorable experiences than I had ever imagined.
Day 1:
Well our trip started off with a bang, shudder and little sleep. The tour was originally going to start at 4:30 am with a van coming to pick me up at my hostal. Instead, I received a phone call at 7 pm stating that we were leaving in 3 hours. We had to leave at 10pm that night because there was going to be a strike the next day and all transport was going to be cancelled - roads, planes etc. The local people were striking for more water rights. Quite the organized strike. The local people all knew it was going to happen and it only lasted for one day. Then back to business.
Anyway, we ended up arriving at our original breakfast destination around 2 am. Instead we ended up sleeping on the dining room floor and then having breakfast around 6:30am.
We hiked 22 km along the Valley of the Apurimac River up to the Soraypampa campsite. We started at 2900m and camped at 3850m. It is a cold and sometimes windy campsite, near the base of 2 glaciars - one being Salkantay and the other is Huamantay. Since it is so cold, they have an tarp enclosed structure where our tents were set up and tables for mealtimes. It was an incredibly clear night and some of us were stargazing. I learned the quechuans and incans have constellations that are within the band of the milky way galaxy and are comprised of the spaces between the stars. I saw the llama constellation. A decent day of hiking - a steady incline, blue sunny skies and beautiful scenery.
Day 2:
We had another early start - our wakeup call was at 5:30am. But we had tea served to us in our tents. Nice!!! Day 2 we hiked up to the 4,600 m pass - on the flanks of Salkantay or Savage Mountain as it is understood in Quechua. There have been many attempts to summit Salkantay but only a Japanese group has been successful. We started off early in the morning to the 750 meters in 5 km. It took us about 2 - 3 hours in total. My climbing skills are definately improving and I even surprised one of the guides. I can't wait to see how this training will impact my summer ski climbs in Oregon. After the pass, we hiked down another 3 hours to our lunch spot and then down another 2 - 3 hours for our campsite at Colpapampa. This campsite was along a river and we were lulled to sleep all night long to the sounds of the rushing water. Heaven!
Day 3:
An easy hiking day, considering we only hiked for 5 hours and had some free time in the afternoon. We camped at Sahuayaco in the town of Santa Teresa. It was a beautiful hike down another 1000m along the edge of the jungle and/or cloud forest (I heard it referred to as both) on one side and a river valley on the other. We saw avocado, coffee, banana, and passion fruit trees growing. We saw tons of waterfalls and an old hot springs pool that is no longer active because of some mudslides a few years back.
After lunch, a group of us played futbol. Now I have never really played much soccer but I prefer to be doing things rather than just lazing about so I joined in. After about 5 minutes, I ended up as the goalie on my team by default (our goalie had taken the ball up the field and I defended the goal just in case). I rather enjoyed it, in a terrifying way, especially because my team was more of a defensive team than an offensive one. So I got a lot of experience defending the goal. Well at one point, I blocked the ball from going into the goal but it bounced forward onto the field. So I dove on top of it so no one would kick it in. Well, all the guys, on both teams, just burst out laughing and then cheering. I did not know how to take it at first. But once they started cheering, I knew it was okay. Now I do not know what was so funny but my guide described me as a "wild tiger". I guess they are not accustomed to women who actually play sports. Our team unfortunately did not win but I learned a lot about being a goalie and we definately had fun!
That night, instead of our typical camp dinner, most of us chipped in an extra 20 pesos for a special pig dinner (Pajimama??). A local pig was killed (while some of us watched), cut into pieces, seasoned with garlic, vinegar, hot pepper and salt, and then cooked on a hot stone fire. What an experience. In the middle of the road, they dug a foot down into the earth. They collected some big stones and created a domelike structure in which they made a fire. The fire was to heat the stones and 4 iron rods. When the pig was all cut up and marinated, they wrapped the pieces in a butcher paper. Our cook and some locals first put the potatoes in the bottom of the fire, then knocked down the stones down in a frenzy while randomly placing the butcher wrapped pieces of pig. They covered all the pieces with rock, then some big palm leaves, then a plastic tarp and then some earth. There was still steam coming up so they got another tarp, placed this on top and then covered it with more earth. They cooked the meat and potatoes like this for about an hour or so. They uncovered the layers, pulled the meat and potatoes out and we feasted on some scrumptious food. The next day, two of the women picked the rocks up, filled the hole in with the ashes and dirt and the road was back to business as usual. I love the spontaneity and instant creation.
Day 4:
Another long day of gorgeous scenery and hiking. Today, we had to carry our full packs (or pay to put them on the bus and train as most people did) while we hiked up, up and up for 3 hours and then down and only down for 2 hours. We got our first glimpse of Machu Piccu - both the mountain and some of the ruins before heading down into the valley. It was hot and most
of the hike was in the direct sun but we managed to do all right. I basically ran , or more accurately trotted, down the hill. What with the weight of my pack on my back, it was easier to be lighter on my feet if I sort of ran down the hill.
We had 5 hours of gorgeous hiking until we came to the hidroelectric dam. It was really strange to be one moment in this incredible lush, green forest and mountains with a wide river at the bottom and then the next at a construction site with noise, pollution, garbage and machinery. As I was taking photos of the worksite an explosion went off right across the river and I must have jumped 5 feet back. I was shocked. The company is building a tunnel across the river and want another road put in. Then we came to the railroad tracks where there is a fully operational train running from the dam to the town of Aguas Calientes. It was disconcerting to say the least bit. There was this incredibly huge waterfall which was generated by the turbines of the dam. At first I thought wow how beautiful but then I remembered our guide telling us that it was generated by the dam. Then I looked at the river bed and saw that the water filled less than half of the rvier bed. It was really sad to see. Especially knowing that it is drawing water away from the Sacred Valley and Machu Piccu site.
Anyway, we ate lunch near the train station and then hiked 3 more hours on flat, level ground - what a treat - to Aguas Calientes where we stayed in a hostal for the night. What an interesting day of hiking - between the difficulty of going up and then only going down, carrying our backpacks and the shock of destruction right near a World Heritage Unesco site. I barely could stay awake at the end of dinner and during our nightly briefing. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was sound asleep.
Day 5:
MACHU PICCHU!!! WOW! Magical! WOW! Incredible! WOW! Amazing! WOW! Ingenious! WOW! Peaceful! WOW! Garden Terraces galore! WOW! MACHU PICCHU!!!
Machu Picchu's Double Dozen:
Oh Laura, the world is a happier place for your adventuring! I'm so glad to get to experience it through your blog! Aren't you glad you aren't a vegetarian and got to experience the spontaneous pig dinner? I had to laugh at your description- I once had a goat dinner fixed in much the same way in Saudi Arabia- it was really gross and really delicious all at the same time.
ReplyDeleteHey, when you come back, wanna play soccer with me? WILD TIGER!!!