So team P has been split up for the first time on the trip. The sensible one deciding to head for the Sacred Valley with Jos for some well deserved relaxation while I chose to spend four days climbing mountains on the Inca Trail. You have already heard from Jos about their time chilling out so let's fill you in on option B in case you ever consider a 50k walk a good idea. The first morning started at 5am after a frantic evening gathering necessary supplies like baby wipes and toilet paper. After a sleepy introduction to my trek mates (mostly Aussies and Kiwis) we were on a dodgy bus through the sacred valley towards the start where we met the 20+ five foot porters who would be carrying our food and tents. Then without ceremony we were at the start, getting our passports stamped and bouncing over the suspension bridge towards the mountains.

To break it down to bare facts the classic Inca Trail is a 47km walk over three mountain passes to Machu Picchu a mountain top Inca city originally built to subdue some rebellious natives and rediscovered in 1911 by an American anthropologist. These days it is one of the world's classic walking destinations with a 3-6 month waiting list for trek places and endless opportunities to purchase toy Llamas and Snickers bars. However it is also possible to get to MP by train (as R & J would be doing in three days time to meet up with me) so what is the attraction?

OK so I will try to fill you in. The three days of actual walking are spent either going up or going down, the only flat bits are when you reach the top of a pass (cold & windy) or the bottom of a valley (campsites). Consequently you always have burning legs either from massive climbs or keeping your descent to an acceptable rate. Combine the exertion with lack of oxygen at 3000-4000 metres and you enter a dreamlike state in which everything around you seems a little unreal. This is just as well because the mountains you climb are amazingly beautiful. In every direction snow capped mountains and deep valleys stretch away, banks of cloud shift over and between the Andes creating a new vista every few seconds and always the thin ribbon of the Inca trail built 600 years ago snakes onwards helping you to take the next panting step.

Sometimes though even the amazing scenery and oxygen deprivation fail to inspire you and that is where your fellow trekkers come in. You start as perfect strangers but over the few days you are together you find yourself walking with all of them and finding out about their lives. All of us supported each other when it got tough on the walk and coaxed each other out of bed at 5am every morning. And I am not just talking about the paid customers, the porters had to pack up after we had left then beat us to the next site to get set up for our arrival and our guides were always there to help us and bombard us with a massive amount of information about the ruins we made our way through on the trail.

So on the morning of the fourth day we were awoken at 4am to make our final approach to the ruins themselves. You walk the final 5km towards MP in the gradually fading darkness and make it to the sun gate, the first viewing point at dawn. Machu Picchu Is still a kilometer downhill but already looks magnificent. As you walk down the hill the sun starts to bathe the ruins and you see the city already overrun with bus trips from the valley below, I think we appreciated it more though. So if you ever feel like a big walk in beautiful historic surroundings I can't recommend the trek highly enough, get here as soon as you can (that's for you Mum & Dad).

Love A (& R)

Special Thanks to all the porters who carried all our crap. To all my fellow trekkers Dan, Huey, Angie, Janet, Lance, Fiona, Gareth, Laura, Sarah, Monique, Pat, John, Sebastian, Tamara and my special tent mate Dave. Finally massive thanks to our guides Edwin and Jose, we could never have done it without you.