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Cusco!! So this should be a biggy on my year calendar of destinations as it lays down the gateway to a few major hotspots on my "to-do" list.. Machu Picchu and Rainbow Mountain.
Many people had raved about Cusco, both natives and tourists so I was keen to see what all the hype was about.
Arriving on the overnight bus at the ridiculous hour of 5.00am on Monday morning, Ria and I checked in to the El Tuco hostel in the Santiago district, 15 minutes walk from the main square.
Later that afternoon while getting accustomed with the city, our main prerogative was to score ourselves a good deal for the Machu Picchu trek. There are numerous options and ways to go about visiting the famous Inca site.. most involve 3-4 days trekking/camping. But as I have a hatred for such activities I was on the look out for an alternative, something more fun!
The 3day/4night Inca Jungle Trek sounded right on the money.. downhill mountain biking, rafting, zip-lining, one day trekking through the jungle.. AND NO CAMPING! Jackpot! The purists may shake their heads in disapproval but at the end of the day we'll all still end up in the same place anyway.
With so much competition in town we managed to shop around and bag ourselves a good deal which began on Wednesday.
The next day and a half was spent checking out the hype of Cusco and to be honest I was left underwhelmed. The central area around the Plaza De Armas is lovely but the surrounding areas are pretty grotty.. all in all, nothing to write home about.
The start of the Inca Jungle Trek began on Wednesday morning when we met the rest of our group in the minibus on the way up to Abra Malaga, 4200m above sea level. A cool girl called Roz from Lincolnshire jumped on the bus to join our trek.. we'd met previously in San Pedro while doing the Geysers tour so it was good to see a familiar face.
We strapped on protective gear, jumped on our bikes and shot down mountain roads through waterfalls and villages for 3 hours of breathless, downhill cycling. Descending for 2000m the pace was fast and right up my street as the tour leader gave us license to go as fast as we wished. It was great fun racing against one another in the beautiful scenic mountains.. it was no Death Road but still a great buzz!
I got to admire the views more than I was hoping for when my bike hit a double puncture half way down.. my replacement bike had dodgy breaks and gears which didn't function so I took my foot off the gas and rolled for the remainder of the descent.
We arrived in Santa Maria where we had a typical Peruvian lunch - quinoa soup followed by meat, veg and rice, then it was time to raft down the Urubamba River. Not being the most comfortable in water I was cautious but ready to take on the challenge. The rapids were supposedly rated at 3.5 difficulty so thankfully not life-threatening but decent enough for a good paddle.
Our raft consisted of myself and Barry (a cracking Irish lad) at the front, with Ria and two Belgian girls at the rear, with our Peruvian instructor steering us hopefully to safety. We got this!
Turned out I enjoyed the rafting more than the mountain biking.. was a great laugh and we managed to keep the raft upright the whole way. I even managed to win a fun game within the several groups when we pulled up by the shore half way through.
We met the following morning for breakfast and made an early start on what would be a whole day trekking through the jungle.. I was not looking forward to it, especially as I woke to rain lashing down on the hostel roof.
Thankfully the rain subsided.. and I can't believe I'm going to say this but I actually enjoyed the trek! There were some steep intense climbs which led us to part of an original authentic Inca trail but it wasn't difficult and I didn't find it boring. Our 16km trek took us through the jungle where we learnt about the wildlife and the crops being grown there.. mainly cacao and coca leafs. We tasted fruits and chocolate that the locals produce, as well as some very lively tequilas poured from a bottle which had a dead snake coiled inside it!
After lunch the trek continued along the surging Urubamba river, crossing it twice.. once on a very dodgy old rotten bridge and the other in a cart and pulley which was just bizarre and supposedly safe!
We finally arrived in Santa Theresa just before dark where we enjoyed a relaxing soak in the hot springs. Later that evening we enjoyed a group meal and a lot of booze together before taking things on to the local nightclub... which waaaaaaaas.. terrible and dead! But they kept on pouring us free drinks for some reason.. cheers!
Zip-lining was the perfect way to start a day with a heavy head.. NOT! 150 metres above a river, from one side of the valley to the other we whipped across a massive zip-line. The views were actually incredible and the first wire was a great buzz but the long waits in the baking sun and crossing the same valley four times over took the edge off. Walking across a very unstable, wobbly rope bridge high above the fast-flowing river below was much more of an interesting challenge.
The group re-formed at the Hidrolectrica Station for lunch before continuing the trek. The next three hours were spent trekking along a horrible rocky train track (which trains were actually using!) adjacent to the picturesque Urubamba. The walk itself would have been enjoyable had it not been for the difficult terrain.. my feet were in ribbons, finally paying the price for not investing in a pair of walking boots. But sack it, I soldiered on in my trusty trainers until we finally reached the tourist town of Aguas Calientes. This place was nice!! Also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo, the town lies in a deep gorge below the ruins. A virtual island, it’s cut off from all roads and enclosed by stone cliffs, towering cloud forest, and two rushing rivers.
We had our final group meal together before we all hit the sack in preparation for an early rise.
An early rise it was too.. 4.00am! This to beat the majority of the crowd and be able to watch the sun rise over Machu Picchu. Before we were able to witness this we had to walk through a pitch black and very drizzly Aguas Calientes where we met Barry. But it was such a bizarre scenario.. the place was heaving, more so than when we arrived in daylight!
We carried further on and arrived at a bridge crossing which only opened to the public at 5.00am. Arriving just before, the queue was already a few hundred deep and growing quickly behind us. "What on earth are we actually doing?" I thought to myself, while queueing in darkness at stupid o'clock.
That was the easy part over with. Slowly but surely we were let through and now the hard work began. We were told it would take an hour to make the climb to the entrance.. 1800 steep steps on a pathway barely wide enough for two people. From above it must have looked like some sort of animal migration.
One by one the first hundred in line started dropping like flies while gasping for breath paving way for a clearer route. With barely any strenuous exercise since I began travelling I treated the climb as a work out and smashed my way to the top in under half an hour.. proper sweat on by the time I'd reached the entrance. Mind you, everyone was dripping with sweat by the time they had reached the top.. the bus ride up was definitely the less sweatier option.
Anyway, there I was at the entrance to one of the New7Wonders of the World waiting for the rest of my group to arrive.. but it felt more like I was waiting to enter a theme park with overpriced cafes, pay-for toilets and a bus station in near proximity. It didn't feel like I was about to enter one of the worlds most historical sites that's for sure.
The whole group eventually gathered together so our tour leader, Walter, could lead us in to the park and guide us round. His English was pretty damn good but using his favourite catchphrase "Yes... No amigos," after each fact, left everyone confused as to whether it was true or not. Funny fella!
There was no big impact or "wow" factor on entering the park as you literally couldn't see all that much due to the mist. A few ruins were visible but they weren't anything to get turned on about. It was more of a slow burner as the mist began to rise from the depths of the gorges creating a very mystical atmosphere until eventually revealing the Machu Picchu mountain and its surroundings. It looked like Jurassic Park!
I'd had enough of listening to Walter waffle on about how amazing the Inca's were. I took myself away to experience the sun rising over the whole of Machu Picchu and take it all in.
The place is undoubtedly beautiful and it is remarkable how the Inca's built it, then managed to keep it hidden from the Spanish invaders.. BUT.. I definitely wasn't blown away by it. Whether it was because it felt like another tourist trap/theme park or that it was an overpriced money making machine.. I don't know, but something didn't sit right with me. I'm so glad I didn't trek for 3-4 days to get there!
Another thing.. I wasn't sure what I could and couldn't do in there.. twice I got told to get up for sitting on some random rocks by the wardens and then another told me to get off a section of grass where I was standing. Jeeeez.. someone pass me the rule book, PLEASE!! I was scared to even fart in case the Picchu Police came and wrestled me to the floor! They didn't catch me munching on my sweets though did they ;) One of the other rules I broke, "NO FOOD ALLOWED!"
By 9.00am it was getting very busy so we decided to move away from the main area and take a look at the Inca Bridge which was supposed to be amazing. A 20 minute trail took us to the other side of the park where the views were incredible and made you realise how high we'd actually climbed earlier on.
"Is that it?!" I cried out as we arrived at the bridge causing many tourists to jolt their necks. This "amazing" famous Inca Bridge was essentially a few small planks of wood laid down from one side of a sheer-faced drop to the other. Amazing? I don't think so. Half an hour of my life I won't be getting back!
We had to leave at 11.00am to give us enough time to walk the railway track again and catch our bus from Hidroelectrica at 2.30pm. By this time Machu Picchu had become so overcrowded I couldn't wait to get out of there.
The walk down the 1800 steps to the initial bridge crossing was so peaceful in comparison to the journey up, probably because half of Peru was still inside Machu Picchu, but it was an absolute killer on the knees.. much harder than going up.
It was great to finally rest the feet but the insanely bumpy 6 hour journey back to Cusco on a mega-cramped minibus was quite a slog!
All in all, the 4 day tour was a lot of fun and I met some great people, namely.. Barry, Roz, Fran from London, Josh from Southampton (and his mate Aaron), Bob from Belgium (his sister and friend too), and the three young scouse girls.. Amy, Catherine and Nisha.
After a good nights rest back at the hostel it was time to set our sights on our next trek.. Rainbow Mountain. It was only a couple of months ago that I'd first heard about the mountain which I immediately fancied seeing as it looked so unusual. I was looking forward to this much more than I did Machu Picchu, but also as we'd planned to do it with our mate from the Dragoman tour I was part of in March.. our annoying bus driver Emma, who was also in Cusco.
We met with Emma the evening before at Starbucks, and her friend Smithy who would be our guide for the trek so he could talk us through the plans for the following day.
An early night was necessary as Emma and Smithy picked us up in his car at 4.00am. This would prove to be much faster and simpler than with a large tour group in a minibus as we were first to arrive at the starting point for the trek.
After a quick breakfast in the middle of a valley with a huge glacier overlooking us in the distance, we set off just after 7.00am on our trek to Rainbow Mountain.
I'd heard from a few that the trek was seriously difficult due to the altitude and parts of the trek being very steep climbs. Smithy, our Peruvian guide said it would take on average 3 hours to reach the summit.
I was already enjoying the trek more so than Machu Picchu.. the scenery was beautiful, not a tourist in sight.. so peaceful and calm.
Along our route we passed through very small local communities who use the land to grow crops and farm their animals. There was plenty of alpacas and llamas knocking around too.. a few were getting very intimate with one another, just a casual hump though.. Smithy told us they go at it for a few hours! Some very strange but amusing groans could be heard from those fields.
After a couple of quick breaks along the way we were half an hour from the summit. With the altitude not really affecting me, controlling my breathing at a high tempo and having plenty left in the tank I marched my way to the peak of Rainbow Mountain, 5020m above sea level, which is also the highest I've ever climbed to.
The view was just absolutely incredible! The Rainbow Mountain looking so unusual and beautiful with its striped layered colours.. I'd never seen anything like it before. The 360 degree panoramic views under blue skies were spectacular! Rolling hills down one side of the valley that led to Cusco in the far away distance, Rainbow Mountain to the left of me, snow-capped mountain ranges on the right, and lush green hills down the opposite side of the valley behind me. Simply stunning!
Made all the more special that I was the first to reach the summit that morning and having 10 minutes to myself to take it all in before Ria, Emma and Smithy joined me to enjoy a celebratory beer. Smithy had timed our trek at just over 2 hours so we'd absolutely smashed it, although Emma's was probably more like 2 and half hours since she's so unfit! Haha ;)
The next trekker to reach the peak other than ourselves was an English guy and the first thing he asked me was if I knew the Hull City score from a few days ago! Ha.
We began to make our way back down the valley where a steady stream of tourists had formed en route to the mountain. It was fun looking at folk struggling along while blowing out their rear ends as we casually walked in the opposite direction with a very smug look on our faces.
We arrived back at the car where we had a delicious lunch, just in time before the weather began to take a turn for the worse. What an awesome experience it had turned out to be and great to share it with equally great people. Smithy was a fantastic guide, very knowledgeable, and an all round top bloke who took the time out on his day off to take us there.
We arrived back in Cusco at 4.00pm, had a little snooze, and later met up with Emma and some of the other Dragoman crew in a bar for a few scoops. Was great to catch up with our former tour group leader Duncan.
The following day was pretty chilled.. we ate at the San Pedro markets which was an experience in itself. We had another mooch around Cusco and I still wasn't picking up the vibe that a lot of people had raved on about.
Later that evening we met up with another friend from the Dragoman tour who was still travelling around on the truck. Hannah from Australia had arrived in Cusco so we had a catch up with her over a bite to eat. Was great seeing her again!
Wednesday was our tenth and final day in and around Cusco before we left on the Peru Hop bus to Arequipa. I didn't make much of the city, but the Jungle Trek to Machu Picchu was a lot of fun, and Rainbow Mountain.. well that was a day I'll never forget!
If you've managed to read to the end of this blog without giving up or getting bored, I salute you! :)
Overnight bus to Arequipa next!
Caio Caio xx
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