5 Day Salkantay Trek to the Machu Picchu 🏞
During our stay in Cusco, as I mentioned in the other post about Cusco, there was a very special highlight: the 5-day Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. Of course, Machu Picchu is one of the biggest highlights in Peru, if not the whole world – it is one of the new Seven Wonders of the World for a reason! Before our tour, we extensively researched the tour options available and which provider to go with – there are hundreds of travel agencies in Cusco. However, there are only a few that are truly professional, so we ultimately decided to go with the provider Salkantay Trekking – a decision we did not regret! ☺️👍
The evening before the tour, we met with the other participants of the tour for a briefing – there were eight of us in total plus our guide, Freddy. Our tour was a mix of different people, and Freddy was just perfect. The tour is divided into 5 days and rated as challenging – and some stages were indeed challenging! 🙈 Here is an overview of the whole trek:
Day 1 – to Humantay Lake & overnight in the Sky Camp
We left at four o'clock in the morning and were picked up by minibus. From Cusco, it took about 2 hours to get to Mollepata, where we had a hearty breakfast before driving another 30 minutes to Challacancha, where we left the car behind and started the first 3 hours of the trek to Soraypampa and the Sky Camp. We settled into our cozy Sky Camps, which supposedly offer a wonderful view of the stars at night. We also had a super delicious lunch before heading to Humantay Lake. 🔥
On the way, we got a little preview of what awaited us the next day (the second day is the hardest of the whole hike) – challenging hiking at an altitude of over 4000 meters – definitely something different than hiking at "normal" altitude. Nevertheless, we arrived at Humantay Lake in a brisk hour and enjoyed a fantastic view, took beautiful photos, and listened to our guide Freddy tell us about the history of his people and the ancient Incas. We then returned to the camp, where we had a delicious dinner and quickly disappeared into our small houses – to look at the stars and go to bed early because we had to start on time the next morning. 😬👏
Day 2: over the Salkantay Pass to Chaullay
We were woken up at five in the morning with a hot Coca tea – the best prevention against altitude sickness. We then had an hour for breakfast (with a large buffet and the best view of the mountains) before heading straight to the Salkantay Pass – the highest point of the trek at 4630 meters. Half of our group had some trouble with the altitude, but everyone persevered, and we all made it to the summit without the help of horses. We then indulged in some snacks and took a short break. 🙋♂️
Then came the most difficult part of the route for me – not in terms of endurance, but physically. We had to go down the next few kilometers over endless loose stones – first to Huayracmachay (3850 m), where we had lunch, and then down to only 2900 m in the Cloud Forest to Chaullay, where a surprise awaited us...
Normally, we should have stayed in huts (small wooden huts in the Cloud Forest) here in the Andes. However, Salkantay Trekking surprised us with brand new huts, which we were the first tour group to occupy. In the new huts, we not only had a super comfortable bed but also a large private bathroom with a warm shower. However, the best part was the huge window front with a fantastic view of the mountains! 😍
Day 3: making our own coffee & bathing in the hot springs
This time we had a bit more time in the morning and were awakened (in the midst of the clouds) around 6 am - once again with a hot Coca tea. 😎👍 The weather today was very changeable, so during the first hours of the hike, it was still dry, while it started raining after the lunch break and didn't change until we reached our destination, the Jungle Huts in Lucmabamba. Fortunately, we had all been given raincoats, so the rain didn't bother us. Anyway, today was a bit more relaxed, so we could recover from yesterday a bit. 😜
When we arrived at our destination for day 3, we learned about traditional coffee production in Peru and were able to prepare our own fresh coffee. Next up was another very special activity: we went to the hot springs! 😍
Day 4: the last day of hiking to Aguas Calientes
As we woke up in pouring rain, there was a spontaneous change of plan. As a group, we decided to skip the first leg of the day and bypass Llactapata by car, as it had been raining all night and the path was super muddy. Actually, we were quite happy about it because we still felt the previous days in our bones. 😁
We drove to Hidroelectrica, where we took a short break for lunch and then walked through the beautiful forest, always along the railway tracks, in the best sunshine. Along the way, we saw many different species of animals, beautiful plants, and of course the surrounding mountains, including the Machu Picchu for the first time from a distance, which is on the agenda tomorrow. 🥰
When we arrived in Aguas Calientes, we checked into the hotel and then went for a delicious lunch - right on the Urubamba River, a raging river that flows through Aguas Calientes and is really impressive. After lunch, we enjoyed the peace and quiet in the hotel and took a hot shower before heading out again to explore the town and have some ice cream - followed by another fantastic dinner, where we got our tickets for tomorrow's highlight, Machu Picchu.
Day 5: Christmas at Machu Picchu
Today was not only a highlight in terms of our adventure, but also the day - it was Christmas! 🎄🎅🏼 In the morning at breakfast, we all had our Christmas hats on - which we wore all day. 😂 We took the bus about 20 minutes up the steep switchbacks to Machu Picchu, where we put on our raincoats again. We were lucky enough to get to know Machu Picchu from both sides: with lots of clouds and rain and just a few minutes later with sunshine and no clouds. It is absolutely impressive to see how quickly the weather can change here! 😍
We had an intensive tour of the holy city and our guide told us many interesting background information about the city itself and the history of the Incas. Of course, we also took lots of photos! 😂 For the return trip, we all decided to walk and made it back to Aguas Calientes in just under an hour, where we all had lunch together and toasted to the last few days and the beautiful tour with a self-made Pisco Sour.
Afterwards, we headed to the Aguas Calientes train station with our luggage, where we took the Peru Trail back to Ollantaytambo with its large panoramic windows. We had a fantastic tour that could not have been any better, and our group was simply great. Many thanks to Salkantay Trekking for this unique experience - for those who are staying in Cusco and planning a tour to Machu Picchu, I highly recommend this agency!
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