On the trail

Right now, I'm in the small town right outside of Machu Pichu, 4 days into the Salkantay Trail. It's a long trek, with hours of hiking each day, camping in tents along the way, and tonight for the first time, we will be in an actual bed in a hostel. And tomorrow is the big day, waking up early to go spend a full day amongst the ruins. Pretty damn excited for it.

Our group is made up of 8 people, all from the northern hemisphere. 3 Germans, 4 from the country Basque,and one sexy American. With knowing a bit of Spanish and German, it's been a great mix. No secrets from me! 

The first day was filled with an early start, a sweet hike along an ancient irrigation ditch to our campsite at the base of some epic snow covered mountains, with a lake to hike to. The alpine lake, a bright turquoise color, was up a steep trail, and well worth the tough 45 min climb. Surreal, tranquil and beautiful, it takes your breath away. And once I dove in, it literally took my breath away. You see the waterfalls above, pouring water from the glaciers right into the lake. Cold and amazing. Feeling alive.

Our guide, Juan, likes to joke a lot, and so we had baby condor legs (chicken) for dinner. We spent the first night camping at 3900 meters,so I had all my clothing on for dinner, and was glad I had rented a very warm sleeping bag. And the next day we got to hike to one of the highest places I have hiked. Second tape pass is at a altitude of over 4600 meters high. Always good to start the day off with a good incline, through streams and in the mist. Felt great up on top.

It was raining off and on for most of the day, so the cheap ponchos we had were in full use. After the pass, the next few hours were spent going down, with the rocky landscape going from rock to flat meadows and down to a jungle level. Much warmer and tropical, with lots of moss and trees, plus a huge river, with lots of waterfalls. Amazing.

Day three moved us along the way, through jungle and across many streams. Waterproof boots are amazing.  Great views and lunch at a coffee plantation made for a fun day. I had my best cup of coffee in South America and had some decent guacamole with lunch to keep the energy up. Later on, hot springs to sooth the body and have a sweet dark lager after. Bonfire at the campsite and some fun Peruvian games. The life is good!