SWA Peru Mission 2015: The Day Hike--Grueling!

As we set out, we wondered, "Are we going to the top of that?" I thought, "No way!"

You already know that we were unable to do the Inca Trail Hike. We were left with two alternatives: The Seven Day Salkantay Inca Trail Hike or the Day Hike, Winay Wayna. When we were deciding how to proceed, I looked into the Salkantay Trail. It actually goes up to 6271 Meters (20575 feet!) and then drops back down into Machu Picchu at 2400 M (7875 feet.) After reading that many people experience altitude sickness at MP levels and also seeing that the Salkantay Trail was rated for experienced hikers, I felt it would be above our capabilities, especially with the daughters. I honestly didn't even research the day hike, because to me, "day hike" sounded like picinics and leisure. No big deal. Uh-WRONG!

The Winay Wayna (Also known as Huayna Picchu or Wayna Picchu) trail is pretty special. It has a beautiful, birds-eye view of the Lost City. They only allow 400 people per day to climb it. They have two windows of time where they let 200 people in to do their climb. Ours was the 8:00 time slot. You can enter the hike anytime between 7:00-8:00, but if you miss the window, you will lose your chance to hike it. The trail is very narrow in places. Single file, hence part of the reason the time slot and limited number of people is important. When you do encounter people coming from the opposite direction, you have to find a place to stand to the side and grip the rock walls or small cable available for balance. After we got home from the trip, I googled it. It shows up in this article about the World's Top 20 Dangerous Hikes. (OutsideOnline) Although we weren't "completely unprepared," we were not aware of how hard this hike is. It is so steep in some places it is like climbing a ladder. And that old steel cable felt like a lifeline.

The Inca Trail to Machu Picchu can be a tough trek, and it takes a few casualties each year. But the real danger begins when you follow the trail past the mythical city and up Huayna Picchu, aka the “Hike of Death.” The old Inca staircase is carved out of granite and climbs about 1,000 feet in less than a mile. Plus, the route is full of rotting, crumbling rock, slippery stones, and exposed corners. Many people tackle the route totally unprepared—we’re talking flip-flops and no water.

Clouds and mist make the journey more difficult, and in some sections hikers must cling to old steel cables. Going up is the easy part. Coming down the steep slope often paralyzes travelers with fear. But it’s worth the pain—the view from Huayna Picchu on a sunny day is the best bird’s-eye view of Machu Picchu below.

Another article I'm glad I didn't see before we went is here.

Huayna Picchu and its So-Called "Death Stairs"

Also found near the summit of Huayna Picchu, the peak's famous "death stairs" are not quite as scary as some might have you think. That being said, they're no walk in the park either. Most visitors assume that the climb will be more intense going up, and the presence of this staircase at the start of the descent throws many for a loop. It's quite an extreme set of stairs, reaching an angle of over 60 degrees at some points. There's also no railing to hold on to, so we recommend a lot of caution when navigating this section of the Huayna Picchu descent.
Despite the impressive nature of this stair set, they're actually less difficult than some stairs going up. What can be overwhelming for visitors regarding the "death stairs" is the sense of vulnerability created by a lack of railing coupled with the view in front of them, which can create the sensation that a misstep could result in a never-ending free fall to the valley floor below. But don't worry--thousands of visitors have navigated the stairs at Huayna Picchu before you without problems, and you can do the same.

Navidad conferred with the group at the entrance. He said he would be waiting for us at the top. He said it might be too difficult for some of our group, and if at any point you wanted to turn around, he gave us the point to meet back up. He disappeared up the hill. We were together at the start, but it quickly became apparent that we were all different levels of cardio fitness and physical strength. The Spokane girls stayed together, but the daughters were climbing with much more ease than the mothers. They would get 50 yards or more ahead and we'd have to yell at them to slow down or wait up. We would catch up to them, but not catch our breath, and they'd be ready to take off again. Although it was physically trying, the more difficult part was the lack of oxygen. It was just impossible to "catch your breath." I had altitude sickness pills and prior to the trip Abbi and I had been taking ChlorOxygen, which was supposed to build up your red blood cells to help saturate your body with oxygen. It didn't seem to help. Unfortunately for our daughters, if you stayed still, the bugs would come out to eat you. They were getting frustrated waiting on us because they would then become the bugs' feast. Mackenzie is quite athletic and climbed with ease. Abbi kept up with her, but kept one ear open for our yells from behind to slow down. It took Navidad 28 minutes to climb. It took our daughters 48 minutes and us about 55 minutes. There is another 50 feet higher that you could climb, but Navidad said it was too dangerous. He said the views don't get better and it's just too risky for our group. Although part of me wanted to summit to the top, I trust Navidad and felt pretty proud of us for reaching this point. Rhonda was having anxiety about the heights, too, so this was good enough.

One of Many Breaks Mackenzie had to take waiting on us.

What a view! Abbi looks tired, but also so very proud! We made it!

See the thin cable? I gripped it every chance I could. Some areas didn't have the lifeline!

It was as if we did the stairmaster for an hour straight. Great cardio!

There is this ledge that you can sit on and from back just a short distance, it looks like you are sitting on the edge of the mountain. It is actually a bit terrifying. (I don't love heights.) Abbi was sitting there, and I was really nervous, but I saw another couple also sitting so I thought it was probably not as scary as it looked. I asked Abbi before I came closer. She explained that just a few feet down there was a wide ledge. I inched closer and saw that, yes, just 5 feet down or so, there was a wide ledge that you could almost jump to. I sat and Mackenzie joined. Rhonda needed a minute to compose herself. It was very unnerving. The heights, the daughters, the accomplishment, the lack of oxygen to our brains.... all a bit too much! It was almost a religious experience. It's just indescribable. But, you should probably experience it. And, you might want to train a bit first. Like do your treadmill at 12% incline for an hour everyday. Maybe with a paper bag on your head to simulate the lack of oxygen?? I really appreciate our ignorance in the difficulty, but now you know that its hard. So you maybe want to train. :)

Jeannie & Judy

We sat there at the top, posing for pictures, chatting with a few strangers we met. We waited on the rest of our group. Most of us were together within a few minutes. But, there were four people that hadn't made it. It had been close to two hours and they were a few of the people we were worried the most about making it. Our sweet friend Jeannie has bad knees and woke up with a stomach bug. She wasn't able to keep anything down. I don't want to guess her age, but she does have kids close to my age. She is one of my favorite people from our group. We had flown together a few years ago, and coincidentally ended up on this trip together. She is a wonderful, sweet woman. Some others from our group said that she and Judy were sticking together and Jeannie was really struggling. We counted them out. The other two that weren't there yet were Barbara and Dan. Again, I don't know their exact age, but they also have kids in their 30s. And they've been married more than 40 years. We can guess they might be close to double my age.

Not that age means you can't do somethings, but the muscle aches and joint pains might be a bit more apparent? Navidad and I decided they probably wouldn't make it to the top. It was just too challenging. We decided to head back down. We got 300 feet or so down the trail, when low and behold--Judy! She let us know that Jeannie was shortly behind her and they were going to make it. I was surprised and so happy! What a great accomplishment. Even bigger than ours, I felt. Our group decided to turn back around and get a group picture at the top. We still didn't think Barb and Dan would make it, but Judy thought otherwise. And sure enough, here they came! It was such a special moment. I was so incredibly happy for them. Barb and Dan hugged and cried at the top. I totally cried with them. I grabbed Mackenzie and hugged and cried with her. Some stranger said, "Enjoy your daughter while she will still let you hug her." :) So, I had to grab Abbi and cry and hug her too. I asked Dan what gave him the ability to get to the top. He said, "I just couldn't come all this way here and tell my son I didn't make it to the top. I just had to." We started back down, leaving the four of them to enjoy their time at the top. Unfortunately, we didn't see Judy and Jeannie for the rest of the day. Dan and Barb caught up and Navidad continued our guided tour.