Cusco: Week 6--The Salkantay Trail to Machu Picchu!

There's really only one thing to talk about this week--the Salkantay Trek!

Many weeks ago we booked the classic Inca Trail trek to Machu Picchu, but after talking to some friends that had done the Salkantay Trail, we started to see if we could do it, too! Tickets to Machu Picchu were mostly sold out for the month of October, but we lucked into spots on a 5-day/4-night trek that would allow us not only to visit Machu Picchu, but also hike up Huchu'ypicchu Mountain while we were there. Well, this was the week for it! It was challenging, fun, educational, and awe-inspiring.

Day 1: Cusco - Soraypampa - Humantay Lake - Quiswarniyoc Camp. 6km hiked; 338m ascended; 250m descended.

We started the trip with a 0400 wake-up and boarded our van at 0500 in Cusco to head off to the start of the trek. We stopped for breakfast before starting the trek in Soraypampa. It was pretty chilly at the start, but walking uphill helped warm us up a bit. We were surrounded by beautiful mountains that were occasionally shrouded in clouds. But then, the rain started and it was very wet and cold! It was still raining when we arrived at Humantay Lake, but that didn't mar its beauty. Thankfully the rain stopped while we were there and we were able to dry out and warm up a bit. And of course, take photos! From the lake (at 4250m) we descended to our campsite at Quiswarniyoc and a much-appreciated lunch. This was our first meal cooked by our trail chef and it started off with an amazing mango ceviche--it was indicative of the great food we would enjoy along the trail! We spent the rest of the day resting and getting to know our tour companions. Our group of 13 folks (in groups of 4-2-2-2-3) originated from the USA, Canada, Peru, Holland, and the UK, and was led by a fantastic guide, Marco. The only downside to this campsite? We had to walk up a very steep hill (took me about 10 minutes) to get to the dining place and my legs were SHOT (actually, the "down" is just as bad for me). Soooo happy there was a toilet down by our huts! You had to scoop a pail of water out of a giant barrel to flush the toilets, but they were there! We enjoyed a very comfortable night with llamas walking by and stars glittering overhead. I loved it.

Humantay Lake is surrounded by mountains and fed by glaciers. It's beautiful!

Our first camp was very cozy and remote. We had great views of Salkantay when the clouds cleared and the night sky was stunning.

Day 2: Quiswarniyoc - Salkantay Pass - Chaullay - Camp. 22km hiked; 630m ascended; 1100m descended.

Touted as the most difficult day of the trek, this is the day we ascended to the highest point of the trail, the Salkantay Pass at 4630m. The mountains here made this day quite literally breathtaking, but the "Gringo Killer" to the pass didn't kill us! After a dry and sunny start to the day, clouds moved in so we didn't have great views from the pass, but we did make an offering to Pachamama and the Apus mountain god before descending in a cold rain to a lunch site. That part of the trek was super hard for me as my knees have been shot for ages, but add in the rain and cold and it was a bit miserable. Lunch was in a cold tent and though the staff tried hard, the food was cooled quickly by the wind. But our group was so great and we laughed through it as much as we could and pressed on to the campsite where the promise of hot showers, beers, and dry huts awaited us. It was actually kind of fun to wait in the queue for the showers while sipping cervezas with our traveling companions! We have "happy hour" each evening, too, which is actually hot drinks and popcorn before dinner, but it's also a great time to learn about each other. 

Our ascent to the Salkantay Pass was a challenge, especially as the weather changed, but it was still a great hike!

After our frigid descent and lunch, it finally dried out for our final few kilometers along the river to camp.

Day 3: Chaullay - Collpapampa - Playa Sahuayacco - Santa Teresa. 16km hiked; 1350m descended; knees gone.

This was supposed to be our "easy" day. We were continuing to descend and were really in the heart of the Andean jungle. Fruits and bromeliads dominated the landscape and our stops were punctuated with fresh fruits, fruit juices, avocado sandwiches...all the treats of the jungle! We even had a fun stop where Trent got to play fútbol (soccer) with other trekkers and executed a mean (but clean!) tackle on a guy that earned him a lot of praise from the European members of our group--he loved it! We ended our trek at a coffee producer where we learned all about the process from hand-picking the beans to having a cup of coffee. We even roasted and ground our own beans to try and it was amazing! We were supposed to be in tents that night, but apparently previous rains had left them in sad shape so the company put us in a hostel in Santa Teresa. The afternoon was "free" and we had the option to zipline and/or go to hot springs. Trent was going to zipline, but after hearing thunder he opted to just hit the hot springs. THAT was nice! It's a pretty touristy spot, but the water was warm and relaxing and there was a hot "shower" waterfall which was quite welcome since the hostel didn't have hot water. At the springs we also had a little "real" happy hour with shots and music and laughter...it was a great time and we got to know the three couples in our group even better. That night, however, was hell! Though we had nice beds, music pumped in the town until some ungodly late hour, then the street dogs barked like crazy for a few hours, and then the music started back up at about 0300 as the workers got going for the day. I don't think anyone in the group slept well, but we were back up at 0500 to continue on our way.

Waterfalls, river crossings, and LOTS of downhill this morning. But we had got to play and relax, too!

We roasted and made coffee, got real beds, and relaxed in the local hot spring. 

Day 4: Santa Teresa - Hidroeléctrica - Aquas Calientes. 19km hiked; 796m ascended; 810m descended. Spirits and knees needing help.

The day started with a three-hour climb on the Inca Trail. While the jungle was beautiful, it was hot, steep, buggy, and the nice pace we had enjoyed on Day 2 seemed to be gone and we were booking up the mountain. Katreina struggled a bit, flatly stating, "this is just so hard," and she wasn't wrong. Before we hit the summit there was a nice rest stop where we enjoyed a creamy avocado sandwich and some cat snuggles. At the summit, we splurged on a celebratory Powerade before starting the rapid descent. Right after the summit we stopped at the Inca ruins of Llactapata where we got our first glimpse of Machu Picchu and learned about the various "tambos" or resting places along the Inca Trail. From there, my hell really began. I had let out quite a few audible whimpers on Days 2 & 3, but on Day 4 tears involuntarily flowed a few times. I have a long, not terribly fun history with my knees and struggled trying to keep up with our group as we descended. Those "easy" parts are my absolute hell and a few times I started to wonder if avoiding knee surgery for years was really my best move. I adopted an awkward gate to try to keep my right leg from bending more than 20 degrees and scurried down the mountain. When we arrived at the lunch spot I could barely swing my leg over the bench to sit down. I've never felt so old and broken. Lunch was a good break, but we weren't done! We had about three more hours to hike on a gentle upslope to Agua Calientes. That was easier on the knees, but by now we were all dragging tired legs. Nonetheless, we tried to keep up a good pace as some of our group needed to queue for Machu Picchu tickets and we really wanted them to get them! We had some good stops along the way, included our best juice ice pops of the trek, but still drug ourselves into the little vibrant outpost of Agua Calientes. Only trails and a railroad lead into this pristine, paved town full of lights that boasts its own tourist bus fleet. It was so strange after days in the mountains and jungle! Our hostel room was cozy, but with everyone checking in at once we were stuck with ice-cold showers. But we made the best of it and Frank and I headed out for drinks before our final meal with the whole group. We all had different entry times to Machu Picchu the next day so this was our last meal together. It was a fabulous meal and great time with our new friends, but we had to turn in early as we had tickets for the first entry to site. Frank headed off to get us bus tickets as we had decided we'd enjoy the whole experience more if we didn't have to climb 400m at 0400. And I got a hot shower!

We hiked the Inca Trail for a bit--it was a challenging, hot, uphill hike and an excruciating downhill, but we had the support of jungle food and furry friends, and we got to see Machu Picchu in the distance!

The relatively flat hike from Hidroeléctrica to Agua Calientes is flanked by railroad tracks and the river with great mountain views. We had to say goodbye to our awesome trekking pals tonight!

Day 5: Aguas Calientes - Machu Picchu - Hidroeléctrica - Cusco. 10km hiked (plus around Machu Picchu and Huchu'ypicchu Mountain); 98m ascended; 213m descended; 8.5 hours bus ride to Cusco. Spirits great, knees meh, bug bites terrible.

What a day! We were up and at breakfast at 0430, in line for the bus at 0500, on the bus at 0530, and second in the queue to enter Machu Picchu at 0550. It was just our family and our guide, Marco, so we basically got a private tour. At 0600, our passports were scanned and we entered...and we amazingly got to see Machu Picchu with essentially no people on it. Wow...it's just immense. And for the first maybe 5 minutes it was clear, but then a cloud moved in and the view was obscured for a bit. We feel so fortunate to have seen it as we did. Marco sat with us for a bit and told us how the site was initially discovered by Hiram Bingham, the theories about what the site's purpose was, and why it was so intact and well-preserved after being abandoned for over 400 years. Our tickets had us on Circuit 4 and Marco led us through the Sun Temple, the House of the Inka, and the Sacred Stone before leaving us at the entrance to Huchu'ypicchu Mountain. From there, we were on our own! Huchu'ypicchu is the littlest mountain near the site and was perfect for our tired legs. While not the tallest of the surrounding mountains, it is the closest and we thought the views were absolutely fantastic! We descended and continued our circuit past the Temple of the Condor, the Water Mirrors, and the Temple of the 3 Windows. Three hours after we entered, we were through the circuit (we took our time!) and took the bus back to the trail. 

We got to see Machu Picchu before people and clouds moved in! We learned so much from our guide, Marco, and were sad to part ways with him.

The climb up Huchu'ypicchu was a little steep, but the views were worth it! This mountain is on the "other" side of Machu Picchu from where the usual "classic" view photos are taken and we absolutely loved it.

For this trek we opted for the cheap route, walking 10km back to Hidroeléctrica and then taking a super long bus ride to Cusco. This saved us $240 as a family and only required time and patience and a little more wear-and-tear on the joints. We took our time on the return hike, stopping to admire plants, birds, the river, the mountains, and a trailside empanada stand. We had time for a lazy lunch and a pre-road beer, which was probably a good thing! Once we finally got going on the bus (there was a half hour of sorting who all needed to be on the bus), our progress through the mountains was hampered by an insane amount of construction and one-way sections. I mean, we stopped and got out a few times! Some folks were pretty cranky, but we had plenty of snacks and knew what we had signed up for. Around 1900 we stopped for bathrooms and snacks (the guys scored roadside burgers) and we arrived back in Cusco at 2300 with swollen feet and ankles, sore legs, and lots of memories!

Final thoughts: I am so incredibly proud of my kids, not just for the physical effort they put forth with 80-ish kilometers of trekking up and down mountains through every type of weather, but also for their willingness to go with the flow, try new things and foods, and do it all with only a little bit of complaining. They were also super social in our group and would often be off on the trail or down the table from us having their own conversations with the other adults in our group. And our group was just awesome! We weren't the crazy partiers, but we had fun. They were all so sweet to our kids, and I'd like to think that we offered some words of encouragement to the younger folks who saw some things they liked in the lifestyle we've chosen. Interestingly, not a single member of our group was on a short vacation--all were traveling for weeks to months. I love that this is becoming more mainstream and loved hearing how each person was making it happen around jobs, school, and life. I think we all learned something from each other. 

I was happy with our tour provider, Machu Picchu Reservations. We went "budget" for this trip, but it didn't feel like it when we were on the trek. While the overall group at the inbrief was huge (like 50 people), we were split into smaller groups with guides and they managed to bed and feed all of us with only minor hiccups. The food was absolutely incredible except for maybe the first breakfast (which wasn't done by the company's trail chef) and there were so many yummy vegetarian options at each meal. They route went as briefed, changes were clearly communicated by our guide, our guide was knowledgable, and our guide worked super hard to keep everyone going and get everyone situated for Machu Picchu. All in all, it was a good experience for us!

This weekend is all about rest, recovery, laundry, and school as we heading back out, this time on the Inca Trail, on Thursday!

~Jo, Nomadic Momma and Denier of Major Knee Issues