The hard rain woke me up. Backpackers tune in on those things. I did a survey to see if anything was getting wet. We are only two in a four man tent but it looks like a bomb went off, our gear and clothes are everywhere. The tents are well-worn, but everything is fine. Alpaca has thoughtfully placed heavy plastic on the inside. We also learn that our comfy pads are a ‘plus up’ from Hobnail. For just a brief moment we felt kinda bad for the others and their thin pads. But it was just a brief moment, we’re old after all. Besides, these kids are literally half our age. I remember when we slept on a slab of rock in the winter, using a straw to breath through the blanket of snow covering us. But I digress…
Satisfied that everything is dry, I relax in the middle of the night. I begin to worry about the weather in the morning, it’s a pain to strike camp in the rain. But I easily push the thoughts aside and listen to the raindrops hammering the tent.
We both feel really good. And about that “baby alpaca” in the last post…it’s a hot water bottle for the sleeping bag. Perfect between the sore knees or tired feet! Such luxury!
We’re up and moving at 5am. Upon opening the tent, I see that while it had rained on us, the mountains caught a good snow, and I was looking at the moon over a snowy range. Sergio was standing just outside. “That’s a pretty nice view behind you,” I said. Looking in the opposite direction. He says, “this one is pretty good too.”
Wow! All the trivialities of life just melt away. It’s gonna be a good day.
We’re going down today, all the way to the river and a completely different climate. In fact, we’ll pass through several microclimates on the way down. And this may be our longest distance day. While we still have the option for horseback, Patricia is feeling great, and the lower exertion and altitude will help. Yet another big breakfast, plenty of coca tea, and we’re ready to go.
It warms up quickly! And this was the ONLY day of the 17 that I wore shorts. And that was a mistake. Small flies and mosquitoes made quick work of my lower legs and ankles. And of course the UV is very high up here. The locals always stay covered up and have wide-brimmed hats.
Google Earth is coming in handy at showing the trek. Our route today, shown in red, follows the valley down from Salkantay to Colcapampa, where we stopped for lunch. We parted ways with our horseman Gomersindo and he headed back in to the mountains.
Looking at Google Earth I realized that the photogrammetry was taken in June of 2020….five months after the landslide/flood from Salkantay Lagoon. While the bridges were rebuilt in time for our route (in red), they don’t exist in Google Earth (yet). You can see how the flow really scoured the river valley!
After lunch, we walked the dirt road all the way to the Hobbit Houses in Loreta. Hot showers, electricity, even a hot tub (water pumped up from the river and heater)! The walk was long but pleasant, and we were able to chat most of the day.
We drop off the road to the Hobbit Houses and they are delightful as are the gardens. It’s been another full day and it’s time to rest and recharge. You guessed it, we’ll be served tea early in the morning. We’ve got another big climb ahead of us.
But this time it will be Inca footpath, I’m excited!