After an overnight double decked bus ride, which was filled
with my nose bleeding and Hillary Duff movies, I arrived high in the clouds in
majestic Cuzco. I journeyed here not for Machu Picchu or any awesome
sightseeing but for a job, as I had been in the process of emailing the owner
of a hostel there to which had organised to work at the bar in return for free accommodation,
which is common practice as a poor backpacker. However, with my luck fluctuating
as per usual the owner was not there and the bar manager had not heard of this
arrangement. Therefore, I went for a walk clear my head of the thinness of the
air, after struggling on a set of stairs in a monument and getting lost in the
back streets of Cuzco I decided that I wanted to do a hike as I had all the
camping gear needed for such ventures. Whilst conversing with a travel agent at
the hostel I came to a plan that I was to walk the Salkantay trek to Machu
Picchu on a tour but I were to leave the next day.
Standing in the street in the early hours with the air fresh
and crisp, people jostle around on the brick laid paths heading to work or to
gather the best position to sell their wares onto the next weary confused
tourist that stumbles past. Half an hour late, early for them and on time for
some they arrive and we were off to the start of the next venture. We reached
the small town early and promptly started trekking, by that afternoon we were
climbing higher and higher. Gasping for air with every step, sweat dripping
from every pore and at the back of the pack perhaps I should have stayed a
little longer in Cuzco to acclimatize before heading into the clouds.
Eventually I reach camp and I'm wrecked, wet and starving with my stomach
turning inside out for food then I realized that the guides couldn't work out
how my tent goes together, 'arrrgh why did I bring it' I sighed to the amused
guides whilst erecting it rapidly and carelessly.
Next day awake early, rough night sleep due to the lack of
oxygen we power forwards. Today was a big push, today we head for the highest
point on the trek at 4600m, which is in the shadow of its neighbour Salkantay that
dwarfs it at 6264m. Towering monstrous mountains surround the valley to the
top, covered in treacherous icy slop with the distant rumbling of small avalanches
to keep harmony. Gruelling hours tick by, cocoa leaves are munched out of existence
to try to get a small amount of relief to the ever deteriorating mind, body and
soul. We make it.
After this achievement of reaching the top, we gathered our
strengths for a group photo and lunch then it was a gentle brisk walk to camp
which the last half being through jungle. The next day quite uneventful apart
from the local mad taxi driver turning and weaving through the jungle perilously
alongside the cliffs that are unseen from the windows of the minivan. That
evening we had the delightful choice of eating guinea pig that we all agreed to
unanimously but we also had the chance to kill our own before being cooked
which I jumped at the chance to experience though it did not fare well for lone
survivor that reached my pitiful hands. After being shown briefly the way of a
master it was my go, standing there with a squealing fidgety furry rat amongst
my mitts was not what I thought was going to happen when I had risen from my
slumber that fresh morning.
The first go resulted in a high pitched 'rrrrreeeeeeee' and
followed by disheartened pitiful awkward laughs from fellow people. The second attempt
fetched a higher squeal that could pierce ear drums as my fingers gripped in
tighter around the poor things throat. The third endeavour produced the clean
snap like the crunch of twigs under foot and dinner was now ready to be
prepared. That night I slept under a table, as I could not raise my tent on the
concrete slab. The final day was concluded with a couple of taxi rides, a brief
walk around a rocky avalanche and the finishing leg was a 9km stroll along the
raging river that winds its way down through the valley's of jungles that would
of once carried the Incan lifestyle. After temporarily passing under the Famous
Machu Picchu ruins, we successfully arrived at Aguas Calientes.
Too be continued....
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