|
Huayna Picchu
Some folks don't know when to quit!... Despite the fact that this was our fourth day on the trail and we had gotten up that morning at 4:00AM, Josh and I had to put in a little more hiking before we quit. The narrative here is taken mostly from my journal. Huayna Picchu is the peak that you typically see towering over Machu Picchu in most any popular picture or postcard, and whose vertical slopes make for a dramatic backdrop to the whole site. I knew that there was a path to the top and I had in the back of my mind that if I felt up to it and the weather was good, I would make the attempt to make the climb. |
|
 |
Well, the weather wasn’t good, but Josh seemed determined to check it out so,
although Mauro advised against it given the chance of rain, I said "Let’s
go" and we headed off. By the time we got to the Gatekeeper’s shack (where you have to sign in) it was raining and I was back in my poncho. The estimated time to make the climb was at least 1 ½ hours so in addition to the conditions and the difficulty of the trail we didn’t have much time to spare. One of the reasons I was doing this was that I figured that our luck would hold and things would clear by the time we got to the top. (So much for that theory!) |
Guidebooks, Maps, Books, Music and more... Click Here |
|
| MAN that is a steep climb! Some of the places are just about straight up and
there are ropes in spots to help you climb. Plus it was raining and wet and a bit slippery
(which is why Mauro advised against it). I finally took my poncho off because I was overheating and I couldn’t see my feet while climbing. Of course I was close to the top by the time I had told myself we needed to head back and by then was not about to turn around. Just before the peak there is a tunnel - maybe 50 feet long - but which is so low and narrow I had to crawl to get through with my day pack. It even has steps carved into the rock at the end where it turns up so the people that used it must’ve really been small. It was so tight I didn’t know how I’d get back through! |
JB on the peak... |
| And just beyond that, there is a spot where you have to climb up a crack
in a rock to get up and over to the top. So, given the time, just about as soon as I got to the peak I had to head back down. Which was just as well since there was nothing to see but the inside of a cloud. The Path Back DownTurns out I didn’t have to worry about it (going back through the tunnel that is...) - the path leads down the back side. |
|
| Which was OK by me until I saw the steps! The steps leading down to a structure
on the back side, and then down to the path we came up on, were about one foot wide, six
inches deep and a foot tall. In other words shallow, narrow and STEEP. Then as I descended the first set, the mist cleared and I could see the valley floor below - WAY below. For the first time on the trip I was really scared. Well, Josh came down behind me as I got to the building so I at least had company going down the last set of steps on butt, hands and feet...
>>> This is the structure most often referred to as the Temple of the Moon, but since the peak of Huayna Picchu blocks out a good deal of the night sky this may not be the case. |
|
 |
<<< Josh on the steps down from the structure pictured above and a close-up to give an idea about why coming down these things in the rain was enough to spook me!... |
Once back on the trail, the descent went quickly and as we came back around the front of the rock face, sure enough, the mist parted and we got a great view back over Machu Picchu. By the time we got back into the park proper we only had about 15 minutes to get across to the entrance to meet the rest of the group.
Then, of course, after pressuring ourselves to get back in time, we had to wait on the bus that was to take us back to Aguas Calientes. Well, no one can accuse us of letting any path go unexplored!... After some few minutes of waiting for the tourist bus to fill up, we were on our way back down the mountain, beginning The Return to Cuzco and home... |
|
[ Back to the Western Sector ] [ Up to Machu Picchu Home ] [ Forward to The Return ]
- The Trek to Machu Picchu
Machu Picchu