Sometimes we are all so concerned with getting to the destination, that we actually forget the journey we take to get there! The Inca Trail is a trek to follow the footsteps of the Ancient Incas across The Andes and trace their pilgrimage to The Lost City of Machu Picchu. For Easton & I it was also about challenging ourselves physically & mentally to complete the 43km hike, mostly uphill, as painless as possible.

We'd heard good reviews about our tour company Gap Adventures, so when Percy our tour guide or Andean partner as he called himself turned up we knew we were on to a winner. Percy comes from a small Quechuas community based in the Andes, he was one of the brightest 10 children in his year to gain a scholarship for higher education, so not only does he have a firsthand knowledge of history of the Inca's and hike but he is well educated with perfect English. To complete his team were Jesus (Azeus) the assistant guide, 22 porters & two cooks. Unless you have seen with your own eyes the service the porters & cooks provide on this trip then it's hard to describe! The porters carry around 30kg each on their backs (tents, cooking equipment & our belongings), they run the whole of the trail… in sandals, to have camp set up ready for us when we arrive! And the cooks prepare A La Carte meals from the back of a tent, they even mustered up a strawberry sponge cake - absolutely delicious. The 14 other people in the group were really nice, which defiantly made the trip more enjoyable. Jeff an American guy headed the group with Easton and I, so this is why we were nicknamed Team Effort! Team Gastro however had too many toilet breaks to keep up… luckily Easton was over his Food Poisoning otherwise he'd be in team Gastro, but he knew exactly how they felt!

After we had toured the ruins of The Sacred Valley on Day 1 we were up at 5.30am ready for an early morning start to the Inca Trail. To be honest after 9 weeks of no proper exercise and with the trek being straight after the festive party season I was a little worried about the 43km uphill hike, but the first day was all about breaking us in gently - just 9km slight incline!

The second day was the killer, 16km all uphill, but it helps being woken up by porters hand delivering you hot coca tea to your tents in the morning. Coca tea is made from the same plant that cocaine is manufactured from and its only legal in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador, we must admit it's a great 'wake me up'. The Dead Women's pass is a 5hr steep uphill climb to an altitude of 13800ft. East, an American called Jeff & I led the way for the majority of the hike…the quicker we get to the top the sooner the pain will stop. We were all giving nicknames & ours was 'Team Effort'.

Throughout the trail the scenery was stunning from Andean highlands to Peruvian rainforest, but day 4 was the most magical…The Lost City of Machu Picchu! The 3.30am wakeup call was needed in order to be the first group of trekker's in the queue for when the campsite gates open, giving those who wanted a better chance to make the 5km run to the entrance to be one of the first 400 people to get a stamp to climb Waynapicchu mountain, the view from the postcard pic's. Sprinting though the mountains trying to get there before the 1000's who take the bus from the nearby village was probably the most difficult run of my life & the 'Gringo Killer Steps' live up to their name! But Team Effort did it & the three of us got our stamps.

The views from the top of Waynapicchu of the Machu Picchu ruins below is meant to be one of the most stunning views in the area, however due to the thick fog we only got a quick glance in between passing clouds so the photo's certainly don't do it justice. Learning about the site itself was fascinating, and surprisingly many of the buildings are still intact despite being built in the 15th century; however the site was evacuated during the Spanish Conquest so that it remained untouched until 1911 when it was rediscovered. Now it is Peru's main tourist attraction and was voted one of the Seven Wonder of the World in 2007 and I can defiantly see why! Just the most wonderful place in the world.