Salkantay trek – Part 2

The next morning we awoke to a much cooler but very misty view. The rain had done its job overnight and there were huge puddles everywhere. The wind had also blown open our door, which was a blessing in disguise as the person we were sharing our room with had very smelly feet. We were glad to get out of the room and down to breakfast, which also saw us saying goodbye to the mule drivers as our bags where going by road from here. We wolfed down the usual bread and coffee before getting on the road.

Today’s walk was relatively easy. We spent the first part trekking down a mud track that was exceptionally wet given the night’s rain. Then we followed along a small path next to the river heading down the valley. Hoff had to find a couple of hiding places to go for a wee along the way, which wasn’t easy as there were lots of people and not many places to go! We passed a big group of cows cooling off in the waterfalls and then spent half an hour playing on a cable car over the river, which got a bit boring after a while but everyone wanted a go so we had to wait, sweating as the sun got higher. At last we came to what looked like a lunch area, where we were told that we’d finished our walking for the day and had the rest of the day off. This was a bit of a surprise as we’d prepared ourselves for a long day of trekking, but we all piled into a minibus and wound our way further down the valley, dodging big cliff edges and fording rivers on the way.

After lunch, which was the usual feast of soup and then rice and chicken, we drove on to our final stop. Lots of people fell asleep on the way but I spent the time looking out the window, enjoying the views and trying not to look down over the edge into what had developed into a deep canyon. Eventually we arrived at our camp for the night. It was a load of tents situated underneath a free standing structure. Each couple had their own tent along with foam mattresses and they actually made for comfortable accommodation. Once we’d dropped off our kit we all jumped back on the bus to the local hot springs. It was nice to rest our muscles after three days of trekking, but the heavens soon opened and we were back on the bus in the pouring rain, heading back to the campsite for dinner. We’d been told that there was a bit of a party that night as well, and after food we were introduced to the local Inca tequila. It was disgusting but we drank it anyway, and before we knew it everyone was dancing away by a campfire which was conveniently underneath another free standing roof, so we all stayed dry. We called it a night around 11pm, which was late for us, and went to bed even more tired than we had been when we arrived.

The next morning there were a few sore heads about and we had 22km to walk to the town just below Manchu Picchu. Stinking of bonfire, we set off, and Hoff and I walked with an American guy called John, and we stormed along ahead of the others in the group. We were all so fast that we ended up at the lunch spot two hours early and had to sit twiddling our thumbs before some of the other group, who had gone off zip lining, rocked up. We wolfed down lunch – which for me included another altitude induced nosebleed – and then got back on the road. This time we followed the train tracks for 8km to the local town of Aguas Caliente, or hot waters in Spanish. It was fun following the tracks and avoiding the trains that ran to and from the town, and we also got a coin momento by putting a 50c piece on the tracks and getting the train to flatten it as it went past.

I must admit that I was glad as we walked into the town and our hostel. We were all getting pretty tired and the rain was starting again. We collected our bags from the train station and all got showered, and then had a last supper as a group where we said bye to all the guides as well. We’d had a great time on the trek but one of the things that we didn’t like was that the guides badgered us for tips. Tonight was the same and sadly the evening ended weirdly as the guides made it clear that we hadn’t tipped them enough. We all left before it got too awkward and it left a bit of a sour taste after what had been an excellent few days. Regardless, we got into bed knowing we had a lie in; as we were climbing higher up the hill then everyone else, we had a later entry time stamp and would be leaving a few hours later.

At 7am the next morning we awoke to sheet rain. It was miserable and we began our walk up to Machu Picchu somewhat reluctantly. It was also oppressively hot so soon we were drenched in sweat under our raincoats. The climb was a never ending set of stairs and we got to the top pretty hot and bothered. It was much cooler there and we soon began to get cold, but we had to go and meet the rest of the group who were waiting for us to start the tour. The tour ended up being a bit of a waste of time as there was so much cloud we couldn’t see anything. Luckily we cut away early to climb Huayna Picchu, the sacred extra mountain just next to MP. This climb was brutally steep and soon we decided to put our wet clothes from earlier back on as we were sweating again (we’d taken them off to try and keep warm and dry). The climb was worth it though as we were rewarded with great views back down over the main MP village, and as fewer people are allowed to climb the extra loopmeach day, it was less crowded.

When we got back down to MP the cloud had finally lifted and it was sunny and dry, so we spent some time wandering sound the ruins taking pictures. Many people say MP is one of the most amazing things they’ve ever seen. It was very impressive but I’d say no more impressive then some of the huge citadels and castles that were being built in Europe at the same time in history. Nevertheless it was fun walking around and seeing how they lived, and we were glad we’d hiked up to see it.

Or so we thought. In this case, what goes up must come down, and the hike back down the slippery staircase was brutal. My knees had all but given up by this point and Hoff had to cagoule me down; the crunching was making me feel a bit sick. Eventually we made it back to the town but we were well and truly done with walking so we changed out of our wet clothes and grabbed a pizza with some of the rest of the group who were waiting for transport back to Cusco. Some were getting the bus and others, like us, were getting a late train. We then wandered around the local artisanal markets – aka markets for cheap tourist tat – before grabbing a cake and coffee ahead of the train.

The train ride itself was fun but we didn’t really see much as it was dark by the time we pulled out of the station. Hoff was soon asleep, and I followed suit, and we woke up a few hours later as the train pulled into the final stop. We sheepishly grabbed our stuff and jumped onto the bus that was waiting to take us back to Cusco, and in the transfer process Hoff lost her beloved visor. It had been with her through thick and thin – including her marathon and ultra marathon – so she was rightly annoyed and upset, but we couldn’t hold up the bus any longer so we reluctantly abandoned the search and got on the road to Cusco. Once there we checked back into our wonderful hotel again and after long hot showers, sank into the massive fluffy bed watching National Geographic and nursing sore feet. We thankfully had a few days of rest ahead of us here before moving on and with no alarm for once we looked forward to a good night of sleep.

Up next – Hoff takes you through the start of our journey south to Bolivia and to see our first familiar face!