8-04

Exploring the mysteries of the Incas.

Cusco, Peru was the capital and center of the Inca civilization and is surrounded by many wonderful and different sites of ruins. We have taken three one-day bike trips plus a train trip to Machu Picchu to explore and learn about this culture which flourished in the 1400 and 1500´s.

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First trip: The Sacred Valley – Pisaq to Urubamba.

We load Bici and ride to the inter city bus terminal where we climb the stairs next to the bus and plop Bici down with the rest of the produce, strap him down, grab our seats, and ride to the top of the pass: 10km and 3900m….hop off the bus and with the help of an Austrian rider, Ingo, who happened by, got Bici off the bus. We talked awhile with Ingo about his trip up from Santiago, Chile, then through Bolivia to Cusco. We received good information from Ingo on conditions to the south.

Ingo, Austrian Cyclist

He took off down the mountain one way, we the other, for 12km, screaming along the mountain side, down into Pisaq and the Sacred Valley. The valley is cut by the Rio Vilconota which flows eventually into the Amazon River. The valley is basically flat with a few hills, so our riding is gentle with a constant head wind blowing up the river. The day is warm and sunny as we wind our way through the pastures and small pueblos that dot the river banks. We are greeted by hoards of children as we enter the town squares. They are out of class practicing marching in parade formations for the upcoming national holidays. The kids are fascinated by Bici and touch, feel, twist, push and paw all his parts. As the morning passes to noon, we have a picnic lunch in a town park and again watch the children here practice their goose-step marching and discuss our trip with the locals. It is good to be out on the bike, breathing at altitude continues to be difficult for us if we have to exert ourselves, but when you are surrounded by glorious mountains on all sides all we can do is smile!

1 & 2 Sacred Valley 3 & 4 Art and the Kids 5. Kids marching

The valley floor is agricultural; large tracts are plowed by tractor, the small ones by single blade plow and oxen. The wheat is being harvested now and the fields are being prepared for the next crop. The valley sides are dotted with areas of Inca terracing….this valley was the bread and veggi basket of the Incas. Thirty nine kilometers later we end up in the Urabamba. Bici is loaded back on the bus and we are crowded elbow to elbow with the early evening locals on their way home as we are to Cusco.

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Second trip: Inca sites above Cusco.

Bici is loaded on the bus and off we go again to the top of the pass where we will ride down the Cusco side, 12km exploring four distinct Inca sites.

1 - 3. Ollaytatambo Ollaytattambo continued 4. Indian mother and child at the Fortress 5. Incan sculpture on Valley Wall - Can you find the face? 6. Stone nobs for lifting in place

Tambo Mochay, site of the sacred Inca baths, a place of ritual as well as physical cleansing and purification: a beautiful setting in a cleft between two hills with a small stream winding through. The only distraction is the phalanx of vendors we have to experience as we walk up the trail to the baths.

1 - 3. Baths of Tambo Mochay 4. Puca Pucara - Red Fort 5. Queko - Dummies in Trees

Puca Pucara, a short walk down the road to the Red Fort – probably a hunting lodge or out of town housing for the Emperor Pachoentec.

Quenco, further yet down the mountain, a great stone carved with a complex of steps, seats, and geometric reliefs, illustrate the role of the Rock Cult in the realm of Inca cosmological beliefs. This huge pile of stone seems to us as a stone quarry for the next site down the mountain.

Sacsayhuaman…this is a very large fortress situated on the hills looking over Cusco. The stone work is the most impressive of all the Inca sites we visited including Machu Picchu. The zig zag wall and the size of the stones are comparative to the Egyptian Pyramids. It took 20,000 Incas to quarry, move, carve and place this puzzle work of stone! Many of the stones have indentations or protrusions which were used to help move them into place, The stones are hinged/locked together so they won’t move if the earth quakes!

Sacsayhuaman

 

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Third trip: A wander through the countryside between Chinchero and Urubamba – from high plateau to deep valley floor. We unload Bici from the bus and take off down the dirt and gravel road and cut into the countryside. This is high country: 3700m to 3900m with open fields dotted by small farms and pueblos.

The high country near Chinchero

 

We pass herders moving cattle, pigs and sheep to pasture. We wander; get lost; ask directions; get lost; head off across fields; end up back on pavement; run into some other cyclists, mountain bikers heading our direction who steer us to the town of Maras. Here we have a picnic lunch in the town square. After lunch we take off 9k up the mountain to the ruins of Moray. This is an unusual site thought to be used for agricultural experimentation and ceremonial purposes: a stunning Inca site.

Moray

From Moray, we back track to Maras and then down the mountain to a steep valley, its side filled with salt pans. These salt pans are pre-Incan and still in use. Warm salt water trickles out of the mountainside and worms its way through hundreds and hundreds of drying pans where the salt deposits and is hand harvested by the local indigenous people.

Salt pans and return

The road down is hair raising, but the single track below the pits was death defying! The better part of valor, we walked Bici the lower quarter of deeply cut, hairpin switch backs with the sheer drop off! We hit the bottom of the canyon, cross the suspension bridge and flew down the paved road into Urubamba and our bus ride home. - Art

8-1-2006 Machu Picchu.

After the Inca wonders we have already seen, I wasn’t certain Machu Picchu would be worth the effort or the cost. To purchase train tickets, one must cue up for hours. We left, shopped, ate lunch, and returned before our number was called! After paying $68 US p/p we secured passage for the following week.

At 5:30am the day of our departure, we hailed a cab to meet the 6:15am train: an absolutely enthralling four hour ride through pueblos; then through a deep canyon and on into the changing scenery of jungle growth following a plunging river the entire distance. Upon our 10:30am arrival in Aguas Caliente/ Machu Picchu pueblo we proceeded to compare prices and amenities at various hostels, finally deciding upon one for about $25 US p/n with a terrible stench – but it is only one night and the prices here are HIGH! We rested and I went to the thermal hot springs for a lovely afternoon.

Next morning we boarded the $12 US p/p bus for a 20 minute ride up to Machu Picchu where we entered with our previously purchased tickets ($38 US p/p). We were told to go early, so we took the 6:30 bus and arrived just as they opened the gates.

The morning was clouded with mist and it had actually rained earlier that morning. Following the line of tourists entering the grounds, we made our way along a path and up, up, up, finally coming to a clearing. Below us the mist rolled out to reveal Machu Picchu in all its glory! The green vegetation, the granite and limestone shapes of the soaring, jagged, mountainous outcrops held the Inca city in its arms. We sat, mesmerized as the clouds moved in and out, altering the landscape, the vistas, so spectacular they overpowered the Inca city with their incredible beauty.

Machu Picchu

We moved through the many levels of the agricultural terraces, then onto outlooks, quarry, temples, ceremonial areas, living areas and storage areas all amazing due to the location high above the river gushing below. The block work was not as spectacular as that seen in the Cusco area, nor was the settlement as large, but the setting, nestled so high above the canyon in these spectacular green mountains was arresting and ever so memorable.

We decided to hike to one of the two mountain peaks near the site: the lesser peak, pyramid shaped, Huaynapicchu, 1300’ above Machu Piccu. The other, taller peak: Wuaynapicchu, we left to hardier souls – much, much higher than Huaynapicchu.

Machu Picchu

It was getting warm, so we shed the “legs” of our travel pants and our jackets only to be bitten by numerous black flies. I reacted violently and on our train ride home to Cusco, watched in horror as my arms and legs swelled to unusual proportions. A night of agonizing itching sent us to the all knowing and helpful farmacia for medication to quell this latest of maladies.

Was Machu Picchu worth the cost and effort, after seeing so many other engaging Incan sites? YES!! We are so thankful that we have had this opportunity in our lifetimes to have seen, not only Machu Picchu, but many Inca sites and sites also of many other pre-Incan cultures and to have been able to visit the pueblos of today’s descendants. We are truly blessed!

8-9

We will be pulling out of Cusco tomorrow, after our lovely one month stay. Our split rim has been replaced; it will be good to have a rear brake now that our back wheel is once again round. Much of our lost weight has also been regained. We are more than ready to ride. Our visas have been extended with only an hour of paperwork, banking (one has to go to the local bank to pay the fees of $27 US and return with a receipt) and copying (one must go to a copy center to have numerous copies of everything made) and return back to immigration to have everything stamped, stamped, stamped! We have until September 6 to get to Bolivia – should be a cake walk. Wonder how hard it will be to pump away at 4000m between here and La Paz or Copacabaña. Stay tuned!