kjcrane.com

We don’t usually get up at 4 a.m., but if anything will get us out of bed it’s the end of our hike to Machu Picchu! (Only a little over 4 miles to go!) After a fast breakfast we got in line at the checkpoint to the trail, which opened at 5:30 a.m. The first part of the hike was in the dark but soon the sun was out and not too many steps later (including about 30 huge, steep steps up) we were at the Sun Gate. Here we got our first glimpse of the great city. Another 45 minutes or so and we arrived at Machu Picchu. The city is much bigger than you can imagine when looking at photos. Everywhere you look, the views are stunning and the stone work is amazing.

Saul gave us nice tour of some of the best parts of the city, and the rest of the afternoon we just roamed around this once lost city. After several long days of hiking and years and years of dreaming of being there, it was hard to believe we were actually in the city of Machu Picchu. The photos say it better than we can, but the immensity of the city is striking. Agricultural terraces, many religious temples, the royal palace, and the huge urban district. It was a lot to take in, but we saw a lot of the city and took a long, well-deserved rest in the grass.

We all got to have one last lunch together in Aguas Calientes before some of the group headed back to Cusco with Jose and Saul. The destination for the rest of us: The hot springs. We were a little worried when we asked Saul and Jose about the springs. All they said was to take a shower when we were done. So we weren’t expecting greatness! All I’ll say is, if you make this trip, don’t feel bad skipping the hot springs. They’d be better named “dirty pools of kind of warm water.”

So we showered. And then crashed. Probably would have slept through dinner, but they came and woke us up. Didn’t realize dinner was waiting on us!