South America Bossa Nova, the Amazon rain forest, Machu-Pichu, Incas, Grazie Jiu-Jitsu, salsa dancing, exotic women... |
|
06-20-2007, 10:24 AM
|
#1
|
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: New York City
Posts: 49
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Ticket to Peru is finally booked
Finally after 4 hours of yelling at airplane ticket websites over the phone since they charged me 5 times for my ticket, i got my ticket to Peru.
im leaving july 10th and got around 35 days to have some fun. Since i didnt have the forsight all the inca trail hikes to machu picchu are booked. oh well, i still got the train but i do want to do some mountain and amazon trekking. Does anyone have any reccomendations on guides or trails to take???
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 11:29 AM
|
#2
|
Rabidly Xenophilic
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Austin Texas, but originally from Ann Arbor!
Posts: 1,223
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
I just got back from Peru 2 weeks ago...I went to Machu Picchu through Santa Teresa, which doesn't involve a ton of hiking but has a fun local flavor to it (and its really cheap if you're on a budget). You use a local bus to Santa Maria, then find a collectivo to take to you Santa Teresa (the whole time you're on this really narrow dirt road switchbacking along the mountains with a 500m droppoff about a meter away). From there you hitchhike or arrange a ride to a hydroelectric plant on the Urubamba river, and then walk for a few hours down the train tracks to Aguas Caliente. It takes about 12 hours and costs 20-30 soles as opposed to the train which is about 200 soles. And its a lot more fun!
That route doesn't involve a lot of hiking though. There are 3 or 4 alternative trails to hike to machu picchu, and you can actually do some hikes within the ruins once you're there. Wayan Picchu is a mountain that overlooks Machu Picchu and is a really tough climb but totally worth it. They only let 400 people per day do it though so go in the morning. On the same trail there is a turnoff for a longer hike to the temple of the moon, which I guess is a cave on the other side of that peak but we didn't do that part (its hard to see everything in 1 day!).
Elsewhere in Peru...there's a lot of good hiking in the Colca Canyon near Arequipa. If you go to Lake Titicaca you can cross over into Copacabana Bolivia and take a boat to the Isle Del Sol, where the Incas believed the sun was born. The boat drops you off on one end of the island and there's a nice hike along a ridge for about 3 hours to the other end where you get picked up. You pass some ruins on the way as well, nothing spectacular though.
But the best hiking is supposedly around Huaraz, though I didn't get there personally...
If I ever get my pictures into flickr I'll post them to give you some ideas.
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 11:48 AM
|
#3
|
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: New York City
Posts: 49
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Thanks for the info
that Santa Teresa route sounds cool. Were able to drop your pak off somewhere before hand or did u need to carry it the whole way??
any other reccomendations on hostels or cities??
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 12:13 PM
|
#4
|
Minister of Offense
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: San Fran Disco
Posts: 6,528
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Awesome... ¡Buen viaje!
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 01:30 PM
|
#5
|
always trippin'
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: The Island of Rhode
Posts: 2,063
Thanks: 0
Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post
|
I don't have any good advice to give you, but I just wanted to wish you good luck and I hope you have an awesome adventure!
__________________
Check out my band!
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 01:57 PM
|
#6
|
Rabidly Xenophilic
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Austin Texas, but originally from Ann Arbor!
Posts: 1,223
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
This all starts in Cusco, so what we did was just have our hostel store our backpacks and we took enough stuff for 2-3 days in a day pack...basically just a change of clothes, water, camera, toothbrush, etc. You probably could take your whole pack if you wanted to, the only actual hiking is on the train tracks and thats fairly flat for only 2 hours. Then in Aguas Caliente you'll need to get a hostel for the night and they'll probably hold your stuff during the day while you go up to machu picchu.
One thing I forgot to mention is it'll be nearly dark when you get to Santa Teresa, so you can either spend the night there or hike the tracks at night using flashlights. We went at night because the first busses up to the ruins are at 5:30 am and you want to avoid the mid day crowds of tourists that take the trains up. I got lucky, there was a full moon and we didn't even need flashlights to see the tracks after dark
The Loki hostels in Lima and Cusco are pretty cool if you like westerner backpacker type places. Really good hot water and lots of fun. They're about $8 a night for a dorm and they usually fill up so its best to call ahead...
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 02:10 PM
|
#7
|
TPunk Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: NEW ZEALAND
Posts: 789
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
ohhh can you say jealous?
Have an awesome time and don't forgot to take heaps of pics to show us TPunks when ya get back! :D
__________________
"Twenty years from now you will be more dissapointed in the things you didn't do
than by the ones you did do....
Explore, Dream, Discover." Mark Twain
---------------------------------------------------------------
My World Travelogue - Bloggity Blog
Updated April 2010!
--------------------------------------------------
Soon
NZ or OZ
Saving for a year - 18 months for a decent trip
Soonest
Trying my hand at short walks/tramps in NZ
NZ or OZ Travel
Passport Stamps; Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore, Vietnam
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 02:14 PM
|
#8
|
Rabidly Xenophilic
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Austin Texas, but originally from Ann Arbor!
Posts: 1,223
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
here's a good description of this whole thing from a blogger by the way. It has details I probably forgot, like you should get an early bus (preferable 8AM) to santa maria to make sure you can get to Santa Teresa without a big delay:
http://travelvice.com/archive/2006/1...shoestring.php
|
|
|
06-20-2007, 07:00 PM
|
#9
|
No one regrets traveling
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Tampa, FL
Posts: 2,056
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Wow good info Maracle! Machu Picchu is one of those places I have to see before I die.
WWM: Comment?
--Joey
__________________
Countries visited: USA, Netherlands, Norway, France, Switzerland, Germany, Spain (and Gibraltar), Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Austria, Ireland, UK, Japan, Canada , Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland, Andorra, Croatia, Montenegro
Next up: Mongolia, China
"I sought trains; I found passengers" - Paul Theroux
Help Travelpunk's continued existence with a small donation
|
|
|
06-21-2007, 11:50 AM
|
#10
|
You want fries with that?
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Maryland... yeah, i know it sucks.
Posts: 2,230
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by joe7f
Wow good info Maracle! Machu Picchu is one of those places I have to see before I die.
WWM: Comment?
--Joey
|
Yeah, really. Mike... when are we doing this again? :D
__________________
Misadventures of a Crazed Kitchen Pirate
"Steve is the prototypical cool American male. Y'know, I'm talking about Steve McGarrett, alright? Steve Austin, Steve McQueen. Y'know, he's the guy on his horse, the guy alone. He has his own code of honor, his own code of ethics, his own rules of living, man. He never, ever tries to impress the women but he always gets the girl."
|
|
|
06-21-2007, 02:27 PM
|
#11
|
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: New York City
Posts: 49
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Thanks for that website maracle. It makes the adventure to Machu Piccu seem like a spy mission
"From Santa Teresa you've got to get to the hydroelectric power plant, several kilometers upstream, but first you've got to cross the Rio Urubamba."
AWESOME!!!
did you get to the AMazon at all? I really wanna catch a pihrana but all these guides i came across are way too expensive, and I duno about doing it myself cuz although itll be really cool, i dont think i wanna end up on an "I shouldn't be Alive" episode:eek:
|
|
|
06-24-2007, 03:16 AM
|
#12
|
TPunk Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Columbus, Ohio USA
Posts: 3,390
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Joker
Yeah, really. Mike... when are we doing this again? :D
|
Dude...read your PMs! Seriously, I have the first two weeks of December off on vacation. You available for making "THE" trip...?
And Joe...? Rub it in, while you can...
worldwidemike
__________________
Check out my travel web page at:
Worldwidemike.com
"Life is not measured in the number of breaths we take, but by the places that take our breath away..."
|
|
|
06-24-2007, 08:40 AM
|
#13
|
Rabidly Xenophilic
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Austin Texas, but originally from Ann Arbor!
Posts: 1,223
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Actually they built a bridge across the river now so you can just drive over, rather than take the deadly steel platform thing....too bad, it sounded like the most fun part!
I didn't make it to the amazon, I actually had thought about spending most of my time in the jungle starting near Iquitos. But I don't really speak any spanish so I was a bit worried that it would be hard to get by if I got out in the middle of no where...next time though!
|
|
|
06-24-2007, 09:29 AM
|
#14
|
No one regrets traveling
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Tampa, FL
Posts: 2,056
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by worldwidemike
And Joe...? Rub it in, while you can...
|
Haha, well glad it is finally coming around for you. I really need to find a way to get there the last week of November
Btw, Mike, are you going to Toronto?
--Joey
__________________
Countries visited: USA, Netherlands, Norway, France, Switzerland, Germany, Spain (and Gibraltar), Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Austria, Ireland, UK, Japan, Canada , Portugal, Czech Republic, Poland, Andorra, Croatia, Montenegro
Next up: Mongolia, China
"I sought trains; I found passengers" - Paul Theroux
Help Travelpunk's continued existence with a small donation
|
|
|
06-25-2007, 02:35 AM
|
#15
|
TPunk Emeritus
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Columbus, Ohio USA
Posts: 3,390
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
|
I'd like to, but there are only four of us qualified to do my job here. So, that leaves only three folks I could drop my Sunday and Monday to (I already have Friday and Saturday off)...one of which who I'm not on speaking terms with. So, if A or B can't do it, I've got no way of getting it off work.
Hopefully, I'll know before the deadline date...there's a whole new crop of Tpunkers I haven't met up there....
worldwidemike
__________________
Check out my travel web page at:
Worldwidemike.com
"Life is not measured in the number of breaths we take, but by the places that take our breath away..."
|
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
All times are GMT -7. The time now is 09:07 PM.
|