Inca Trail 08/22/2006
4:00 am….. why do they have to wake us up so early? Quick breakfast and packing and off we went to get in line at the control point. At 5:30 the gate was opened and we started hiking the last part of the Inca Trail towards Mchu Picchu. It was simply amazing. At first we ad to use our headlights r flashlights, but slowly it got brighter by the minute. The surrounding rainforrest came to life …. All the bird calls and other noises …. What an experience!
After a 90 minutes hike we reached the last flight of steps leading up to the "Sun Gate". We got so lucky! For only a few minutes there was blue sky and sunshine, no clouds and we had this breathtaking view of Machu Picchu…. A dream came true. Since I was a little boy I had this picture in my head and now I stand her end can see it with my own eyes. Wonderful!!!
After a short break we started our descent towards Machu Picchu. The reward for all the effort hiking the Inca Trail was the fact that we could view it with basically no tourists around. I took so many photos and really, really hope that some of them will turn out well.
A two hour tour by our guide ended the official part of the visit. We took a little nap in the sunshine before exploring the city a little more with Emma and Chris. It is really hard to describe with words how mind boggling the views of Machu Picchu are, but as much spectacular are the views from it. It sits on this mountain peak surrounded by other mountains and steep valleys. It is amazing how the Incas "integrated" their buildings into the existing rock formations. We also saw lots of Lamas and even a Chinchilla. After a refreshing beer we took the bus down to Aguas Caliente to meet up with the rest of our group for lunch and then to take the train back to Cusco. At 4:30 pm we boarded the train and then later switched to a bus. At 8:30 pm we finally reached Cusco, where we had a good bye dinner with Emma and Chris. Back in the hotel we had to pack and get ready for another early start to catch the train to Lake Titicaca.
4:00 am….. why do they have to wake us up so early? Quick breakfast and packing and off we went to get in line at the control point. At 5:30 the gate was opened and we started hiking the last part of the Inca Trail towards Mchu Picchu. It was simply amazing. At first we ad to use our headlights r flashlights, but slowly it got brighter by the minute. The surrounding rainforrest came to life …. All the bird calls and other noises …. What an experience!
After a 90 minutes hike we reached the last flight of steps leading up to the "Sun Gate". We got so lucky! For only a few minutes there was blue sky and sunshine, no clouds and we had this breathtaking view of Machu Picchu…. A dream came true. Since I was a little boy I had this picture in my head and now I stand her end can see it with my own eyes. Wonderful!!!
After a short break we started our descent towards Machu Picchu. The reward for all the effort hiking the Inca Trail was the fact that we could view it with basically no tourists around. I took so many photos and really, really hope that some of them will turn out well.
A two hour tour by our guide ended the official part of the visit. We took a little nap in the sunshine before exploring the city a little more with Emma and Chris. It is really hard to describe with words how mind boggling the views of Machu Picchu are, but as much spectacular are the views from it. It sits on this mountain peak surrounded by other mountains and steep valleys. It is amazing how the Incas "integrated" their buildings into the existing rock formations. We also saw lots of Lamas and even a Chinchilla. After a refreshing beer we took the bus down to Aguas Caliente to meet up with the rest of our group for lunch and then to take the train back to Cusco. At 4:30 pm we boarded the train and then later switched to a bus. At 8:30 pm we finally reached Cusco, where we had a good bye dinner with Emma and Chris. Back in the hotel we had to pack and get ready for another early start to catch the train to Lake Titicaca.
The view of Machu Picchu from the Sun Gate.
Tired but really happy! At the Sun Gate with Machu Picchu in the back drop.
Machu Picchu and Ralf.
The mysterious Machu Picchu, the "ancient city"
Pretty steep .... how did they build these terraces?
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