Today is the last day I’ll be in Peru. Mostly a traveling day so not much is planned. We got to Lima by plane around 4 p.m. after many hours on a boat, bus, plane and another bus. The five of us were starving so headed out to find pizza. We found a pizza restaurant near the park in Miraflores. The pizza was good and we had stuffed mushrooms, bruschetta and Cusquena. It was a good way to cap off the final night in Peru. Lily, Cory and I also found ice cream on the way back. I left the hotel at 10 p.m. and wished Cory and Lily a safe journey back to Canada and Vermont. The taxi was rather sketchy. The driver kept talking on her radio and I couldn’t make out what she was saying. She kept turning down dark roads and it kept worrying me that we would get robbed. That wouldn’t have been the final cap to an already impressive trip. We made it to the airport and a self relief came over me. Now I wait in airports and airplanes until I arrive back in the States. Not looking forward to security checks especially at LAX. I’m taking the day off tomorrow just to relax

Our hike in the morning was excruciatingly painful. We had to wear wellington rain boots. Mine were a little small in the calve area for me so it rubbed against the skin most of the time. I ended up with a rash on both legs the day after. The hike was really long. It took us about 2 hours to hike up to the river. We ended up walking through mud and marshland. The soles of the boots were very uncomfortable. That along with the humidity caused the hike to be really really cumbersome. Once we got to the lake we had lunch. Lunch was fried rice wrapped in a banana lead. It smelled really bad when I pulled it out of the bag. Once you got past the smell it wasn’t so bad.

The boat tour around the river was a little boring. We were all tired and to sit in a boat for an hour some of us started to fall asleep. I had to keep waking Cory up so that he wouldn’t fall in. We really didn’t see much on the river except a few birds so it was quite boring. I was so bored I volunteered to row. The hike back was another 1 and ½ hours. After the Inca Trail and hike is going to be excruciating. I thought it was a wasted morning as we really didn’t see too much.

Later on that day we took a river boat tour looking for caimans. Caimans are in the alligator/crocodile class. It was a night tour so it was very dark with only a spot light to find the creatures. We saw about 6 of them. The ones we saw were very small, the biggest being about 2-3 meters in length. We got to about 2 meters from them. They looked really like baby alligators. Supposedly they are a lot bigger in the lake areas. You can spot them by shining light on their eyes and noticing the reflection. Even at night they’re very camouflaged. The hour tour was a nice change of pace from the hiking. After the tour we had dinner and went to bed. Lily noticed a few cockroaches (monstrous) in her dresser drawers. We complained about it the morning after but I doubt the lodge will do anything.

There were 5 from our group that are heading into the Amazon (Me, Cory, Lily, Debbie and Mandy). Our bus left at 9:30 a.m. and we were in Puerto Maldonado by small plane around 12:00 p.m. The air here is pretty muggy. The temperature is around 80 degrees with about 90% humidity. That’s shirt sticking humidity. Anyways we dropped off some of our luggage and then took a 1 hour bus ride and then a 2 hour boat ride to get to the Eco Lodge. The bus ride was a bit bumpy. I had a minor headache from the drinking last night. That along with the humidity made the bus ride a little uncomfortable. The boat ride was refreshing as the breeze of air was a change from the humidity. Fried chicken was served on the boat for lunch. I thought was good. It was popcorn chicken and rice. A quick and easy meal to eat.

The Libertador Tambopata Eco Lodfe is a lush eco-lodge with very few amenities. There was no electricity in any of the room and hot water was powered by solar energy. Our guide was cool however he wasn’t enthusiastic about why the Eco Lodge was eco friendly. The amazon basin is lush with animals from parrots, frogs, snakes and jaguars. As soon as we arrived we saw several monkeys swinging about in the trees. It was quite tranquil listening to the voices of the animals echo through the rainforest. Soothing and calming at the same time.

We spent about an hour doing a night hike and saw some small creatures. We saw frogs, spiders and walking stick insects. I wanted to see a snake or a tarantula but we didn’t see much that night. After the walk we had a buffet dinner which was OK. Not the greatest meal but decent for catered food. After dinner it was off to bed so we could wake up at 6 a.m. to go on an Amazon jungle hike.

I finally got to sleep in this morning which wasn’t saying much considering that I woke up at 7 a.m. Had a quick breakfast and then headed down to the Centro Market just down the street from the hotel. The market resembled a flea market (indoor) that sold lots of souvenir items like flutes, t-shirts, bracelets and necklaces. I bought a few more hats for the peeps at home and then headed back to the hotel for a quick nap. We (Emma, Kate, Laura, Lily and I) headed up to the Plaza de Armas for some lunch. We ended up eating at a small place called Victor Victoria. For 7 sols each we ended up getting the set menu which included an appetizer, soup, rice and chicken and lemonade. It was a pretty good value considering I was spending easily 30 to 40 sols on meals. After lunch the girls wanted to go back to the Market and to the train station. I bought a few more trinkets and walked around with them for a bit. Soon after I headed back to the hotel and got ready for dinner.

We found a pretty good Italian/Peruvian place that had exactly the same food as the Incan Grill. I had a chicken risotto with elderberry sauce. It was excellent. I ordered some Pisco Sours and ended up drinking with some the group afterwards. We found a pub and stayed out to about 2 a.m. It was the last night with all of them so what better way to celebrate than with a few beers. Sure am going to miss them all after the Peru trip is over.

We were woken up at 4 a.m. for a quick pack up and start to the trail. There was a line waiting to start the trail and the gate from camp didn’t open until 5:30 a.m. Gavin brough the “G” bag so waiting in line was a party even at 5 a.m. in the morning. The gates finally opened and the swarm of hikers jolted for that first peek of Machu Picchu. Little did they know that the Sun Gate was about an hour hike away. We got there just in time to see the light cover the impressive ruin. The Sun Gate was high above Machu Picchu and overlooked the valley into Aguas Caliente, the nearest town. We camped out at the Sun Gate to wait for the progression of the rolling sun over the Incan Ruin. It slowly crept over the city and within 45 minutes the city was completely covered by the morning sun. The walk from the Sun Gate was about an hour downhill. As soon as I arrived at Machu Picchu my jaw just dropped at hot intricate the architecture was. It sat high above the valley floor and yet it glistened with greenery and mystique. Each stone looked liked it served a purpose and each turn provided a new fresh look at the Incan ruin. Our guide showed us the in and outs of the city giving us little history lessons all along the way.

The rest of the afternoon was provided for our own exploration of the city. A few of us decided to hike up Waynapicchu. It looked like a good idea at the time but it was pretty difficult. It was kinda like hiking up that last few miles of Half Dome at Yosemite. Small steps quickly turned into pretty high 2 foot leaps. It was a good workout on the quads. Going up and down proved quite difficult. Once we reached the top we didn’t have much time to hang out. We had to catch our bus to Aguas Caliente. We ran/walked as fast asa we could and was just in time to have lunch with the rest of the group. It was pretty good pizza and beer. I don’t think beer has ever tasted so good.

The train/bus trip back to Cuzco was a short 3 hours through the Andes. We saw our start point of the Inca Trail and the snow capped mountains surrounding the area. It was a nice relaxing ride back. A hot shower and some unpacking was in order as soon as we got back to the hotel. After everyone freshened up we headed down to the Inca Grill in the Plaza de Armas for dinner. I ordered the Guinea Pig with a bottle of Peruvian red wine. The guinea pig was good. It kinda tasted like a mixture between duck and pheasant. I wasn’t expecting that but it was pretty good. The wine flowed for a few hours and a few of us were feeling funny. Lots of pictures were taken and lots of stupid pictures should appear. It was a fun evening. A few of people in the group decided to hit the Disco. I was tired so Kate and I walked back to the hotel and crashed. Tomorrow we’ll explore Cuzco a little more. No plans as of yet.

The 3rd leg of the Inca Trail was the longest distance wise. Last night we slept in the cold elevation of the Andes. Our tent was broken and wouldn’t zip up at all. Cory had broken the zipper and the only thing we had as a door was the rain fly and the bug door. It was pretty cold cause the elevation was a little higher than last night. We started the day off with a pretty gnarly climb out of camp. I still had a little trouble breathing but it wasn’t nearly as bad as yesterday. The rest of the day was pretty moderately easy with a little up and down action. Total distance for the day was about 17 km or roughly 8 hours of downhill trekking.

The first ruin we saw leaving the campsite was Dunkurakay. It resembled an army outpost. Not really much in the way of architecture. It just sat high enough to look over the valley. The second site we saw was impressive. Sayaqmarka was the name of the ruin and it sat high above the valley. We got a history lesson about the site from Wilbert. I wasn’t really paying much attention cause I was admiring the landscape. From there it was mostly downhill for the rest of the day. We arrived at Winawayna at roughly 4:30 p.m. The ruin at Winawayna was spectacular. I think its probably next to Machu Picchu as the most amazing ruin on the Inca Trail. We had very little sun left so I didn’t get very many good pictures of the site. I wished we had arrived a little earlier. After the site we were ready for dinner and bed. The porters came into the dinner tent to say farewell and sing a song for us. They all looked pretty happy to be there and we shook all there hands before heading to bed. We leave for Machu Picchu tomorrow at 5 a.m. to catch the sunrise over the ruin from the Sun Gate. Can’t wait to see it for the first time.

The first night of camping was pretty cold. After awhile the sleeping bag was unbearably warm. I had to take my socks off it was so warm. Cory kept waking me up so really it was more like taking a series of naps. We were woken up promptly at 6 a.m. with hot tea and a warm bucket of hot water. The porters found Garrett’s bag. Supposedly something happened at the beginning of the trail where they must have transferred it incorrectly. The head porter said that he had left it at the hotel but maybe it was somewhere else. Nobody knows but Garrett was happy to have it back. Breakfast was pourage and eggs. After breaking down camp we were off up the hill. All I can say is that was the toughest 6 miles I’ve ever climbed. It started off a little rugged. I was feeling fine. It wasn’t until about 2 hours into the hike when I felt the altitude take over. At around 3500 m we were gasping for air every 10 feet. I was in the last pack to finish to the top of Dead Woman’s Pass. Jessica and Laura were with me most of the time. We peaked at 4200 meters and boy we were tired. Some of the guys stuck around to cheer us on. I’m glad I didn’t pass out. There was a girl at around 3800 that had to be carried up. Looked like she was suffering from dehydration or not eating enough. Anyways we peaked the highest part of the trek (Dead Woman’s Pass 4200 meters) and I was relieved. I took a few pictures up top and headed down to camp. Camp was about 2 miles downhill. The steps were very steep. Good thing I brought walking sticks. I gave one to Laura as it looked like she might have needed it.

Now we’re chilling at camp. It’s a little higher than yesterday at 3800 meters and a little colder as well. Total time on the trail today was about 9 hours. Tomorrow’s leg is supposed to be the longest. Hopefully there’s not a lot of elevation gain like today. Right now I’m exhausted and in dire need of some sleep.