7/30/2023 0 Comments Felix hostel cusco![]() After a stop for breakfast, our group was dropped off at the trailhead in Challacancha. ![]() I hoped to make up for lost sleep on the drive from Cusco to the trailhead, but the bumpy and winding roads made it difficult to fall asleep. A good nights rest is essential before a tough day of hiking, and I had not gotten one. Due to a mix-up with my laundry at our hotel, I hadn’t managed to get to bed until after midnight, and then had anxiously laid awake for the few hours before my alarm went off at 3:30 am. The first day of our Salkantay trek started with a 4am pick up from our hotel in Cusco. Here I was in Peru in somewhat better shape, and this time with the support of an organized group and guide… but with a tougher trek ahead of me. In August I had managed to complete the Kungsleden Trail in Sweden, even though I had started it in pretty rough (emotional and physical) shape. I jump at the opportunity to challenge myself, but I’m not always so confident in my ability to overcome those challenges. The trailhead was at around 12,000' feet elevation, and for the first two days we would only walk higher, and higher from there. Prepared as I might have been for wet weather, and miles on the trail, I was hardly prepared for the seriously high altitude that we’d be hiking at. I had already gotten my feet (literally) wet with hiking in the rain earlier last year in the Dolomites in June, and in Sweden in August. Our days on the trail were made extra arduous, due to the fact that we were hiking in the off-season (December is one of the wettest months of the year). The Salkantay Trek was the hardest hike I have ever done, and day two hiking over Salkantay Pass, was by far the most physically demanding day of my life. Sally planned her trip around doing the Salkantay Trek and seeing photos of this epic hike was all the convincing I needed to book a flight to Peru! My decision to go to Peru was sort of last minute, after being invited to tag along with my friend Sally, who was having second thoughts about doing it as a solo trip. This 4 or 5-day trail is the most difficult, but the trade-off is that you get to experience the wildest mountain scenery along the way. Fortunately, there are several alternative trails you can hike to Machu Picchu, and the Salkantay Trek is one of them. Unfortunately, the Inca Trail is so popular that reservations need to be made up to a year in advance if you want to hike it. The Inca Trail follows a sacred trail blazed by the Inca people, over stone paths laid hundred of years ago through the Andes mountains. In Peru, there are several multi-day routes that you can hike to get to Machu Picchu… the Inca Trail being the one you may have heard about before.
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