See all Posts in the Wanderlust – A Travel Blog Series
If you had to pick one iconic image to represent the entire continent of South America, it would probably be the view from the Sun Gate Trail overlooking Machu Picchu.
Machu Picchu is an ancient city nearly 8,000 feet high in the Andes Mountains, just over 100 miles from the modern-day town of Cusco in Peru. It sat abandoned for centuries, becoming overgrown by the lush tropical South American mountain forest. It is unclear why the city was abandoned. Current theories center on the Spanish conquest of the Inca Empire, particularly the introduction of European diseases.
Yale historian and professor Hiram Bingham III, while searching for the hidden capital of the Inca Empire, was led to the site by local guides in 1911. When his stunning photographs and descriptions of the site were published in National Geographic Society Magazine, Machu Picchu shot to fame worldwide as the “Lost City of the Incas.”
Getting there today is considerably easier than it must have been in 1911. Most visitors begin with a couple of days in Cusco, Peru, primarily to acclimate to the altitude. Cusco is higher in elevation than Machu Picchu (12,000 feet versus 8,000 feet), but ancient mountain cities have lots of stairs to climb, so you may appreciate a couple of days of getting used to the high altitude. Cusco has plenty to see and great restaurants as well. Be sure to try the ceviche!
The train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes (the modern village at the base of Machu Picchu) takes less than four hours, and accommodations there are comfortable and plentiful.
Aguas Calientes (translated to Boiling Water) takes its name from the churning, roiling river running through the center of town. I was surprised to find a restaurant there named Chaska! Chaska translates to “stars” in the local Quechua language.
If you are truly adventurous (and in good physical condition), you can hike the Inca Trail (26 miles over four days) to the Sun Gate entrance. Hikers time their arrival to coincide with sunrise. Or you can take a bus from Aguas Calientes up a series of dramatic switchbacks to the Sun Gate entrance. That first look at the ancient site is breathtaking. Stone ruins crown the mountaintop overlooking lush jungles with wispy clouds and fog below.
As you wander through the ruins, it is impossible not to be impressed by the astonishing craftsmanship of the people who built this place. Stones weighing upwards of 80 tons are carved and nestled together (without mortar) so perfectly that you could not insert a playing card between them. These structures were even engineered to withstand earthquakes. The Incas did not have a written language, so there is no record of the techniques they used to build these amazing stone structures.
While you are there, be careful of the wild llamas that live there. If you get too close, they spit.
If you arrive early in the day and make a reservation, you can also climb the lesser-known Huayna Picchu, which overlooks Machu Picchu from the opposite side of the Sun Gate. This physically challenging climb requires several hours, taking you along narrow, snaking cliffside trails and hand-over-hand up stone ladders and rock walls that would never pass muster with any U.S. regulatory agency. But the views of Machu Picchu from the mountain that overlooks it are absolutely worth the effort.
The raw beauty of the place, the incredible stone structures, and the history and mystery of the people who lived there combine to make Machu Picchu one of the most incredible places on Earth. I hope you can manage to get there and create your own iconic images of this fantastic place.
(Dan Keyport is a CCLN board member and former Chaska business owner, now retired. His home base for international travel has been Chaska for more than 30 years.)
