I couldn´t not post some photos of Inkaterra (Where we stayed in Aguas Calientes near Machu Picchu) and it seems a new blog page has allowed me to do just that. Here is a view of the grounds and our room. I can´t express how sad it was to set an alarm for 5.30am and leave this place for the hike of a century! What is even more upsetting is that it was unnecessary! Elenor had thought our timeslot to hike WaynaPicchu was for 7am (they only allow 200ppl to go up at 7am and another 200ppl at 10am each day and we´d bought advance tickets to ensure we were part of that lucky few) but our actual booking was for 10am. Let me tell you we were not impressed! On top of this it was seriously cloudy and teetering on the verge of rain (terrific hiking weather as well as ruins viewing weather... please tell me you hear the sarcasm dripping from my key strokes) so we knew we needed to pack rain coats and sweaters, scarfs... you get the idea). 
In true Kyla fashion she tried to figure out what our options were now that we had this extra time in Machu Picchu. The decision was that we could quickly walk up the slopped road to the Sun Gate (aka Intipunku) to see the ruins from a new angle. Intipunka was one of the main routes into MP for the Incas and is therefore part of the original Inca trail. Our thought process was 1. Hey we have time and 2. Would be good to say we´d at least done some of the Inca trail. This quick walk is expected to take 3 hours round trip and while there are not a ton of steps it is all uphill on the way there and of course down the entire way back so it wasn´t a stroll so much as a low level warm up for things to come. Good news the walk only took us 90mins. I think this made us a little cocky for events to come. Stay tuned.
On the left is the view of the Sun Gate itself and after waiting about 15mins we were welcomed with the view of MP on the right. Not the BEST image but it does give a mystical feel for where we were and what it must have been like when the Incas arrived. You can also see WaynaPicchu behind MP. It´s the ¨little¨mountain on the right. Yes that was what we were meant to climb at 10am and by the time we got back to MP´s entrance to have a bio break it was basically time to get over to the base of WaynaPicchu to start that adventure.Please note: when asked, Elenor said the hike took about an hour. When we tried to clarify if that was one way or round trip we got Elenor´s standard reply ¨Yes, No¨. Hmmm it was a multiple choice question and we got an answer that discounted each other. Great! This continued for the entire tour. Kyla soon learned not to give multple choice questions hoping that would help. Sadly no. We always got the Yes,quickly followed by a No. I can´t express through the typed word how frustrating that is especially when you are talking about something that makes you extremely nervous. If you want a proper recantation You´ll have to get Kyla and I together, when I am home, to tell the story live.
Here are some quotes from people who had done the WaynaPicchu hike before us...
- ¨Ooooh do you have good hiking shoes?¨
- ¨Is it steep? Yes it is steep. Just be careful at the top where you have to climb on your hands and knees¨
- ¨Just don´t look to the left and you won´t even see the cliffs.¨
- ¨Hmmm, do you have vertigo? Oh you do Stacey. Right well you´ll be fine.¨
Hence why B is chewing her nails at the entrance. Our usual chant of ¨Don´t Be Nervous¨ got some real airtime but in true Bowman form we set out to do what we´d agreed we would and just hoped we both got home to our families. Elenor said only one tourist had died and they were on drugs... that seems to be the standard answer when I ask South American guides about dangerous activities.... ¨Yah but they were on drugs¨. Right no drugs for us so here we go.
Sadly I didn´t manage to take many photos becasue the idea of taking out my camera was not super appealing. Here is a zoom of the beginning of the walk. People coming down from the 7am entrance group. Hmmm now would have been a good time for me to question why a one hour walk that started at 7am would be ending after 10 but my mind was elsewhere. Truely all I could think was... Grrrreat now it´s raining so the views will be terrible and I´m in a purple poncho so that´s getting in the way of my feet and vision... this is no way to meet a man... ¨Hi I´m Barney¨ Miz. 
As we continued to climb, using the metal rope staked into the side of the mountain when deemed too steep to be hiked without aid, I kept telling myself ¨this isn´t so bad. Hmmm wonder what coming down will be like.¨ To give you a feel these photos are taken from the same spot deemed to NOT require any assistance rope. Great judgement Peru.Okay so we made it to the top and maybe Kyla has photos of the steepest part but I sure and S%!T don´t. Holy Moly as soon as the last step was behind me I quickly scurried to the center of the mountain peak and caught my breath becasue of course we are still above 2,000m so oxygen isn´t as plentiful as at home. View we´d come up for. COMPLETELY covered over so officially we´d done all that for the joy of the experience. Serenity Now. Serenity Now.
Is at this moment, 30 seconds after reaching the peak that Elenor looks at two heavy breathing sisters & says ¨Okay so are you ready to go to the Moon Cave now?¨ We simultaneously say ¨Sorry What Cave? There´s more? Since when is there more? Isn´t this the top? You said it was a one hour walk, that took us 50mins of intense stairmaster... there´s MORE? Where? How long? How hard? Is this what we´re supposed to do now that we have come this far?¨ Elenor: The moon cave is about 40mins. Kyla: There or There and Back? Elenor: Yes. No Kyla: Okay let´s try this again. 120mins round trip is what you are telling us? Elenor: Yes but it is just down there a little. Kyla ¨Jesus, okay well we have time to wait for the view. I say we do it. Stacey just now regaining the ability to speak. Fine. Sure. Let´s just go while the rain has stopped. To tell you the truth Kyla and I both thought it would take us less time because both the Sun Gate and hike up WaynaPicchu took less time than advertised. How wrong we were!
This is Elenor smiling at us on the walk down to the Moon Cave which is entirely comprised of the steepest steps you have ever seen, an insane wooden ladder section that made me want to weep (and I´m not proud to say I went off on our friend Elenor a little there I mean who doesn´t mention a wet, basically vertical wooden slippery ladder section with unevenly spaced rungs at the START of the journey!) and took us an HOUR to get DOWN! Haha very funny Elenor! Half way down Kyla started to negotiate. Kyla: So is there a way that we don´t have to come back up this to get back to MP? Elenor: Yes. Kyla with relief in her voice: Oh good. Elenor: Unless the tree that fell is still blocking the path. Kyla: now panic is back What? What tree. How can you not know if it is still in the way or not? Can you run ahead and check? She was only mildly kidding here I know it. 
I remained focused on the task at hand being survival and stayed out of it. What was to be, would be. Above right is the Moon Cave. The adventure made it worth it. The cave, not so much. The tree was not in our way. We could take the easy way back. Easy way was back up a staircase for 60minutes where we met the original staircase at its halfway point and continued our decent for 30mins on wobbly legs. Round trip back to the entrance of Machu Picchu 4hrs. Total hiking time of the day 6.5hrs. Stories worth telling PRICELESS.
This is a true story. Ask my sister.
xox
b
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