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We get off the train at a trailhead known as "Kilometer 104", register for the trail, eat, and set off hiking. Our group of 8 plus a Peruvian guide makes its way along the side of a mountain, up off the valley floor into beautiful cloud forests. The trail is steep at times but our guide refers to it as "Inca flat" - a common joke, apparently. The Incas must've been in great shape, and everything short of a vertical wall seemed flat to them.
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By mid-afternoon we make it to Huinay Huayna, Inca ruins that cascade down the steep mountainside along a series of overgrown terraces. They are magnificent now - I can only imagine the spectacle they presented when they were inhabited, clinging to the side of a jungle-clad mountain, painted and gilded and brilliant, with Incas moving up and down the "Inca flat" stairway between terraces.
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Near Huinay Huayna is the crowded hostel where we spend the night. Those nearing the end of the 4-day Inca Trail are here as well, a half-dozen sore, boisterous, tight-knit groups who down beers and tip their deserving porters. The dining hall is filled with music and dance. Hidden, enormous-sounding jungle animals and insects make strange noises under a full moon outside, with a view across the valley to snow-covered mountains. The revelry quickly winds down with a rather abrupt lights-out at 9pm and a bit of sleep on 4-story bunk beds in cramped quarters until a 3:30am wake-up call. We breakfast in near silence and set off determinedly. The mist begins to settle up off the cloud forests as the sky lightens and the gray outlines of mountain ranges turn green jungle.
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After two hours, we climb a staircase and arrive at Intipunku, the Gate of the Sun, which affords a panoramic, misty view of Machu Picchu at sunrise. Intipunku is aligned so that on the summer solstice, the sun shines precisely through it and down into a window above the royal mausoleum in the ruins far below.
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A tour of the ruins reveals many ceremonial sites with intricate stonework, although the purpose of Machu Picchu remains a mystery. Whatever its purpose, it exudes a strong spiritual aura. Huayna Picchu is a mountain on the edge of Machu Picchu, and a French woman in our group named Morgane and I decide to climb it. The climb is steep, with precipitous drop-offs and narrow, near-vertical stairways, with ropes to hang onto along some but not all of the more treacherous segments. Morgane and I take turns egging each other on when primal fear overtakes each of us in turn. Raw adrenaline helps us focus on staying safely on the narrow trail. A light rain begins to fall, clouds on the horizon threaten a downpour, and I try not to think about what getting back down would be like with everything slick and muddy. In the United States, a trail this perilous would be off limits, or else there would be guardrails along its entire length and you'd have to sign a waiver to hike it saying you wouldn't sue in the event of injury or death. Not so in Peru. They must think we're wimps. The final stairway near the top is the longest and steepest segment, with stairs so narrow front to back that I have to climb sideways to get a "secure" foothold. At the top of the stairway is the ruins of what looks like a house. Did someone used to live here? If so, he or she would think twice about climbing back down if they forgot to get corn at the market. More likely, this building had (and has) a spiritual purpose.
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The last part of the climb is over a rocky face that leads to a narrow outcrop of rocks that I cling to, fighting vertigo, as I admire the panoramic view of the area. My relief at remaining in one piece adds to the sensation that the climb up Huayna Picchu is a spiritual journey, and its peak a highly energized spot.
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Fortunately, the afternoon rains hold off long enough for Morgane and I to make our way back down to level ground. We hike back through Machu Picchu and down a jungle trail to the river far below, just in time to catch a train back to Cuzco. And so this traveler/clown's journey to Peru winds
down with a flight back to Lima and a series of flights back to San
Francisco. |
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