Where are we now?

Pix from top are - a retired Greek car, Cunards Queen Victoria, our car in Arillas in autumn, Olive tree trimming, sorting, burning and a beer thief.

Right let's get this thing up to date. We arrived in Corfu 2230ish after an appauling landing. Our friend Steve came to pick us up and told us we were going straaight out as there was some live music on in Sidari. So no sooner had we touched down we were in a local bar 'til late. It was good to see everyone and the music was pretty good too.

Its mid October at this point and the holiday season finishes at the end of October. It does however have a fairly quiet feel about the place at the moment. The wet season appears to have started early this time too with a lot of unsettled stuff about, not to good for the holidaymakers.

There seems to be plenty of local Brits heading home this time getting flights back before the direct ones finish at the end of the month.

We managed a few nights out in Sidari before the season finished as it gets pretty quiet out here after that. Then as soon as we hit November the weather settled down and the sun returned. This gives us a chance to get outside and do a few chores like digging out the bamboo, trimming the olive tree, a spot of painting, pointing and patching up.

We managed to do most of these things and a fair bit of cycling too. Also a couple of trips into Corfu town. We made a special trip down one day to see Cunards Queen Victoria pull into town. It was a super sight seeing this mega cruise ship in port and the sun shone.

The weather continued to be good pretty much up 'til yesterday the 18th apart from one massive storm over a week ago.

Mrs D's scribbles take over now detailing the storm and other recent events -

Have we had fun here or what! Last week’s weather was absolutely beautiful – shorts & T shirts in the middle of November, what more can you wish for. Ideal weather for bike rides, sitting in our fave café with a coffee and digging out the last of the dreaded bamboo from the garden and celebrating with a beer round an enormous fire as we burnt the bloody stuff.

Anyway all this was to change: on Friday we set off in the car, in the evening sunshine heading towards Acharavi for a beer. We called for some gas and the dreaded happened: the car wouldn’t re-start. With much help from the garage staff we managed to run it off and get it (and us) back home which was a great relief but more disasters were to follow…. we parked the car overnight on our village hill so we could run it off to get it started on Sat morning which we did and D spent most of the morning round at a friends both with heads under the bonnet and between them the problem of a burned out starter-motor was diagnosed. So now what? The local car shop was closed until Monday and anyway we didn’t know whether or not we could obtain a new starter-motor there, so it was a worry and we are facing a 1300 mile journey in a couple of weeks!

Anyway Sunday was ok and we finished a few jobs in the garden but by evening time the rain started and boy did it come down. Overnight we had a storm to end all storms, so bad that it was dubbed the worst on the island for 10 years. It was very exciting to watch from the dry safety of indoors but the lightening knocked out power supplies across most of the island and we were without electricity for the whole of Monday. The weather remained so bad that we couldn’t venture out – the only method of transport we had was our push-bikes (as D had taken the front end off his motorbike so that’s off the road as well) and we would have been blown to bits on these and anyway to add insult to injury I had no less than 4 punctures in my front tyre! Now we do have a camping stove so we were able to make hot drinks and it may sound quite romantic to sit by our wood burning stove playing cards by candelight but by 9 oclock at night I’d had enough and not only that, we had run out of beer!

The weather continued to be dreadful for another couple of days but we managed to order a new part from the local car shop (we had to beg a lift from the same friend) and eventually collected it on Wednesday – one day late due to electricity cuts affecting banks & shops but still pretty good service in light of the fact that all goods have to come from Athens. So thankfully we now have a car again and please keep your fingers crossed for us that our old tub makes it across Europe for us!

The weather is improving daily again now and is due to be hot and sunny again by the end of the week so that will be nice. Its not so good in the UK at the moment is it with gales etc. and I think it’s the severe drop in temperature that will be the biggest shock to us!

So as you can see it's been fun times here. It's now Friday 19th November the weekend weather is set to be reasonable then its sun and showers next week.

We depart and sail to Venice next Thursday at 0700hrs from Corfu port. We dock into Venice at 0700hrs Friday morning then it's a 330 mile haul ass over the Alps to Innsbruck, then more Alps over the Fern Pass to Altenstadt in southern Germany and our first night stop. Saturday is a 340 mile drive to Leige in Belgium via Ulm, Stuttgart, Karlsrhue and the German wine growing region for stop number two. Sunday is a leisurely 150 mile drive to Dunkirk and the 1400hrs ferry to Dover then onto our good friend Marians in Winchelsea for a couple of nights before the final 300 miles up north to sunny Skipton. Well that's the plan!! We only hope it goes without incident or car problems!!

So what for this week, well there may be last minute business to attend to in Corfu town, a trip to Acharavi a bit of cycling hopefully and maybe a beer or two with friends before we leave. There maay be time for some last minute scribblings before we set off back but if not we'll be scribbling again from the loft in Middleton in early December, keep in touch aand wish us luck!!

Back in the UK - briefly........

Before we continue, as you've probably guessed we are running out of outside jobs to do here (in Corfu) as I am spending way too much time on this laptop messing about and catching up on the old blog!!

So where were we? Oh yes, after a mammoth nights sleep following the flyathon back from Peru, we had to start thinking about getting ready to go back out to Corfu. We have little over a week to go before we fly (again!!) and there will be folks to see and places to go before we leave. It tunned out to be the usual busy week made more so by the fact our friends from lower Middleton are returning from France at the weekend and we haven't seen them since February.

The week simply flew by and we managed to see most folks and then Friday was upon us. A train to Manchester airport then an evening Easyjet flight to Corfu. We were off back to Corfu to see the summer out for this year.

The journey back to the UK.

We had three more flights to go in our flightathon (new word.) Number 11 was Lima to Panama City, 12 was Panama City to Amsterdam then finally Amsterdam to Leeds Bradford in sunny Yorkshire.

We were a little concerned as we only had a fifty-minute turn round time in Panama City so there was not much room for delays. Thankfully there were none and we got into Panama and Amsterdam on time. Once in Amsterdam we had a six-hour wait for our connection to Leeds Bradford. We sat and watched the mice again in Schipol airport and eventually got into Leeds Bradford at 2115hrs. We left Lima at 1600hrs their time the previous day and were on the move for about 21hrs. After a short drive from the airport we got home around 2230hrs. We were definitely shattered and exhausted but full of stories to send our other half’s to sleep!!!

Pic is of course sunny Middleton, home in the UK.

Puerto Maldonado, the rainforest and back to Lima.

Pix are from the top - river freight, our boat, capibara, the lodge entrance, a bedroom, a young tarantula, the dining room & bar, our rooms, climb training, the tree, the support crew, at the top, weird punky birds, birthday cheers, cayman by night & day

Another early start and off to Cusco airport for flight 9 of now 13 to Puerto Maldonado. It’s only a short flight of about half about 40 minutes. We arrive late morning then we have to sort our bags again before we board the longboat up the river to the rainforest habitat and lodge.

Luggage sorted and back on the bus and down to the river. Here the bags are piled up at the back of the boat and we all pile on. We are now four comrades down but have met up with another Explore group for this part of the trip.

The journey up river takes just over three hours. It is very scenic along the way with sightings of many birds, some capybaras, river turtles and some cayman (a type of croc.) We had lunch on the boat, which was a rice meal wrapped up in a big leaf, which we ate out of and very tasty it was too. We had drop off and a checkpoint stop along the way before we arrived at the lodge around four in the afternoon.

The lodge was hidden away from the river in the forest and it was fantastic. It had been purpose built and comprised of a central building which served as kitchen, dining, bar and rest areas with an upstairs social area with hammocks. There were separate dormitory type areas down walkways away from the main building with long rows of bedrooms. These were all open rooms with no windows or real doors, all looking out into the jungle – superb. All had bathrooms with toilets and cold showers. We were here for three nights, so bags dropped it was Pisco Sour time at the bar! Each party/group has it’s own dinner table and were in the dining area. The meals were all good and freshly prepared.

After dinner we were supposed to be going cayman spotting on the river in the dark but we didn’t go due to the high volume of passengers. Instead we went on a night safari walk in the rain forest with only torches, it was great. A sea of all bugs, spiders and tarantulas imaginable and couple of tree frogs. We were out well over an hour, just time for a couple more piscos before bed. There was a little concern about the fact that there were no windows and all we had between us and the rainforest was a fly net, however this turned out to be fine and we all slept well.

The next day after breakfast we headed up river. We were going to see some macaws in an area of the rainforest where they congregate to scrape off and eat clay. Apparently their diet is so high in toxins the clay counteracts the effects of the toxins and aids digestion. It was all very interesting, a walk through the rainforest to the hides, seeing the macaws in the treetops and also seeing a toucan! Sadly we did not see them scraping clay at the riverside as their were too many other predators around that kept scaring the macaws away, namely hawks and vultures. We headed back to the river then the lodge for lunch and were going across the river after lunch to see “the farm.”

Now the farm is where the lodge grows most of its produce from apples to pineapples, all sort of fruits and veggies to make them self-sufficient. Any over production is taken down river and distributed to local villages and not wasted, all good stuff.

Late afternoon back to the lodge and free time (pisco sour time) before dinner. After dinner there were no activities planned so we all had a few drinks and played cards. Now this is not straightforward, no, no, not the cards…..the lights. The lodge only generates enough electricity to power the site from 1800hrs to 2100hrs daily so after this it’s no power and get your torches out. It was OK and quite nice with all the oil lamps all over the place after 2100hrs. Tomorrow, coincidentally is my birthday and Bill (cheers Bill) has let everyone know. We are going in search of wild pigs in the morning, then out to look at some giant trees, a canopy platform and possibly some piranhas in the afternoon. There are a few optional extra activities you can undertake here so I just might have a go at something different tomorrow to mark the day, we’ll see.

Our last day in the jungle and my birthday! After a rendition of happy birthday from the group it was breakfast then ready for the off. Today we are walking from the lodge into the forest to a hide where we hope to see pigs scraping clay. Let’s just say plenty of clay but no pigs! So we ambled back to the lodge. On the way back we stopped off at a giant brazil nut tree, which are all now protected. Our guide said that if we wanted we could climb up one of these magnificent trees via pulley ropes as an extra activity. Well this was it, the birthday silliness. I said yes and when we got back to the lodge I was “shown the ropes” no pun intended, in the entrance area. After my training session watched by all, I asked if there were any takers. I was on my own but Stella and Colin offered to come with me for moral support and take a few pics.

We had a short walk from the lodge to the Brazil nut tree, rigged up with a platform at the top and the safety ropes etc. Our guide and my leader headed up first and did the 110-foot tree in just over a minute. Obviously comes here everyday for a workout up the tree!! I did a leisurely 10 minutes or so. It was very hard and very high but very rewarding at the top with views across the canopy top. Back on terra firma with Stella & Colin we headed back to the lodge, the rest of the group and lunch.

After lunch we walked again off into the forest. We stopped off first at a 100ft-viewing platform, which we all tramped up the top of to look out over the canopy. It was pretty much a scaffolding tower harnessed to the ground and probably not suited to 10 people, it swayed a little but we survived. Next we were off to see some giant trees. We stopped off on the way to tease a tarantula out of its lair. Done by the guide poking a big stick down the hole – rather him than me.
After passing loads of leaf-cutter ants carrying their leafy loads around we came to a lake. Here we saw some weird looking birds, some bats and the piranhas were in the lake as we saw when some old food was hurled in!! We crossed the lake and came to an island, off again and we came to a massive tree. Well, we thought it was a tree but in fact it was a giant vine, which had grown around a tree and killed the tree. You could stand inside the vine and look up and see where the tree used to be!! We then went to another giant, which was a tree and a couple of hundred years old. We then made our way back to the lodge getting back just before dark. There was time for a couple of celebratory piscos before dinner.

After dinner we managed to get out on the river in the dark to go cayman spotting. We managed to see a few, from small ones to quite big ones. We then headed back to the lodge for a few more drinks before our last night in the rainforest.

Another early start back down the river to Puerto Maldonado and our flight 10 of 13 to Lima. A pleasantly steady run down river and a good flight got us into Lima around 1430hrs. It was then back to the hotel where it all started in Miraflores.

The last evening of our adventure was a walk down to the sea, a pisco or two then a meal out for a few of us, very pleasant. The following day Bill and I had to leave first so we walked into town with Stella and Colin who were going on a city tour bus, as they did not leave ‘til mid afternoon. We said our farewells and headed back to the hotel to get our bags.

The whole trip which started as two ideas coming together worked out brilliantly. The natural history wonders of the Galapagos will stay with me forever, the cities of Quito and Lima with their buzz, cultures and individuality are like no others I have seen. Puno, Uros, Tequile Island and Cusco were a super opener for the jewel in the Peruvian crown – Machu Picchu. The trek was all I expected and more. The jungle adventure was just that, a super and enjoyable mini adventure. Finally it is always the people you meet on these jaunts that can make or break a trip but we had two different groups of folks from all around the globe - the boat crowd in the Galapagos and the Explore troop in Peru, we had an excellent time with both of them.

The Inca Trail & Cusco

Pics are from the top - the group at the trail start, the trail route, with Caesar, first nights camp, the group & porters, dead womans pass, second nights camp, top of dead womans pass, looking back down the pass, third nights camp, the dining room, Machu Picchu mountain in foreground, view of Citaadel from the Sun Gate, a couple more of the group with and without their "matching trek hats," the citadel, four of us going to the Inca Bridge and finally the old trail leading to the Inca Bridge.

We arrived at kilometre 82 and we met the porters who were all busy sorting lunch and getting the carry packs organised. There seemed to be a lot of porters but when asked why, Lobo told us that the number is calculated on the basis of 1.5 porters per person on the trek. We sat down to a splendid local lunch, the first of many. The food along the trail, we all agreed was superb. Good in variety and taste, excellent bearing in mind they had to carry and erect everything prior to our meals.

The Inca trail is 42kms long or 26.5 miles if you like it in old money. Coincidentally there is an annual “Andean Marathon” run over the trail and the record holder has done it in 3hrs and 35 minutes!! Quite an achievement based on the terrain and the altitude. We will be doing it at a more leisurely pace with 4 days walking with 3 nights under canvas.

To spare me the chore of tapping here forever below is the schedule courtesy of Explore –

The trail was first explored by Hiram Bingham in 1911 and opened for walkers in 1970. The famous ruins of Machu Picchu are not the only historical remains within the area: many other interesting sites are hidden in places which can only be reached on foot, and have scarcely been explored.

DAY 1 - Our trek starts by crossing the Urubamba river, then follow its rapids down the Sacred Valley of the Incas to Llaqtapata (2700m). Here we camp below the ruins of Llaqtapata - 1st Camp (6km 2.5 hours)

DAY 2 - Following the course of the Kusichaca river the trail leads to Huayllabamba, a quiet village of Inca origins and the last settlement on the route. We continue to Llulluchapampa (3800m) which affords stunning views of the snowy peaks around us. Here we set up camp for the night - 2nd Camp 3,800m (10km 5.5 hours)

DAY 3 - Today we trek over the Warmiwanusca (Dead Woman) Pass (4200m), to the valley of the Pacamayo river with its tropical vegetation. We then cross the Runkuraqay Pass (3950m). Here the selva (jungle) becomes visible on the slopes of the mountains. Sayacmarca ruins are on a rocky promontory. They command an imposing view and have only one means of access, a narrow granite stairway. Our trail goes through cloud forest with vines, exotic flowers (among them orchids) and luxuriant trees, then on through an Inca tunnel and along a ridge above the Urubamba river to the lovely Phuyupatamarka ruins (3579m). The views of the Urubamba and (if we are lucky) the snowcapped peaks of Veronica (5750m) and Salkantay make these ruins one of the most beautiful places on the trail - 3rd Camp 3600m
(15km 8 hours)

DAY 4 - We descend to Winay-Wayna ruins (2591m), a small Inca city which, like Machu Picchu, was abandoned for unknown reasons. Then from Inti Punku – the Gate of the Sun – there is a sudden and fantastic view of the ‘Lost City’ itself, Machu Picchu, set in a grandiose landscape that amazes all spectators. We walk down through the site, then travel down to our simple accommodation in the town of Aguas Calientes situated on the valley floor below Machu Picchu - (11km 6 hours.)

DAY 5 - Our final morning is spent at Machu Picchu, probably the most astounding feat of engineering in all of ancient America. Temples, stairways, palaces and gabled stone dwellings are scattered everywhere, testifying to the energy and ingenuity of the builders. Train permitting, there may be time to climb the steep peak of Wayna Picchu to look down on the Temple of the Sun. Later we return to Cusco by train and then by bus.

The experience along the trail was superb, the weather was kind with dry and mostly sunny weather daily. The porters and guides looked after us really well. We had our main tour guide – Lobo then we had the two training assistant guides – Elvis and Caesar. I walked with Caesar on and off along the trail. His knowledge of the trail and areas was good.

We ate in the “dining tent” for all our meals, the porters even erected the kitchen and dining tents at lunchtimes for us. When we arrived at camp the tents were up, the thermarests inflated and our carry luggage on our mats. All in all it was “camping made easy.”

Day one was a steady stroll, day two was our first taste of a climb at altitude and day three was the killer. Day three had two climbs, one of which was the highest along the trail at 4200mtrs. The camps were all in super places with splendid views and or surroundings.

The last trek day when we arrived at the sun gate and our first view of Machu Picchu was excellent. The build up of Inca ruins along the trail was magical, each one that bit different and serving a different purpose but all the while building up to “the big one at Machu Picchu.” To see it for real is indescribable as everyone has seen the pictures but to be there and walk around it in all its historical splendour is unbelievable.

After the sun gate we wandered down to the Citadel and all the tourists who had all arrived by bus, we felt satisfaction and justification in being there after our 42km trail trek! After the obligatory photo shoot we headed down into town and the first shower for four days!!

Big showers all round and then out for some food before a good nights sleep. That was of course after the resumed daily fix of Pisco Sour which Bill managed to source for us! The following day we toured the Inca ruins had a detailed tour and description of the site by Lobo. It was excellent. W e then had a few hours free time before our train back. Some went back down to town but a few of us remained at the top to go and have a look at the old trail and Inca bridge. We passed a few more llamas en route and the trail became narrow and narrower with plunging verticals to one side of us. We could see the trail disappearing round the rock face and the Inca Bridge was quite spectacular – see pic. After more photos we headed back to the bus and back down into town for a bit of lunch before our train and bus back to Cusco.

The train journey was scenic following the river down through the valley. We only had to stop once to get some cattle of the rails but other than that it was a pleasant journey. The bus met us at Ollantaytambo and took us back to Cusco and our hotel for a couple of nights.

Inca Trail – mega thumbs up - DO IT!!!!!!

So, if you cast your foggy minds back we had some trouble getting to Cusco before the trail so we lost a bit of time here. We got back from the trail and were allocated rooms and then we went out to dinner.

Cusco, the old capital of the Inca Empire survives only in its ruins, imbued with an atmosphere of mystery and grandeur. The Spanish-style city of today, with its attractive pink tiled roofs, arcaded plazas and steep winding alleyways, stands upon tremendous Inca foundation stones. The interlocking stones, assembled so carefully that a knife blade cannot be forced between the multi-sided joints, were highly functional as well as beautiful – they are earthquake-proof! Today, we plan to visit the remarkable market at Pisac, perhaps the most famous indigenous market in Peru. We will also visit Cusco’s temple-citadel Saqsaywaman which broods high above the town, its huge, zigzagging stone walls broken into 66 sharply projecting angles to catch attackers in a withering crossfire. 20,000 conscripted workers toiled for 90 years to finish it. We also plan a walking tour of this lovely city to see important Inca monuments, such as the Inca wall of Hatunrumiyoc with its famous twelve-sided stone. The stone, measuring some 5 feet across, has the typical bevelled joints which create the patterns of light and shadow on Inca walls
All were quite a spectacle in different ways of course. There was a bit of free time to do some last minute Mrs D type shopping so we wandered and haggled our way round a local market. Armed with shopping and gifts we made our way back to the hotel. We were then out for a meal which had been put on by Explore, a sort of a compensatory affair. Well, what a carve up they might as well have not bothered! The food was probably the worst we had all the time we were away, the service made Fawlty Towers look like the Hilton. The chef at one point came out of the kitchen to serve drinks as we were all waiting for our drinks order. Some didn’t get their drinks ‘til after the meals. Even Lobo got roped into the drinks service – the poor guy he was so embarrassed. Well it was a major source of amusement. After dinner we found the alleged highest Irish pub on the planet so went in for a few beers.

Tomorrow we head off to Puerto Maldonado and the Amazon basin also farewell to some of our troops as they are heading back home and not doing the extension. We will be down to eleven from fifteen. It was to be another early start. The last part of our adventure will follow (then we can get back to more recent events as we are heading back to the UK soon from Corfu!)

It's Peru - Lima & Puno

We were meeting the explore party on Sunday so we arrived in Lima on the Saturday evening, staying at the same hotel as detailed by explore. We had booked it ourselves and received confirmation yet when we arrived, the hotel reception had no record of our booking.

After much arguing and showing of e-mails we were allocated to rooms for which we had to pay again. Within 10 minutes of being in our rooms we were told by the reception who had been in touch with our booking Company that our Hotel had been changed and they had forgot to inform us – super So, we were picked up by the other hotel and shifted across town.

We had an evening wander around the Miraflores area of Lima, ate and visited a pharmacy to get some “essential medication.” The following day we checked out early and went back to the original hotel and checked in there. We then had a good walk down to the coast and a shuffle round town before dinner. Monday morning we breakfasted out then went back to the hotel and headed down to reception to start the tour.

One by one we met fellow trekkers from all walks of life and all parts of the world. There was a guide there from Condor Travel who was getting us to the airport and sending us on our way.

Back at Lima airport we boarded flight 6 of 11 to Juliaca via Cusco. The flight was good, we flew over the Inca Citadel of Machu Picchu en route and had the most horrendous landing in Cusco. We then took off again and had to abort our first approach into Juliaca and come round again before a marginally better landing than Cusco! One for the airport geeks here, Juliaca airport is the second highest in the world after La Paz in Bolivia and as the air is so thin the runway is 5.5kms long to accommodate the issue!!

Here we met our guide for the trip Juan or Lobo as he preferred to be called. So all luggage and folks accounted for we boarded the bus heading for some Inca burial towers on the way to Puno. The towers were quite interesting and also quite remote but a good opener for an Inca trip.

We were now on our way to Puno and our hotel for the next two nights. When we arrived in Puno it was dark and our hotel was fairly central to town. When I say town it is actually a city and quite a big one at that. In fact we were told that after the carnival in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Puno hosts the second biggest carnival in South America.

Our hotel was comfortable and the evening’s dinner was arranged by our leader Lobo. After a good dinner some of us went back to the hotel, others went out to a bar. We had been told by Lobo that due to the fact we had flown from sea level at Lima to 3900mtrs at Puno, altitude could be a problem. We were advised to take it easy on the alcohol until we were better acclimatised. He told us about the local tipple a pisco sour, which could help with the altitude but only have a couple. This was a super drink and became a nightly ritual!!

The following day we were all suffering the effects of altitude with very little sleep and banging heads (no not the alcohol.) Thankfully today we were on a boat trip and not doing anything strenuous. After a buffet breakfast we were all herded into rickshaw type transportation and heading for the port and our boat for the day.

Our first call was with the Uros peoples who live (allegedly) on the floating reed bed islands on Lake Titicaca. We stopped off with some folks on one of the many reed islands and got a demo on how they built the island, a chance to buy local crafted goods and took a boat trip out on one of their hand built reed boats. All in all a good and eye opening experience.

Next we were heading for Taquile island on the lake where we were to take lunch – local caught trout from the lake – mmmmm my favourite. (I managed to get a less attractive looking omlette!) The island was two hours away so most folks were catching up on the previous nights lost sleep. We had a local guide who was very knowledgeable about both the Uros and the Taquile folks.

The island itself was very picturesque and we literally walked up one side to the village, had a shop, some lunch and a beer then walked down the other side back to our boats. The people here all wore strict dress code with the ladies wearing different coloured hats to display their marital status and the men all wearing different coloured belts/cummerbunds for the same reason.

The trip back was a long one and as soon as the sun dropped it was cold instantly. It’s the altitude you know. We got back to Puno and were bussed back to our hotel and out for another planned dinner with entertainment this time. It was also at this point that we got “the bad news.” Strikes and road blocks are a common occurrence in Peru and it just so happened that the elections were looming and there was a major protest underway in Cusco. This meant we had to stay another night in Puno to then fly to Cusco the day after as both the roads and railways were blockaded.

The evening meal went well with both alpaca and guinea pig hitting the tables. I think the alpaca went down better as it had more taste and without being unkind we all know how big guinea pigs are!!! Not much there to chew on is there. The entertainers were good at song, dance and change of outfits. Later some filtered back to the hotel whilst others went out for an extended evening.

So today, we should be driving to Cusco but as said earlier we have more time here. Today Lobo showed us the local market which was a very colourful experience and then we had a walk up to Condor hill which is at 4100mtrs – good training we were told. Another evening meal and an early start the following day for our flight to Cusco.

All up and ready and bound for the airport. Then more bad news……our flight to Cusco had been cancelled due to bad weather in Cusco so Lobo on the phone for hours and we eventually were told we were going back to Lima to get a flight back to Cusco early tomorrow morning so we could start the Inca trail as our permits are only valid or a tomorrow start. Are you keeping up here?? You can imagine how we all felt. We didn’t think we were ever going to get to the trail or Cusco.

Well now our 11 flights has suddenly become 13 with 2 unexpected extras!!
We eventually got to Lima mid afternoon and checked into a splendid on airport hotel – some small compensation. The plan now was up at 0330hrs tomorrow for the 0530 flight to Cusco. In Cusco, shoot to the hotel; get breakfast and then sort out what goes on the trek and what stays in the hotel. Then board the bus to go to “kilometre 82” the Inca trail start point and get under way. No pressure then!!

The flight left Lima, it got to Cusco, we all flew round sorting and eating and before we knew it we were on the bus to kilometre 82. Why km 82 I hear you ask well, the Inca Trail start point is 82kms from Cusco, nothing more complicated than that. Still, it is a silly place name. Having said that all the other places along the rails towards the Inca citadel are also named after their distance from Cusco! Only in Peru……

That’s it for this segment so if you are still awake there will be an Inca trail instalment soon.

Pix from the top are - first two are of the Inca burial tombs, Bill and I in our rickshaw, the next four of the Uros islands and people, next three are on Tequile island, two from Puno market, the Cathedral in Puno square, the steps to Condor hill and the view from Condor hill.