Day 3:

Pacaymayu-Winaywayna

15km 3,580 to 2,680 m (highest pass of Runkurakay at 3,970)

Wake up 5.30am- Arrival at camp 5pm

Given that we were again up at 5.30am the day started well with the cook whipping up an oatmeal and caramel cake in honour of Edward's birthday (day 2) and Sally's to come on day 4. Somewhat weighty on the stomach with an hour climb to start the day, but a lovely gesture all the same! Was it any coincidence that today was the day we would be presenting tips?

The trail started with a 30 min climb to the first archeological site of Runkuraqay. Believed to be a watchtower, the circular ruins overlook the valley below protecting the pass. Roberto informed us that the site served as a rest stop for Inca 'couriers' who would take grass knot (early Inca communication) messages by relay. He also told us the existing porter record for running the Inca trail stood at around 6 hrs and a professional runner had done it in 3hrs 47 minutes...staggering!!

The theme of the day was ancient Inca ruins but unfortunately also rain..and lots of it! The views back to the campground were hidden by clouds and as it turned out views would be minimal until later in the day, when we would descend out of the clouds!

A further 45 min climb from Runkuraqay took us to the highest point of the day of Runkuraqay Pass at 3,970m. The grey and miserable weather had most definitely set in at this point but signifying the last climb on the trail, the summit was met with much joy from the group and a triumphant photograph of the gang!

The descent to the site of Sayacmarca took about an hour and a half and dropped a few hundred metres down a tricky rocky path. It gave us both the chance to get soaked by the now heavy rain and also quiz Chris on his job at the relatively unknown company 'Google'. Despite persistent attempts it transpired that he wasn't quite in the position to change the homepage graphic to an image of Machu Picchu on day 4 in honour of our expedition!

Sayacmarca was an impressive ancient town, built into the steep mountainside in a significantly fortified position. Sayacmarca translates as 'place to stop and contemplate', but unfortunately Sally's emergency handwarmer wasn't heating up quite quickly enough and in a similar wet condition the rest of the groups thoughts were more focused on a dry tent at the lunch stop a further 20 mins away. I can imagine the views were outstanding but shrouded in thick cloud this wasn't something we would get to enjoy on this occasion. There is a certain sense of irony in that the Inca's built high up in the mountains to be as close to the sun as possible, yet at this elevation we were amongst the clouds!

Lunch provided a few minutes to dry out, but with rain persistent and a miserable outlook, this was probably the lowest point of the trek. I was confident that we would find decent weather when we dropped out of the clouds on the descent to camp 3. This proved to be correct but meant that the 1.5 hr walk to Phuyupatamarca along a normally spectacular ridge, was reduced to just views of the trail ahead and not the valleys on either side.

Phuyupatamarca was certainly living up to its name of 'town in the clouds'. The pyramid shaped terraced platforms containing a distinctive series of chambers linked by a water channel no doubt normally offering stunning elevated views...but not today!

By now nothing the porters did surprised us including the vision of them bounding past us down the wet pebbled path carrying gas canisters, tables and chairs and wearing flip flops all under the cover of a large tarpaulin!

The final task was a 2 hr descent down 3000 plus steep steps to camp 3 via the last spectacular site of Intipatu. As we dropped sharply out of the clouds we once again found the warming sun and patches of blue sky. Spectacular views of the valley below, including the town of Agus Calientes and the raging muddy waters of the Urubamba river snaking through the valley floor.

Shortly before camp we took the slightly longer fork via the impressive Inca terraces of Intipata. Somehow carved into the sheer mountain slopes, the stone walled terraces were magnificent. Intipata meaning 'heights of the sun' is a mountainside dominating series of steep terraces facing the east with the purpose of capturing the dawn rays of sunshine. Cut into the surrounding dense forest there are still large lower sections hidden by the forest yet to be excavated. Steep steps once again increased the heart rate as we explored this huge mountainside agricultural plot. Again offering views of the valley below and even the campground it was a truly staggering site from an ancient civilisation.

We finally rolled in to camp at around 5pm at which point Roberto seemed to take a lot of enjoyment in telling me that the restaurant no longer sold beer. I can't really describe my feeling of disappointment but I would safely say that the cold and wet low point of earlier in the day was nothing in comparison to hearing this shocking news! It transpired that the restaurant was currently between owners and although we could use the building there was nothing there. The large Cusquena fridge and posters that we ate dinner next to further compounded the misery! The promised showers were however there although by all accounts were more cold than warm and either way offered no consolation.

We must have had some spare food as our 'last supper' was not lacking in volume. The cook served up a veritable feast of popcorn and nachos to start followed by all you can eat chicken, pasta and vegetables! With only a 2 hr jaunt to Machu Picchu left there was a general feeling of satisfaction around the table..along with the inevitable hope for clear weather for Day 4- 'The Biggy'.

The porters would not be joining us the next day so the day 3 after dinner ritual followed. We had made a collection which Karina kindly 'volunteered' to present along with a superb Thank you speech. We shook hands with all the porters and headed off to our tents.

The prospect of a 3.30am start didn't exactly excite us all and as a result we turned in at around 8.30pm. Just before we settled into our sleeping bags on a slightly damp foam mattress, Dan kindly informed us that our trainee guide Anna's brother had been killed at the same campground a year earlier by a landslide. You may remember hearing about the landslides in the news where Trekkers had to be rescued by helicopter? Dan also kindly pointed out the large boulders and bank behind our tent which had clearly already given way quite recently.....3.30am couldn't come quickly enough!

Day 4:

Winaywayna-Machu Picchu

5 km 2,680m to 2,400m

Wake up 3am- arrival at Machu Picchu 6.45am

Our 3.30am wake up call surprised us mainly in that it came at 3am...still I was too excited to sleep anyway. It was the day we would finally visit Machu Picchu and also as it was Sally's birthday I would be able to offload the oodles of presents and a still amazingly flat birthday card on her, after carrying them over the mountains! Roberto appeared equally excited and burst into a few chorus's of Wonderwall by Oasis from his tent! Pancakes were on the menu for breakfast but as my stomach isn't conditioned to digest food at 3.30am I passed on this occassion!

Under torch light in the pitch black we took the 5 min jaunt to the trail gate arriving at 4.15am. Significantly there was only 1 other group ahead of us and with 75 mins to kill before the gate opened we used the opportunity to share email addresses, which Lindsay kindly collated, whilst also getting stuck into another game of 'Perudo'. Ok, so I was the first person out but this cleverly allowed for a chance to visit the toilet. Not normally newsworthy, but on this occasion we had to fight through groups of Trekkers behind us in the queue. There must have been 400 plus people waiting behind, immediately justifying our 3am wake up!

The position in the queue is very important as once the gates open it is effectively a foot race to get to Machu Picchu. With few people in front of us we would not be held up in a frustrating procession to the end goal. It meant we may be able to, both find Machu Picchu relatively empty and be one of the first 400 allowed to climb the overlooking peak of Hyana Picchu. With this in mind, Jonathan, Dan and Stefano and Roberto set off out of the blocks, closely followed by us and Eduardo. Keeping a fast walking pace only 3 other Trekkers managed to pass us before we reached the sun gate. Even on the supposed easy day, Machu Picchu would not lay down, the trail turned to a virtual wall shortly before the Sun Gate and if we had any doubts that we hadn't earned our visit, this was quickly dismissed, as we dragged our fatigued muscles up the narrow steep steps on all fours.

In terms of weather we had struck Inca Gold as although there was a little whispy cloud around it this further added to the atmospheric morning. It soon lifted and gave way to patches of blue sky and a scorching sun! The last remaining weather dependent feature of our trip was not to be spoiled by the elements which considering the grim weather of the day before was an absolute result!

The view from the sun gate was majestic and immediately drew us nearer and down the final 30 minutes of trail. The previous 26 miles had been dramatic but where the effort of the Inca Trail further proves it's worth is the entry to Machu Picchu itself. Rather than being dropped at the entrance ticket office by bus and passing through amusement park style souvenir stalls, the trail down from the mountain above leads straight in to the middle of this ancient city. Against the famous Hyana Picchu backdrop with tropical jungle all around and literally perched on the top of mountains it is one of the most spectacular sights I have ever seen!

Believed to have been built sometime in the 15th Century when the Inca Civilsation was at it's peak, it was not discovered until 1911 by explorer Hiram Bingham. The city in the clouds stands 2400m above sea level and was built as close to the worshipped sun as the Incas could manage.

Essentially Machu Picchu consists of living quarters, sun temples, study areas, agricultural terraces and the rather daunting sacrificial platforms! All of which are fascinating in the way that they have been built to face the sun. Strangely only small parts are roped off, otherwise you are free to roam as you like. Liberating it may be, but not necessarily something I agree with at such an historic site. The complex layout of sturdy walled rooms are easy to lose people in too, as we found out on when trying to find our tour group. We sat on what we thought was a perfect viewing platform admiring this amazing piece of engineering whilst scanning the city for our group for 30 minutes with not one sighting!

Our hotfooted entrance had allowed us to be one of the first 200 to reach the gates of Hyana Picchu for the 7am climb. With only a further 200 allowed to make the climb at 10am it justified a rapid entrance. Unfortunately in taking the 7am climb we knew we would miss the start of Roberto's tour at 8am but climbing Hyana Picchu was a challenge we had to take. By all accounts the scarily energetic and somewhat mad Jonathan, Dan & Stefano ran to it's summit. Myself, Sally and Eduardo choose to play the rather more sensible card!

A challenge it was, and not for those who don't like heights, sheer drops and rather surprisingly even small spaces. The path up consisted of steep steps and sections with large drop offs, aided in part by steel ropes solidly attached to the rock face. The lookout type ruins of Hyana Picchu at 2700m were built into the sheer mountain peak that lies behind Machu Picchu in the classic photograph.

It wasn't the climb to the ruins that was the difficult part. Clambering around the viewing platforms was quite literally something else and I confess a definite knee trembler! Panoramic views were unlike anything I have ever seen. It literally felt like you were standing on the top of a mountain (well we were) and amongst the clouds but with sheer drops either side and clear views of the valley and river 700m below. One section in particular involved climbing a set of narrow steps with a sheer drop and no guard rail. Safe to say we were clinging desperately to the cliff face as far as possible away from the drop into the Abyss! Then came a tunnel with a narrow crawl hole to reach the other side. Claustrophobes couldn't even relax on this monster! Without doubt terrifying in places but worth the adrenaline rush for the views of the dramatic Andes and Machu Picchu itself. Once you have sat and marveled at this other staggering piece of architecture it is a place not to allow yourself to relax as the long steep sections of narrow steps down were more daunting than anything we had climbed up! After 4 days on the trail it is a trekkers dream but if they carried out such things in Peru, it would be a Risk Assessor's full time job for months!

After our epic descent of Hyana Picchu the search for our group proved fruitless until we stumbled upon Fernando and Karina. Proving they were listening to Roberto's tour they were kind enough to take us around a few highlights, even educating a few impressed bystanders in the process.

Just to add to the photography moments there are a few Llamas wandering about without a care in the world seemingly taking for granted the beauty of their home. We also spotted Vizcachas (cross between a rabbit and Chinchilla) and lizards. The Sand flys however were a constant menace and the decision to wear shorts and no insect repellent is one I shall regret for a few days!

Machu Picchu is a place that you can sit and admire, clamber around or get deeply stuck in to the history. Whichever option you choose, you cannot fail to be impressed with both it's raw beauty or 'how on earth did they build the thing?' Another one of life's fascinating mysteries right there in front of you in the most dramatic form!

Somewhat antisocially, rather than return to Cusco that day with the rest of our group we decided to stay a night in Agus Calientes as a back up in case of bad weather. It also meant we would not have to wait until 7pm for the train at the end of a long day.

Just over an hours walk down the mountain to the valley floor we decided to skip the bus and finish the trail on foot. Admittedly as we hadn't been able to find Roberto, we would have had to pay $16 for the bus, but I'd like to think as now accomplished trekkers we would have walked anyway!

Upon rolling into Agus Calientes some 400m below you can't help but admire the most torrent like of rivers. The River Urmbamba flows as if dammed for years and has finally been released. It is one river you would not want to fall in to that's for sure!

The remains of our group had been unable to change their 7pm train time and with a couple of hours to kill we found a bar near the river. An impromptu few hours of laughs and retelling of epic climbs etc followed before they left and we checked in to our hostel. It had been a long day, unbelievable, but long and a plan to go out for Birthday dinner turned into a sandwich and an early night in the comfort of a bed!

We managed to get an early train the next day and with a collectivo (mini bus) taking us back from Ollantayambo we arrived back in Cusco early afternoon. It was interesting to follow the impressive river Urubamba through the valley, but in all honesty the scenery was surprisingly dull in comparison to what we had seen on the Inca Trail.

Arriving back in Cusco mid afternoon allowed just enough time to rest up ready for a final night out with our group. It was a fun night where in particular I was encouraged to learn I was not the oldest member of the group as previously feared. That honour actually went to Stefano who is 2 yrs my senior!

We were lucky to be part of such a fantastic group of individuals and we really enjoyed their company over this epic adventure. After 4 days of escapism we would now return to our travel plans which involved a 7 hr bus journey south to Puno on the shore of Lake Titikaka...So at the end of the night, with a shake of hands we said goodbye and went our separate ways......happy to have shared the most memorable of experiences and one that we will never forget!