Machu Picchu

Well, what is there to say about Machu Picchu? Surely everyone has been here and certainly everyone knows what the place looks like. Of course, people come here to take "that shot", so here you will find our version which is, of course, much better than everyone else's!

We thought it would be marginally more interesting to try and post something other than what you always get about this place, so here goes...

The only way to get to Machu Picchu (other than the well known four day Inca slog) is by train from Ollantaytambo, where we left you last time. The 43km journey takes about 90 mins, which seems like a long time until you see the route. The trains have a special glass roof since most of the visible scenery is above you. The valley is at about 2400m, but it is surrounded by peaks up to 5700m high with nigh on vertical cliff faces. Often the mountains are overhanging the railway. The valley is so narrow, that there is not even a dirt road running along it, only the train and the Rio Urubamba. It is very strange though to be on the train heading for Machu Picchu and to be going down constantly. We always thought the place was on top of the World. The end of the line is a place called Aguas Calientes, also known as Machu Picchu Pueblo. It is here that you get overcharged for everything except the food poisoning, which is free. Having made it to Aguas Calientes, the only sensible way up to the actual ruins is to take the bus (you can make the 400m ascent on foot but it crosses the zigzag bus route every 5 mins). It's a 25 min bus ride and it costs over £12!

Visitor numbers to Machu Picchu have been growing year on year. The target for next year is about 2 million. Peru is really milking this place and is, in our opinion, in danger of over doing it. Currently, when you buy a ticket, you can enter and leave the site when you wish. We got up at 4:30am and were on site by about 6am. Apparently, in future, visitors will only be allowed 90 mins on site and we understand they will have to have a guide. This will render the incredible amount of effort and expense of getting here simply not worth it. This will have a knock-on effect as, lets face it, most people only come to Peru to visit this one site.

The 25 min bus journey is up a very steep and winding gravel road. Each bus takes about 30 people. To get the estimated 6000 people a day on site will require 200 bus journeys which is about 1 every 3 mins! As it was, once we had arrived at the entrance, there was an enormous queue to get in as tickets and passports were checked.

We spent about 8 hours exploring the site and this was barely enough to see all there was to see and to take in some of the surrounding sites. We took a stroll out to the Inca drawbridge which was up a hill past the Inca cell-phone mast. Steve also hiked up to Intipunku (the Sun Gate) - Megan was too sensible, since it was 1pm and pretty hot. This is where the famous 4 day Inca trudge first crests the ridge and gives the joyful participants their first view of Machu Picchu.

Some other interesting information about the place. You are not allowed to bring any food or drink on site nor any backpack over 20L. You can not bring walking poles, so tough if you need them! There are no facilities on site. No toilets, no seats, nowhere to buy any food or drink. There is a massively over-priced restaurant and some pay to use toilets outside the gate. We can only assume this is in an attempt to get people out of the site as soon as possible. What you will find is a plethora of guards with whistles and 2-way radios ensuring people do not sit on any of the stones for a rest and that you only proceed in the marked direction and do not stop to look for too long.

In common with most others, we ignored the rules and took in rucksacks with food and drink. We have a feeling that these rules are likely to be enforced much more in the future when the time limits are introduced.

So, that's the darker side of Machu Picchu, but was it worth the effort? Absolutely! The site is stunning, mainly due to its location. Of course, the difficulty of getting here adds to the frisson when you first see the site. Megan did say the place was smaller than she expected, but that's what photos do. There is a massive "but" though. If the 90 mins time limit is introduced, the site would absolutely not be worth the time and expense of visiting. So, if you are one of the five people who still haven't been here and you really want to, then you need to get on with it!

Following are a few views of Machu Picchu that you may not have seen before and that we hope give a slightly different slant on the place and highlight that it really is about location. So, whilst it's not on top of the World, this site is certainly remote!

Some Pictures