Peru // The Inca Trail: Part Two
/I was certain that Day Two would break us; it's the most dreaded day of the hike. Not only is it the longest and hardest day, but it's the only day that doesn't include any stops at Inca sites. None. That means there are no real reasons to stop other than your standard fifteen second pit stops every 100 steps or so.
The start of day two brought us through some lush vegetation -- some parts looked like a scene out Lost. If I hadn't been so focused on my breathing I'm sure I would have been worried that the smoke monster was out to get me.
Once you break out of the trees you really sense the grandeur of the Andes. I know it's cliche to say but pictures really do not do it justice.
Looking back at Mount Veronica covered in clouds.
The five-hour hike to the summit, for me, was really not that terrible. We all popped in our headphones and listened to our designated survival playlists – one of us even had energy to Zumba up the side of the mountain while listening to the YellowJackets’ rendition of Wavin’ Flag which was only partially out of character (the extra moving part was weird, not the college acapella -- like I said previously, the coca leaves really got to her).
When I get older I will be stronger they'll call me 'Freedom' just like a wavin' flag
Finally we got a glimpse of the famous "Dead Woman's Pass." It's known by this name because of the outline of a naked woman laying on her back. Can you spot her? Here's a tip: she's much smaller than you think!
Where are you, Dead Woman?
Here she is! Understandably dead.
There were no words for the sense of accomplishment/relief that we all felt when we made it to the top of the summit. I mean, there were no words even before we made it because the air is paper thin so breathing becomes somewhat of a project.
Celebratory picture in front of the Wariqanusqa sign at the top of Dead Woman's Pass.
This is how I really felt inside. Is it nap time yet?
The thing no one really prepares you for is how cold it suddenly becomes when you get to the top. One side of the mountain is pleasant and lovely and the other is freezing cold with whipping winds. Unfortunately for us the side of the mountain with the painful winds was the direction we were headed towards.
The downhill portion of Day Two turned out to be the most challenging of all the days, in my opinion. Not only was I tired from hiking up hill for you know five hours, but the altitude was catching up to me; my head was pounding and all I wanted to do was take a nap. The real cherry on the top was the light rain that made all of the stone steps a slippery death trap. You know that sound your shoe makes when you are about to slip? Yeah, image that every thirty seconds – each time making my stomach spin. I really wasn’t in the mood to fall down these uneven death stones and break my neck. Given my machine like attitude – the wet steps were forcing me to go slow which was infuriating.
Our view for the next four hours.
What comes up, must come down. Including us.. even though we would have preferred an escalator. Where's my emergency donkey when you need him.
When we finally made it to camp it was around 2:30 pm -- just in time for lunch. After lunch I got a bowl of freezing cold water from the stream we were camping next to and proceeded to attempt washing my hair. It wasn't pretty but it really made me feel much better.