Dave and I had an extra early start to Day 4. Dave got sick sometime between 1:00 and 2:00am. We spent the next few hours parked outside the bathroom. Fortunately by 3:30am when everyone else woke-up, he had started to feel better. We ate a light breakfast, packed our supplies, and then walked to the Machu Picchu access control checkpoint. Marco wanted us to be one of the first teams at the check point (4:30am) so we would be out front for the final leg of the Inca Trai

Even though it poured most of the night, we got our best night sleep! This was our view when we unzipped the tent flap on the morning of Day 3. Day 3 was described as the easiest day of the trek but the trek from Chaquicocha to the camp ground near Winay Huayna included a total descent of 3,281 feet over 5.5 miles. Marco's strategy was by making Day 2 a ball buster, we'd get more time and enjoyment walking through the cloud forest and the ruins today. Also, we'd be more r

Day 2: Ayapata (10,829 ft) through Dead Woman's Pass (13,779 ft) to Chaquicocha (11,800) A picture is worth 1,000 words: Ayapato to Chaquicocha and the most talked about section of the Inca Trail - the climb to Dead Woman's Pass. But today was the most grueling day on the trek not just because of Dead Woman's Pass but also what followed the Pass and our trek to the overnight campsite. Day 2 had a cumulative elevation gain of 4,373 feet over 7.5 miles and the entire trek was

The high point of our trip to Peru started the evening of Sept 21st when we met Marco, our guide from the trekking company, Llama Path, and the 8 other people who would join us on the Inca Trail hike to Machu Picchu. Marco's parting instructions that night were clear, 'Be at the meeting spot the next day at 4:30 am sharp'. So much for a good night's sleep. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we chose Llama Path because of their commitment to the local community and their ef

Peru was our first international destination and what a way to start - Lima, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu. On the recommendation of a friend at work we also added a trip to Ecuador. Due to the multiple destinations on our trip to Peru and Ecuador, I've broken the trip into 4 separate blogs. Click Lima Pisac and Cusco Inca Trail and Machu Picchu Quito and Banos Ecuador Our trip to Cusco and Pisac started with a 90-minute flight from Lima (sea level) to Cusco (11,154 ft).

Peru was our first international destination and what a way to start - Lima, the Inca Trail and Machu Picchu. On the recommendation of a friend at work we also added a trip to Ecuador. Due to the multiple destinations, I've broken this trip into 4 separate blogs. Lima Pisac Ruins and Cusco Inca Trail and Machu Picchu Quito and Banos Ecuador Our travels through Peru are mapped out below. We flew from Boston to Lima and stayed for 2 days. We then caught a flight from Lima (