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| PERU TOURS BY INTEREST |
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MON - FRI : 06:30 - 00:00
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Our five-day program allows the traveler time to explore and enjoy the amazing archaeological sites, landscapes and nature along the way. While most other programs force trekkers to speed through the stunning high-altitude Inca Trail, We take the time to enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime experience. We camp the first three nights, enjoy great meals and sturdy tents.
The hikes average six to seven hours each day including tome to explore sites we pass through and to take in the unparalleled scenery. On the fourth afternoon day we cross the stone threshold of Intipunku (Sun Gate). After a well-deserved night a comfortable hotel, we return to Machu Picchu to see the ruins in the perfect morning light. In the afternoon we return to Cusco by train. This program is specially designed to offer a more relaxed trek and a deeper understanding of Inca culture. All this was abandoned around the time of the Spanish conquest, lying buried beneath the forest until Hiram Bingham set out in 1915 to follow up his discovery of Machu Picchu with a search for the Inca highway leading back to Cusco. Lucky explorer that he was, he found what we now call the Inca Trail and all the sites along it except Wiñay Wayna, that was not discovered until 1941, by Paul Fejos. Today we can hike this trail, seeing much of it intact and easy to imagine as it was in Inca times.
A spectacular early morning drive through the Sacred Valley of the Incas takes us to our trailhead at Km. 82 of the Machu Picchu railroad. After getting acquainted with our trail crew we set out, crossing a footbridge to hike a gentle two hours down the Urubamba canyon, and then visit imposing sculpted Inca farming terraces and the settlement of Llaqtapata on the banks of the Cusichaca side river. We then climb a short way up the Cusichaca valley to Huayllabamba, the last inhabited village on the trail, where we camp. Day 2: Huayllabamba – Pacaymayo From Huayllabamba we begin a steeper ascent, climbing the Llullucha valley along a stream that rushes through enchanted native unca woodland. Crossing the rim of a small plateau, we abruptly find ourselves in the puna, the treeless grasslands of the high Andes. Here a stretch of open trail climbs beneath mighty crags to our first and highest pass, Warmiwańusca (4,200 m/13,776 ft). From Warmiwańusca we can look back to the spectacular snowpeaks and valleys of the Huayanay massif, and ahead to a distant view of tomorrow’s trail to the second pass. Descending a stepped stone trail we encounter our campsite in a clearing of the forested Pacamayo valley.
Day 3: Pacaymayo – Phuyupatamarca We climb to the first and highest pass, Warmiwañusca (4,200 m / 13,776 ft), with spectacular views of the trail ahead to the second pass. Descending to the forested Pacamayo valley we pick up an Inca stairway and ascend again past the small Inca site of Runkuracay. We reach the second pass, where the landscape opens onto spectacular new views to the snowpeaks of the Pumasillo range, then descend to the ruins of Sayacmarca (Inaccessible Town), an intricate labyrinth of houses, plazas and water channels, perched precariously on a rocky spur overlooking the Aobamba valley. The Inca Trail, now a massive buttressed structure of granite paving stones, continues along the steep upper fringes of the cloud forest through a colorful riot of orchids, bromeliads, mosses and ferns. At the third pass we camp by pinnacles topped with Inca viewing platforms, overlooking the archaeological complex of Phuyupatamarca (Cloud-level Town). Day 4: Phuyupatamarca - Machu Picchu We explore the wondrous maze of Inca stone towers, fountains and stairways spilling down the mountainside at Phuyupatamarca then begin a long descent through ever-changing layers of cloud forest. An Inca stairway partly cut from living granite leads us finally to the site of Wińay Wayna (Forever Young), the largest and most exquisite of the Inca Trail sites. In the afternoon we follow the last stretch of trail across a steep mountainside through a lush, humid cloud-forest of giant ferns and broad-leaf vegetation. Suddenly we cross the stone threshold of Intipunku (Sun Gate) and encounter an unforgettable sweep of natural beauty and human artistry -a backdrop of twisting gorge and forested peaks framing the magical city of Machu Picchu.
Day 5: Machu Picchu – Cusco We return to Machu Picchu by bus and spend the day in both guided and individual exploration, visiting the best-known features of this astounding and mysterious Inca settlement. Some will want to take the optional hike to the summit of Wayna Picchu for an amazing overview of the site, while others may want to investigate Machu Picchu’s multitude of hidden nooks and corners. After a full-on experience of this glorious monument to the Inca achievement, we return to Aguas Calientes and board the return train to Cusco. Note: park authorities may occasionally designate different campsites than those indicate. Upon Request
NOT INCLUDED: Permits for Inca Trail
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