Anticipation

On Sunday evening we met with our SAS (sastravelperu.com)tour guides, as well as the other folks who would be going with us on the four day hike along the Incan Trail from Cusco to Machu Picchu. Our guides were Ruben and Cesar. There were to be thirteen of us going on the trek with them the next day. Harvey and Anna from Colorado, Michael (Harvey's brother) from Ohio, along with his son Michael Jr. (Texas) and Jonathan (Ohio), Antti and Marika (Finland) and the Willis four. You may have figured that doesn't add up to thirteen. And if so, then you've done your math. The couple from the UK didn't show up. Nobody had heard from them. Each of us had paid to have some of our items carried by a porter. We had paid for 6 kilos each, which meant that we didn't have to carry our sleeping bags, sleeping pads, bag liners, extra pair of shoes, as well as our tents and food. We would still need to pack our own water for the day, snacks, flashlight, toiletries, and any clothing we would need for the four days. We were told that we would be picked up last of the group, at 5:40 a.m.

I had a horrible night's sleep. I worried about Tyler who had been suffering from a terrible headache most of the day. I don't know if I had eaten something I shouldn't have or if the travel and altitude was affecting my digestion in a bad way. I was still huffing and puffing as we climbed the long hill and steps up to our hotel. I worried that with my lack of sleep I would be too tired to make it through the next day, much less a strenuous hike. I was a real mess, but before 5:40, I was up and waiting for our ride to come.

We rode in the bus for a couple of hours, trying to rest, although excited for the day to really start. The ride was quite chilly until the sun came up. We could see our breath in the air and Isaac was drawing pictures in the condensation on the window. I worried some more that I had not packed warm enough clothing.

We were excited to finally arrive at the control site, where we could unload and check in and start our adventure.

Inca Trail hike in 4 days