Inca Trail - day #4 and visit to Machu Picchu.

Mikkel spent most of the night going forth and back to the toilet. Not food poisoning but definitely something related to dinner. We had all our stuff packed and were ready for breakfast at 3:45 AM execpt Mikkel wasn't having any. Then we headed for the gate and sat there in the darkness for a little more than an hour waiting in a long line before being let through. Last leg of the Inca Trail and fingers crossed for a beautiful morning at the sun gate. First we had to climb the monkey steps - some very high steps - around 50 of them. We finally made it to the Sun Gate just before 7 AM and what a sight. Machu Picchu and the iconic mountain was there below us a few clouds drifting up from the valley - but picture perfect. We did a lot of photos like everybody else and then we finally started the 45 minute walk towards Machu Picchu itself now meeting other visitors coming towards us. They looked and smelled so clean compared to us.

Once we got to Machu Picchu our guides started to talk about group photos and didn't really pay attention to those of us who needed access to a toilet after having hiked for nearly three hours. So Mikkel had to run for the toilets and got away from the group while they did all the tourist photos. The toilets on Machu Picchu are located outside the main gate, so there was a small logistical problem about getting back in since Mikkel didn't have a ticket but at the end after some 45 minutes he was re-united with the guides and the group but decided to stay at the cafe. At 10 in the morning the crowds arrive and he really didn't feel like walking around more.

Malene spent another hour and a half walking around with the group before coming to the cafe. We headed for the big queue to the shuttle bus which would take us to Aguas Calientes and meeting with the rest of the group at 1 PM. We got there, some ordered lunch, our guides did sign our "I did the Inca Trail"-diplomas and then we had the rest of the afternoon to hang out. We found a place that served cake and coffee and waited there until we had to go to the station. The Belgians stayed in Aguas Calientes for the night, so we said bye to them, headed for the station and made our way back to Cusco with the train, and then got a bus from Ollantaytambo.

Back in Cusco it was Halloween Friday, something they take super seriously so most of the town seemed to be packed with dressed up people. We just wanted to get back to our hostel, have our stuff and most of all a shower after 4 days of camping and hiking. Even the guy at the reception was dressed up when we got there - a very scary version of the joker. We got a key to our room - and had the best shower in a long time. And then headed to bed. No more early mornings for a while. Especially not tomorrow.

Waiting to enter the last stage of the Inca trail

At the Sun Gate

Machu Picchu Morning Mist

Happy European hikers

Machu Picchu post card picture

The mandatory postcard picture

The girls - Malene, Louise and Marie

The guys - Jonas and Mikkel - Oh where's Mikkel?

Malene and Mikkel - hmmm still haven't seem Mikkel

Machu Picchu Selfie

Queue for the shuttle bus

In Aguas Callientes

Angry mosquitos

Heading for the train back to Cusco

Halloween check in at the hostel

Inca Trail - day #3

"The long day" on the Inca Trail started early. As with the previous mornings we were up with the sun - except the sun wasn't visible today. It was grey and it looked like it was going to rain. Today was flat compared to yesterdays many steps, and there were some ruins to look at on the way. We hiked in our own pace like yesterday so we were ahead of the rest of the group for most of the morning. And we made it to the lunch stop way too early.

The porters and the cook had just arrived, Jonas was the first to get there at least an hour ahead of planned arrival. So we sat there and watched the clouds pass straight through the lunch spot more or less. Most of the day was really good hiking with plenty of ruins to look at, and the occassional ray of sunshine through the clouds. After lunch the trail split in two - one slightly longer route that went through a big site with terraces and a shorter route that went straight to the camp. Needless to say everybody chose the longer route and were rewarded with a beautiful spot to hang out and marvel a bit about the inca's and their skills and abilities that let the construct all of these terrasses. Most of them are rebuilt but they are still impressive.

We headed the last few minutes to our final camp site and found it packed with other groups. The toilets were beyond dirty and the whole camp wasn't really nice. By coincidence we heard some of the other guys from our group asking the guide for directions to another ruin site that was supposed to be next to our camp. We went there with them and had the most spectacular ruins more or less to ourselves. The guide had mentioned it this morning as an option in case we got in early but didn't say a word once we were in the camp.

We spent all the time we could until the rangers closed the site at sunset. Amazing - and we were a bit grumpy with our guide. Why didn't he tell us? We headed back to our camp, relaxed a bit and had dinner and the briefing for tomorrow. Get up at 3:45 AM, leave the tents so the porters can pack the camp and hurry back to the train station, then we line up for the gate which will open around 5:30 AM for the final leg of the Inca trail, then about two hours of hiking to the sun gate which is the first place where we can spot Machu Picchu - if the weather permits. This also means sitting an hour waiting for the gate to open. In darkness, at 5 AM in in the morning. We had dinner, a small ceremony for our porters and cook including the annoying "how-much-to-tip"-discussion before going to bed.

Inca guide

Steps, steps and more steps

At Wiñay Wayna