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Video Trip Report
Trip Report
My wife and I were on vacation in Bolivia and Peru. On the Peru portion of the vacation, we headed to Machu Picchu to visit the ruins for a day (incredible) and then got a highly sought after permit to climb Huayna Picchu.
Huayna Picchu is the peak that is the background for 90% of the photos of Machu Picchu. It is a steep peak, covered in vegetation. From the distance, it seems unclimbable. However, there is a steep trail built by the Incans 800 years ago that provides access to the top of the peak.
In addition to the trail, once you near the top, there are several buildings that were used for security lookouts and to house Incan priests. The views from the top are stunning, with huge drops, seemingly straight down to the river valleys below. You also get a bird's eye view of Machu Picchu from the top.
The hike itself is pretty quick, you gain almost 1000 feet in under a mile. The views and drop-offs make for a fun hike. The top was crowded, but we found the highest rock and hungout, admiring the views on the surrounding mountains and even Machu Picchu.
On the way down, the trail led us through a narrow cave and through some really neat ruins! This turned out to be a great trip and the bonus is you get to walk through Machu Picchu a second time!
Getting There
Getting to Machu Picchu is quite the task! We drove from Cusco in a tour van, visiting the Pisac and Ollantaytambo ruins in route.
From Ollantaytambo, we boarded a train to Aguas Calientes. That train took approximately 2 hours. In Aguas Calientes you take a 20 minute bus ride to the Machu Picchu entrance.
Hiking Directions
The hike starts out at the Machu Picchu entrance and crosses Machu Picchu to the base of Huayna Picchu. Like I mentioned before, a permit is required. You will show this permit to get into Machu Picchu. You will then show it again to get onto the trail to Huayna Picchu.
After the entrance booth, simply follow the STEEP trail, following sighs for Montana Huayna Picchu.
While steep, I felt the trail was reasonable and where it was really narrow and/or steep, there were handrails there to use.
