Inca Trail Day 3

September 25th

Clouds at sunrise viewed from our campsite.

Day 3 of the hike began at 5:30 AM just like day 2 did.  Though unfortunately for A, it began a bit earlier, when her intestinal issues returned at 2:15 AM.  From 2:15 until we left the campsite she needed to head to the toilet every 45 minutes, which meant she didn't get much sleep.  The toilets were a bit over-the-river-and-through-the-woods from our campsite, but at least they were the cleanest squat toilets we encountered on the trip.  On the bright side, A's middle of the night walks meant she got an amazing view of the millions of stars in the clear air and the mountains illuminated by the moonlight and far distant lightning. A low point came when she returned from the toilet at 3:45 AM and the entire zipper of her sleeping bag split open along the entire length and could not be repaired.  A had been on the border of being cold all night, while C had been somewhat warm, so he gallantly switched sleeping bags for the remainder of the night.

Although the sun rose right at 5:30, at our campsite in the mountain valley we couldn’t see the sun for a bit longer.  The sun first illuminated the mountain tops above us.   The sun shining on the clouds below us was pretty.

Sunrise on the mountain tops.

A at camp in the morning of Day 3.

Shortly after our wakeup call our warm washing water was delivered along with coca tea.  We knew the drill from this point forward: pack up our stuff, move out of our tent, put our bags on the blue tarp, and send our empty water bottles to be filled with boiled water during breakfast.

Bowls of warm water for washing

Water bottles waiting to be filled

Packs ready to go.

 Breakfast today was… a cake!  There were two remarkable things about the cake.  First, the chef actually managed to bake a cake on-site on the little two-burner stove.  Definitely no oven here, and the cake was cooked evenly through and the bottom was definitely not burned. Second, the cake was artfully decorated with outline of the mountains of the Inca Trail, and had Quechua decorations on the sides.  Although the cake was yummy, it seemed a bit odd for breakfast before a strenuous day of hiking.

Cake for breakfast!

Inca Trail design on the cake.

We began hiking on day 3 knowing that the worst was likely behind us.  All the reports we had seen said that day 2 was definitely the hardest day, ascending to 13,700 feet crossing Dead Woman’s pass.  On day 3 we would ascend to 12,800 feet, then descend some, hike along a fairly flat section, and then descend 3000’ (1000 meters) to our camp.  Thinking about it, it sure didn't sound much easier than day 2. Especially since day 3 would be the longest hike in terms of distance.

Our campsite viewed from above.  Ours was the two lower-most terraces on the right-hand side.

We departed camp at 7:00; the trail was steep as it ascended the valley wall.  As we climbed we could see our campsite below and behind us. The trail was fairly steep and mostly stairs. 

View from the trail on day 3.

About one hour into the hike, progress slowed and A seemed to be having some trouble.  A combination of factors appeared to make the going tough for A: the general lack of oxygen provided by the high-altitude air, indigestion and diarrhea which began the previous night, lack of sleep from all the toilet trips, and a lack of energy due to a lack of appetite (from the indigestion or the altitude).  She was also experiencing nausea and kept stopping to potentially vomit (though never did) and had a constant dry mouth due to the 3 Immodium tablets she had taken over the course of the morning to try to get the diarrhea under control.  We stopped to rest at one point and A just burst into tears.  Fortunately with some words of encouragement from the group, a packet of electrolyte powder from our New Zealand mates, and perhaps some M&Ms, we were able to pull ourselves together and press on.

We stopped at another Inca construction perched on the side of the mountain.  

Inca construction.  With a good view as always.

Our group learning about the construction.

Our packs at rest while we visit the construction.

The trail at this point was steep with stone steps, and the weather got colder the higher we climbed.  We all felt draggy from our long hike yesterday. Finally we reached the 12,800’ summit.  It was quite cold at the top.  We all took a rest, along with many other groups of hikers. We ate snacks.  V shared some Ritz crackers with A, which did OK going down.  One of our group members hiked up a bit further to the pointy summit where there was a 360 degree view. The rest of us just sat on the ground.

Our group at the top.

A resting at the top, not feeling great.

After our rest we hiked down the other side of the pass.  The weather improved and soon it was sunny and warm.  The trail descended with moderate pitch through an alpine meadow with lots of flowers.  There were still several steep sections of stone stairs. 

View down the other side of the pass.

Descending the steps.

Beautiful weather in the alpine environment.

Once the trail reached the valley floor there was another Inca construction, Sayaqmarka, perched on the tip of the mountain. (The Inca’s really had a knack for building villages in the most inconvenient, but beautiful, places.) We took lots of good pictures, and our guide showed us an aqueduct system used by the Incas to create running water.

Sayaqmarka ahead!

Steep staircase up to Sayaqmarka perched on the edge of the mountain.

Sayaqmarka

Sayaqmarka

Sayaqmarka

Aqueduct system.  You can see the channel in the stone outcropping to the left and in the mountain to the right.

Next we hiked down across the valley floor towards our lunch spot.  As we crossed the low point of the valley the vegetation was lush and almost tropical. We felt a few drops of rain as we hiked the final few meters up to the lunch spot.  As usual, when we arrived lunch was cooking and the table was set for us.

Time for lunch

It was precisely when we arrived at the lunch spot that the sky opened.  C was in the bathroom at the time, and A was in the lunch tent. It started to rain like it only rains in the tropics. In the bathroom several porters (from other groups) huddled with their packs to keep them dry.  C just waited in the bathroom (stinky!) with the porters until the rain subsided a bit. The lunch tent had no floor or ground cloth, so our backpacks had to be placed on ponchos to keep out the rain from the ground.  Finally C joined the group in the tent and we all had lunch.  Lunch was yummy as usual – pan-seared chicken breast, stuffed potatos (deep fried mashed potato balls stuffed with meat and veggies).  And of course soup to start.  This time there was also dessert of chocolate flan.

After lunch the rain had stopped and the sun came out.  Despite the cool air temperature, the tropical noontime sun made it hot and steamy. A's  stomach was starting to feel a little better and she had managed to eat some of the lunch but was now feeling extremely tired.  With our guides help, we were able to set A up with a nap area using a tarp and a sleeping pad where she (attempted) to sleep for 25 minutes or so.

We began hiking after lunch up the mountain side.  The trail was paved with stones, and ran around the near vertical face of the mountains. Our guide described this section of the trail as "Peruvian flat" -- generally flat with ups and downs.  Then it started to rain.  Moments ago it was sunny and hot, but we all pulled out our jackets for the rain.  Before long it was pouring – a soaking rain.  Quickly we put our iPhones in Ziplock bags inside our backpacks.  Without a poncho or waterproof pack cover, our stuff was going to get wet.  The rain made it more difficult to enjoy the view (humans usually look towards the ground in the rain to keep it off the face), and we couldn’t take any pictures.  As the hillside dropped off steeply below we could see clouds below us in the valley.  It was quite surreal.  Really a lovely setting except for the soaking rain. After an hour or so the rain stopped, and before too long our quick-dry pants were nearly dry.  A was also doing much better after her nap.

Clouds below.

The rain must have just stopped because we’re smiling.  And because there’s a picture.

One of the major Inca attractions we would visit today is the “Cloud-level Town,” a town built on the side of a mountain at over 11,000’ elevation.  The Cloud Level town, we were told, would be more expansive than the small village/constructions we had visited so far.  In Inca times the town was where children who were going to be sacrificed were sent.  The town as not as elaborate as Machu Picchu, but was at a much higher elevation.  (Machu Picchu is at only 7,000+’.) We made a bathroom stop at the campsite before the cloud-level town. 

With our clothes nearly dry, we felt upbeat for our final 3,000 vertical foot descent to our campsite.  And then the sky opened.  More tropical pouring rain.  So much for the dry clothes! We breezed by the cloud-level town.  It was raining so hard that no one wanted to linger.  The vote was unanimous. The long descent began as stone steps with rivers (waterfalls) of water running down them.  Fortunately the stone steps were not slippery (surprisingly).  As we descended the steps our knees and calves hurt.  The going was extremely slow, each step of our feet and plant of our hiking poles carefully chosen to avoid slipping and hurting an ankle or knee.  It rained and rained and rained.  Our shoes squished and our pants were soaked.  Our waist-length rain jackets kept our torsos and heads try, but our packs were soaked.  No pictures of course.

A descending the well-paved trail after the rain stopped.

The rain eventually stopped and we began to dry off.  Nearing our campsite, we walked through the Intipata construction.  Short terraces on a steep hillside with steps down the middle.   It was nearing dusk, and we were the only ones in the archaeological site at the time.  It was a great feeling.  With the rain stopped, we made up for lost time by taking countless pictures.  

Intipata construction.

Winawayna campsite ahead.

We could see the Urubamba river in the valley below.  That’s the same river we crossed at the start of the trail.

By this point the clouds had cleared, and the sun was just dipping behind the mountains.   The sunset light on the snowcapped mountains was breathtaking.  The moon was up as well.   It really began to get dark as we hiked down into our campsite.   

Sunset on snowcapped mountains.

Terraces at the Intipata construction

Descending the steps of the Intipata construction

In Intipata

Once we entered the campsite complex, it felt like we hiked forever before arriving at our group’s spot.  We set down our soaked backpacks in our tent and went straight to dinner. Dinner began with “Tea Time” – hot drinks and munchies.  Today the munches were popcorn (as before) and freshly-fried wantons with dulce de leche drizzle.  Extremely yummy.

Tonight needed to be an early night (3:30 AM wakeup call to hike to Machu Picchu), we needed to attempt to dry out all of our stuff.  Without any dry towels, and nothing but polyester and nylon clothing, we didn't have many tools.  Our one microfiber towel had slipped to the bottom of the backpack in the rain and actually wicked water into the backpack.  So of course the towel was soaked.  We carefully laid out each wet item next to our sleeping bags and left them there for the night.  The previous night one of our sleeping bag sippers had broken, so C had to sleep with his sleeping bag open.  Fortunately it was not as cold as the previous night.

The moon and the stars were positively divine from our secluded campsite in the mountains.

Moon

Tomorrow we would make it to Machu Picchu.