Cochran family blog: Machu Picchu

Machu Picchu

March 2-3, 2012

This is the Urabamba River. We took a train from the town of Urabamba in the Sacred Valley of the Inca, here to the city of Aguas Calientes, the jumping off point for Machu Picchu. We rode the bus up the steep mountainside to the ruins. The first day we decided to walk down instead of bussing down. It took a couple hours, it was rough stone steps, sometimes rainy, muddy, so beautiful, and great exercise. We arrived after dark, looking like drowned rats, but it was totally worth it!

Here are the switchbacks, as viewed from the Inca Trail, high above Machu Picchu

As we followed the river on the train Dad, Bert and Grandpa kept a running commentary about how they'd run THAT rapid--it was one series of rock studded rapids after the other--a wild ride!

It's a magical place! We got there early the second day, the clouds were just rising, quite beautiful. Our guides gave us a great tour and a good dose of history, he was mestizo--half Spanish, half Native Indian, he had grown up speaking the native language and was a professor of history, so he had a good understanding. It was very interesting and beautiful.

This is part of the Inca Trail--there are actually
thousands of miles of trails, we followed this to
the "Sun Gate" about a 2 hour round trip
right up the side of the mountain. If the Inca King wanted
fresh fish, they'd send a runner to the coast and by
the next evening, he had his fish dinner.

Poor Grandpa missed Machu Picchu--well, he's there in body, but he was so sick that he just laid out on this stone slab and was out like a light. Uncle Jack thought that looked comfortable, so he joined him, I think they were both sound asleep. The background is the Sun Palace, note the perfectly fit rocks.

The "guard house", the llama is guarding I guess! There are quite a few llamas there at Machu Picchu, roaming freely. Our guide said they are working animals--the living lawn mowers! Last time we were there one of them spit on me!

These 2 pictures are from the "Sun Gate", we hiked along the Inca Trail to get here, we had a great view from here looking down on Machu Picchu. It was a warm day, but we were at times in the clouds so stayed pleasantly cool. We saw a 6" millipede, black with red legs, lizards, birds and the most amazing iridescent butterflies--they flashed yellow and electric purple--never have seen anything like them.

These were our guides, Maggie and Walter. Walter was with us the entire week, Maggie was a Machu Picchu specialist--and still in training. She hiked down the mountain with us, we enjoyed them both very much.