INKA TRAIL TO CHOQUEQUIRAO & MACHUPICCHU
09 DAYS
A hike for the really good walkers!!! You have to cross 4 passes, the highest 4560m, do steep climbings and even walking downwards can be horrible..
Otherwise you have fabulous views at for example the Pumasillo massif, Salkantay, other snow peaks, deep canyons as Rio Blanco and Apurimac, you can see condors and meet very friendly people.
Highlights are your visit of the ruins of Choquequirao, also thought to be a ´lost city of the Incas ´ (Only since 1992 people are working and restoring here and very few visitors come, because of the remote area and difficult hike), and then the most famous city of Machu Picchu.
Day 1: Cusco – Cachora - Chikisqa
By bus to Cachora and meet the mule-drivers there, start the hike with easy walking to the viewpoint Incahuasi (possibility to see condors and good views into the Apurímac valley) and down to Chikisqa to camp.
Day 2: Chikisqa – Playa Rosalina - Santa Rosa - Choquequirao
A little down to cross the Apurímac river and then all the way up, passing Santa Rosa, walking higher and then from far you already can see the ruins of Choquequirao, where you enter after a couple of hours more
Day 3: time to explore the ruins: the baths, the platform, the storehouses, and there is more to explore yet!
Day 4: Choquequirao – Pinchu Unuyoc
Ascend and descend to the still mostly covered ruins of Pinchu Unuyoc with lots of terraces and some baths. Camping around here or down near the Rio Blanco.
Day 5: Rio Blanco – Maizal - Yanama
A long and heavy climb to the pass Victoria, passing old mines where people worked until the sixties, then down to the village of Yanama.
Day 6: Yanama – Colpapampa
You pass about 4500m, then enter the valley of Santa Teresa, already with some vegetation. There are some small communities, still having ´trueque´ , interchange of their products.
Day 7: Colpapampa – hydro-electric
Hiking up little by little to the hydro-electric station, having good views at mount Veronica and others, enjoying bushes and flowers. Camp before reaching the hydro-electric central.
Day 8: hydro-electric - Aguas Calientes
To the hydro- electric station, down into the valley to take the local train to Aguas Calientes. Stay in a hostal, optional visit of the thermal baths.
Day 9: visit of the archaeological site of Machu Picchu.
Return by train to Cusco.
Optional night in Machupicchu Hotel or Aguas Calientes
Included
Transports in bus and train
English speaking guide
Cook
Mule drivers
Mules/horses for the equipment
Camping and cooking equipment
Food during the trek
Oxigen
