My 5 month adventure!: Salkantay Trek + Machu Picchu

The trek was 5 days/4 nights and was an awesome experience. We met some awesome people, had some great food and of course had some amazing views! Over 4 days we walked about 84km, and the highest point was 4600m and then on the 5th day we hiked to Machu Picchu. On the first morning we waited around for the bus in the cold for quite awhile and then there was a lot of time wasted weighing peoples bags for the horses to carry but from then on the organisation of the trip was great. There were 2 groups of approx 13 people that set off at the same time and although they kept us separate for meals, we camped in the same spots and were together a lot of the time. My group was called the Sexy Llamas and the other group were the Sexy Pumas. The first night we camped at 3900m and the snow capped mountains almost looked like they were glowing because the sky was so clear.

The 2nd day was the hardest day with 3 hours uphill in the morning to the highest point of the trek. It was hard work and some people took horses but it was worth the satisfaction of walking once we reached the top. Once we got to the top our tour guide explained to us the spiritual connection of the Incas with the mountains and more about their beliefs. I actually found the second part of the day much harder because we had about 10km of downhill which is hard on your legs and requires much more concentration. The second night was much warmer because we camped at 2900m.

The 3rd day was much shorter only walking about 5 hours to lunch and then after lunch we got a bus to our campsite at Santa Teresa. It was an interesting drive because we were squashed into two old vans and the road was pretty dodgy. Our cook from the trek was sitting on the roof for most of the trip but then we were stopped by the police. After the campsite was set up they took us to the hot springs in Santa Teresa which was so nice and relaxing! We also felt much cleaner because we hadn’t had showers in a couple of days. The hot springs were in a pretty spot next to the mountains and the river. There were lots of different groups there from different treks so there were lots of tourists around. That night we all sat around the campfire and they had music going and some people were drinking but we still had to get up early and walk the next morning.

The walk in the morning was a bit boring because it was just along the road for 3 hours but then the rest of the day was beside the train tracks which was a bit nicer. Unfortunately I had some big blisters on my feet but it was a tolerable pain. We got into Aguas Caliente around 2pm and checked into our hotels and had a nice hot shower. We all hung out at a restaurant and had some food and drinks and watched the Euro Cup final. Aguas Caliente is the town from where you can walk or bus to Machu Picchu so it was very touristy and quite a bit more expensive than the rest of Peru. It was a really cute town though. We all went to dinner at a restaurant which was included in the price of our trek and the guides gave us a packed breakfast for the next day. After dinner some of us went to a bar to have another drink but we had to get up at 4am so we were in bed by 10:30pm.

The guides were meeting us at Machu Picchu the next day so it was up to us to organise what time to meet and to make our way up. You could get the bus but most of us decided to walk. We met everyone outside the hostel at 4:10am and started our walk in the pitch dark with our torches. We had to line up at the bridge which opened a bit before 5am and then we had 1700 steps (2km) between us and Machu Picchu. Half the climb was in the dark and it was really hard work! However, we made it to the top before Machu Picchu opened and the first bus arrived. There weren’t too many people ahead of us and we didn’t have to wait too long to get in. It was awesome to be able to get photos before the crowds arrived and I couldn’t believe I was finally at Machu Picchu!

Our tour guide met us there at 6am and gave us a short tour of Machu Picchu and then we were left to do our own thing. It was absolutely freezing but it was so beautiful seeing the sun come over the mountains and once the sun was out we warmed up very quickly. We were climbing Waynapicchu at 10am so we sat up at the Guard Tower (where the postcard photo is taken from) for a couple of hours in the sun enjoying the views and taking lots of pictures. Waynapicchu is another mountain that is higher and has a great view of Machu Picchu. It was only 1km up but was very steep and had very narrow stairs. After 4 days of walking and 1700 steps in the morning, everyone was getting tired and could definitely feel their muscles. It was worth it once we made it and it was so nice at the top sitting in the sun. Machu Picchu looked so insignificant and small from the top! The walk down was pretty slow and there were even some steep stairs to walk up at the end which was the last thing everyone felt like doing. At this point we were all very tired and hungry but we still had the 1700 steps to walk back down to Aguas Caliente. We decided that was better than paying $9 for the bus (this is a lot of money in Peru!) We also got our Machu Picchu stamps in our passports.

When we finally got back to Aguas Caliente we had ice cream and pizza which was very much deserved. Some of us had a train back to Cusco at 7pm and others at 9pm so we all hung out at a bar and had some drinks until it was time to leave. Louise and I were so happy to have the train at 7pm meaning we would get back to Cusco at around 11pm rather then 1am. When we got back I had a shower and straight to bed because we had to get up at 6:30am to get a bus to Puno. No time to rest!