Why are they selling rain ponchos?

A helicopter may be fast, the train may be easy, but the hike is a must do. There are lots of ruins along the trail that you can’t see any other way. The sharing with other trekkers of the joys and triumph is part of the fun.

Quick Tips:

Don't be too proud to hire a porter, but don't be too cheap to tip them well. The tour companies will promise that your porter only carries your stuff, but then they have them carry three other peoples stuff and a couple of tents and a teapot.

Make sure you have rain gear and a good tent. The weather is changes often on the trail and if you are prepared you will be much happier.

Get acclimated to the altitude. Those on our hike who hadn't acclimated were struggling.

Best Way To Get Around:

Hike in Train out. Make sure you have a seat on the train. It is a long ride back. Consider getting off the train at Ollantambo and taking a bus from there. It is very cheap less than and will save you hours on the train.

Take care and check out the tent. Ours didn't leak and of this we were very grateful. It rained 3 of the 4 days and wet stuff is no fun. The sleeping bag that was provided was less than adequate. My partner and myself had brought one of our own and it was so much superior to the one provided that we both squished in together one very cold night on the trail.

I loved it. Tea in the morning. Two course lunches and dinners. Everything was made with care. We did wonder how we were getting chicken on the trail until we saw a transaction going down. These were really fresh chicken dinners. How did they carry all that stuff, pack up after we started on the trail and have lunch and dinners cooked before we arrived? One of the great mysteries of the Inca trail.

We must have over-trained for this hike. At 45 and the oldest one in our group, I found that it was nowhere near as strenuous as we had been prepared for. Our tour group was excellent. Even in the pouring rain the guide and porters went beyond the call of duty. Every morning they greeted us with a hot cup of tea as they woke us. They prepared three great meals every day and they smiled as they passed us on the trail carrying more stuff on their backs than I own. The last day does become an Inca traffic jam. The 2 day hikers join the trail with those who did the 4 day and, oops, there are a lot of people. Fortunately the goal is worth it. I will have to go back and do it again when it isn’t raining. I felt I missed some incredible views because they were covered in clouds.

It seems that no trip to Peru is complete without the almost mandatory four day trek to Machu Picchu, the most famous of Inca Ruins.

The day started very early as we set out. As the 16 other people along with our 15 porters piled onto the bus I wondered how we would forge into a team. I had the honor of being the oldest, but luckily not the least fit.

At the trail head there was a collection of would be porters, women selling all sorts of stuff including rain ponchos. We didn’t realize how important the rain gear was to become until 7 hours later when it began to rain and continued for three days. It wasn’t long into the hike that everyone’s true colors started to show. Four people had decided to macho it out and carry their own gear. We along with the rest of the hikers had decided to support the local economy and have a porter. Colorado (we never learned anyone’s real name) immediately fell to the back of the pack with the Brazilians who each sported braces from various injuries. Jim and I with only small packs and the advantage of having acclimated to the altitude pranced ahead through the mud and muck and the occasional glimpse of wonderful mountain peaks. By the end of the first day Colorado had been convinced to give up his ego and his pack and the group was whispering about what to do about the Brazilians. We all achieved the goal of Machu Picchu but in varing degrees of comfort. It became obvious to me that unless you are extremely fit a more enjoyable hike is had by letting the porters earn some money and carry the bags.