Machu Picchu is one of the most famous sights in South America. But the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu is just as exciting. 45 km through both the Andean Mountains and the Amazon offers some incredible experiences, not to mention 17000 steps of stairs!

First of all, let’s clarify the Incas, Machu Picchu, Inca Trail and everything else that is a bit confusing. All roads the Incas made are technically Inca Trails, but the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu as it is known as, is the road that goes from Cusco in Peru to Machu Picchu. The whole road is a lot longer than what we are walking, but the best maintained part goes from  Ollantaytambo to Machu Picchu and is 45 km long. The starting point is known as km82 because it is 82 km from Cusco; the Inca capital was Cusco, not Machu Picchu as many believes.

Cusco

Our journey starts in Lima with an early flight to Cusco in the morning. Strangely the flight restrictions on liquids does not apply to domestic flights in Peru and we can bring a liter of water through security without any issues. It feels a bit weird… The plane arrives in Cusco and we jump into a small bus transporting us to the hotel in the small village in the mountains. At least that’s what we thought… Turns out, even though Cusco is an old town high up in the mountains, it houses almost half a million citizens, almost the same population as Oslo, the capital of Norway! However, the traffic is nothing like Oslo. An average Norwegian would survive around  0.0003 seconds in Peru’s traffic. You break you lose should be the national motto, and don’t believe that just because UNESCO added the city to the world heritage sights that this will make people more careful in traffic…

Arriving at the hotel (still in one piece, against all expectations) we meet the guide and get a small tour of the city. We are told to walk slowly and relax in the beginning. Even though the hike has not began yet we are at 3300 meters (almost 11000 feet) and the air is thin. After 10 minutes I start feeling dizzy, having cold sweat and feel uncomfortable. Altitude sickness is not fun! The guide informs that this is common, and that if it passes soon, it’s a good sign of the body adapting, which is needed to reach the peak hight of 4215 meters later on in the hike. Luckily my symptoms disappear after half an hour and Tora appears to be handling the altitude well too.

Before the hike itself begins we are going to drive from Cusco to a small village supported by the tour agency. Then we will see an old Inca city before we travel to Ollantaytambo to take the first steps on the Incas’ path.

Travelling to km82

Travelling to the first village means riding a bus again. Our driver is luckily not like most Peruvians and the ride goes well. After 1,5 hours we leave the main road and enter what looks like a courtyard. Nope, turns out there is a tiny road in the corner and the bus is miraculously able to fit onto it. We gain altitude on a very narrow road; on the left there are lots of trees and a steep hill, on the right lots of air and not much else. It’s far from as bad as we’ve seen in the videos from Death Road in Bolivia, but it would surely hurt to fall down. Safety seems to be an unknown word here; luckily we make it without any issues. In the village we are introduced to what people do, and get to meet two or Peru’s most famous animals: Llama and alpaca. We also learn that llamas have long pointy noses, while alpacas are shorter.

Next stop is the Inca city in Pisa. We set a new altitude record of 3514 meters above sea level, more than 1 km higher than Norway’s highest point! The place is impressive and has a great view, but we still know that Machu Picchu is going to be something even better.

In this old city we also see the graves of many Incas. They were buried in holes in the mountains, and in Pisac there are more than 2000 graves.

In the afternoon we roll into a city named Ollantaytambo and are shown the ruins of an Inca city here. The way the place is built is impressive and in Inca style there are very many steps to climb to reach the top. Luckily we are down at “only” 2700 meters so the air is easier to breath.

Inca Trail Day 1

Next morning the fun begins. We start off with a 40 minute bus ride to km82. Here we get some snacks and a permit for the hike. Then the adventure begins with 11 km in OK terrain. The first part of the hike is actually not a part of the Inca Trail itself, but the next three days will be hiked on roughly 90 % of original path.

On the way we stop at some Inca ruins in the hillside. Already at this point the view is amazing, but far from what we can expect further on.

Later in the day we stop for lunch; it is amazing what the chefs are able to make in the middle of the forest. All they need of food and equipment has to be carried by porters. We are served soup first, then some local cousins that tast excellent.

In the afternoon we arrive at the camp where we will spend the night. Far away from any cities the night sky looks amazing and we can see a snow covered mountain in the distance, even though we have a warm and nice weather. There are however some buildings nearby, but it is way more quiet that both Cusco and Lima. Thanks to the buildings we also have a “real” toilet, luxury in such places as this!

Inca Trail Day 2

Day two of the hike itself is the most demanding. We have around 13 km to walk, but the challenge is that it is mostly uphill. At the peak altitude we will be at 4215 meters, to a place known as  Dead Woman’s Pass. The place got its name from the shape of the mountain, which looks like a dead woman, like a boob where you can picture a woman around it, because the Incas were pretty desperate after walking the mountains for too long.

We are being told to walk slowly to reach the top. Walk like an old man and arrive like a young one we are told, and to avoid to walk like a young man and arrive like an old one. The first hour and a half of the day we walk together and get a feeling of the pace of the old man style. After this we can walk freely and Team Norway becomes a part of the front group; however, we are being passed by some, namely the porters. They leave camp after us, carry 25 kg and arrive at the new camp site before us – impressive!

After walking roughly 2/3 of the way to the top we take a break at the last point where minor things can be bought. The locals have carried food and water up here to sell, including soda, chocolate and whiskey. Yes, some do in fact buy alcohol up here! The price does of course increase per vertical meter and the prices are far more expensive than those in Cusco…

Luckily both Tora and I are feeling well and we continue up the last 400 vertical meters to the top of the mountain. Tonje, a Norwegian defector Norwegian girl who moved to Sweden is joining me while Tora is walking just a bit behind us. We agree to walk at our own pace, but there are some Americans right behind us. Despite what we promised, Team Norway feels a need to be on top of the mountain before Team USA. The pace steadily increases and at the last meters the breath is short and legs are worn out. Luckily, Tonje and I arrive at the top first and defend Norway’s title as a hiking nation. And most important: We beat the Americans!

After an hour on the top we have 4 km left of downhill walking before reaching camp and final destination of the day. Finally downhill! Tora starts feeling bad and we try to get down quickly in case of altitude sickness. At the campsite we have a view that beats any hotel with an ocean view or anything else. This place is also very special because it has the Andean Mountains on one hillside and the Amazon on the other.

Inca Trail Day 3

Day 3 of the hike is the longest, but way less uphill than day 2. We do start with a bit of uphill, but after a few hours it is mostly downhill. Vegetation is getting greener as we enter the Amazon jungle; brown trees and sandy hills are replaced by lush green trees and deep brown soil. Even when the sun is high in the sky (it is actually right above us as we are almost on the equator), the forest is so dense in some places that we still walk in the shadows. Even though the hike is far, we forget most of the time as the view is so magnificent.

At lunch we arrive at a mountain top where vast areas of Peru can be seen. The view is amazing, and it feels very special to view something that resembles Norwegian fjords, but with trees and vegetation all the way; the tree line is way higher here than in Norway. After lunch we get a big cake; the chefs have managed to make a cake up here with the equipment and ingredients they have carried. Quite impressive!

After lunch the fog suddenly arrives and in minutes the almost infinite view is replaced by a gray wall. As we are so high up this may be called clouds and not fog though… We dress up in rain gear, but luckily manage to avoid the rain itself.

An hour later we ascend to lower altitude and the clouds start to disappear. Around a corner we can for the first time view something very special: the Machu Picchu mountain! From here there is a direct path to the camp site and a detour though another Inca ruin. We do of course make the detour and see some of the famous terraces that the Incas made for growing food.

Evening is closing in and we managed to get back to camp before it gets dark. Right after we arrive it also starts raining, good timing!

In the evening we say goodbye to the porters and chefs and prepare for the last day of hiking to Machu Picchu.

Inca Trail Day 4

It is 03:00, time to get up! It is almost completely dark outside, luckily we manage to find the breakfast tent with a flashlight. Today we are getting up early to go though the control post providing access into Machu Picchu itself. We have to wait an hour in line to get in; people want to go at the same time and it’s good to be early on site. Unfortunately the practice of walking the last kilometers to Machu Picchu very early in the morning has been stopped as accidents occurred. We therefore have to wait until dawn, and at 05:30 we are allowed though the gates to hike the last few kilometers. While waiting in line we are asked “Do you want to know?” Hmm, know what exactly? They are of course talking about the US presidential election. After hearing the result we quickly conclude that being in the middle of nowhere in the forest is probably the best place to be right now…

After walking for almost four days I am mildly eager to see Machu Picchu. The guide understand this and let me go ahead (but not running!) to Sun Gate, the gate itself to Machu Picchu. Shortly before the Sun Gate there are some steps called  Monkey Steps because it is so steep that you need to use your arms for support to get to the top. Sweaty I reach the top with Tora just behind. We see Machu Picchu and can relax; we made it!

We will write more about Machu Picchu later, here is a teaser photo:

Is it worth 4 days of hiking to reach Machu Picchu? Not many times has the saying “It’s the journey that matters, not the destination” been more appropriate. Inca Trail is not about reaching Machu Picchu, it is about the amazing experiences you get along the way. Seing mountains thousands of meters higher than those we have in Norway, a combination of the Amazon and Andes, a feeling of defeating nature and meeting new and amazing people makes this trip the best one we have ever made.