A lot (and I mean A LOT) of people will disagree with me but I did not fall in love with Peru. I certainly don’t regret going; if you haven’t seen it I wouldn’t tell you not to go. It’s just not my place. And that’s ok. Not every place will steal a bit of your soul.
June 21-22 – Much of South America is a slog to get to. Several flights and connections, but we made to Cusco! Sitting at 11,000+ feet Cusco can quite literally take your breath away. Upon arrival we were embraced by culture. Cusco’s main plaza was filled with people dancing, playing music and wearing traditional clothing. A parade lasting hours welcomed us to Peru and set the tone for the entire visit.
June 23 – We used a company called Salkantay Trekking to organize our tour and plan our hikes and they are a very oiled machine. Day 1 was spent in Cusco learning about it’s history and walking around it’s many historic sites.
June 24 – Whew this was a whirlwind of locations! At a glance we visited: Chinchero > Moray > Salt mines of Maras > Urubamba > Ollantaytambo > Train to Aguas Calientes
Each of these new locations brought with it new views, new things to learn, and new opportunities to experience the cultures in Peru. We visited Incan ruins; fed llamas, alpacas, guanacos, and vicuñas; learned how alpaca wool is cleaned and dyed; tasted the salts and snacks of Maras; and tested our lungs with a short hike in Ollantaytambo. Ending the day with a train ride to Aguas Calientes, the town we would start in for our visit to Machu Picchu.
June 25 – Up with/before the sun–4 a.m. starts were very common on this trip–and off to Machu Picchu before the hoards of other tourists would be up for the day. We arrived at the standard photo op in time to watch the sun rise and hit the ruins. We then walked through the winding paths and learned it’s history and architecture. We attempted to hike up Machu Picchu Mountain but just a bit from the top we realized we didn’t have time to continue on before our bus was going to leave us, so we didn’t quite make it up all the miles of stairs.
June 26 – Hello early morning again! Today we travelled from Cusco to Salkantay’s Sky Camp, which is a mini-village of glass igloos, and hiked up to Humantay Lake. It’s a fairly short hike to Sky Camp but it sits near 13,000 feet so almost everything is hard to do at that elevation.
Tips for hiking at high elevations:
1. Take *laughably* tiny steps, this is not the time for big stepping even if you have long legs. Shuffle your way to the top!
2. Use the trekking poles. I’m not sure why people often refuse them, they are not just for old people and they’ll help you make it up.
3. Try not to take super long breaks, if you’re doing tip #1 you shouldn’t need long breaks anyway but stopping too long can take the wind out of your sails so pause just long enough to take some deep breaths and then keep moving.
4. Hike your hike. If you’re with friends sticking together may not be the best. Of course keep an eye on everyone you’re with but you’ll need to keep your own pace and momentum.
June 26 – 4 a.m. is the theme, Peru will force the early riser out of you. The hike up to Salkantay Pass is the longest and most difficult in terms of distance and elevation gain, but this was probably my favorite and most memorable day. Some of our group took horses up and some hiked, but we all got to the top to expansive views of…fog. We were quite literally in a cloud at 15,000+ feet.
Once we reached the pass we thought the clouds would burn off but we were stuck waiting around (with about 40 other folks) to see if the view would open up. Just as we were deciding to head back–it’s not a great idea to stay at high elevations for a long time–our guide began passing out perfect coca leaves. Not to eat but for a short cultural ceremony to thank Pachamama (Earth Mother) and blow our spirits into the mountains. We then created a tiny rock cave and placed our leaves inside. Like magic, the clouds parted and we were able to see the Salkantay glacier and mountains that encapsulated it.
June 27 – You guessed it, another 4 a.m. wake up call 🙃. And we’re off to Rainbow Mountain, an extremely popular location and difficult hike due to elevation, 16,398 feet! You can choose to pay for a horse, a motorbike, or take your own feets for free. If you choose to walk it please see the tips above especially about taking tiny steps. As we hiked up we saw so many people really really struggling because they were trying to walk their normal steps. Doing regular steps will make you have to stop frequently to catch your breath and make it so much more difficult in the long run. People may be passing you at the beginning but you’ll be shuffling on by in no time with your tiny stepping.
Taking our time and tiny stepping also allowed for us to have enough energy to head over to the Red Valley. This is a fairly short hike after you take your Rainbow Mountain photos and it’s totally worth it. Where there were piles of tourists atop the mountain, Red Valley trail is mostly empty and the views are really beautiful.
June 28-July 1 – Goodbye Cusco, hello Lima. We spent one last night in Cusco and then headed back to Lima to eat (I highly recommend doing a food tour, Peruvian food is so so good), drink, and recover from all our high elevation hikes. We dipped our toes in the South Pacific, and had a much more chill end to our adventure vacation.
So how did Peru not steal a bit of my soul? I think it’s just a bit too touristy for me; I fully understand that I too am a tourist and I’m adding to that vibe. Despite our early mornings and attempts to beat the crowds there just wasn’t a moment where I could find real peace. I feel the same about the Grand Canyon if that gives some perspective. When I head out into nature to recharge and reset it’s not just for the beauty of a place, it’s to quiet the constant noise of this world, and I just didn’t find that moment here.
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