I wake in the middle of the night and hear dogs howling in the distance. I am in the middle of a dream about hiking on the trails and so, as I roll to my side and close my eyes again, I will myself to change the script in dreamland and fall back asleep dreaming about a tropical beach vacation with Paul for the remainder of the night. Needless to say, I wake up feeling refreshed.

After getting to sleep in a bit and then packing up our things to leave Aguas Calientes, duffel bags lining the walkway of our hotel, I am excited for the day ahead.

We spend the morning touring Moray. It is one of the first days I find myself able to really soak up the information being shared by our guides. There is something about the stress on the body and mind at high altitude while climbing in the heat that just squashed my brains ability to take in all of the knowledge our guides have been sharing along the majority of our trek, but not today. After doing some of my own research, I learn that there are different theories on what Moray’s purpose was historically, but according to our guides, it was essentially a type of research lab for agriculture dating as far back as 1100 BC, maybe even further. As we walked, the guides shared that this area was used to test out growing various types of foods on its terraces to ultimately determine the best approach to produce the most food each and every harvest. When harvest time came, not only was the food grown at Moray shared with the surrounding villages and their people, so too was the knowledge gained from growing that harvest. In this way, Moray was like a central hub from which agricultural knowledge spread throughout the land, enabling all to maximize their crops and ultimately, to survive.

As we walk, I am taken aback at the sheer size of this area, a common theme on this entire journey in Peru. There are three different sections of Moray, a large circular section, a medium size section, and a smaller section, to make three sections total. All are made up of terraces built in concentric rings of circles. The site is known to have been created when a meteorite hit, as traces of hematite have been found in the soil over time. That fact alone blows my mind as I take in the rich history of Moray. Harry, our guide, shares with us that the hillsides surrounding each circular section absorbed the heat of the sun during the day and then, when night came, that heat radiated down into the lower valley onto the terraced sections, preventing the crops from freezing.

Pretty damn cool.

As usual, my pictures just aren’t capturing the massive and expansive landscape, going on as far as my eyes can see. While I am certainly taking a lot of pictures on this trek, I find myself snapping even more “mental photos”. I have learned from experience that my full presence during this type of impressionable journey will create memories and details in my mind that will likely never fade away. Instead, they will imprint in my mind forever, turning into stories I will surely share for years to come.

After visiting and exploring Moray, we take a short bus ride to have what was described on our itinerary as a picnic lunch. I am envisioning a few big blankets laid out on the ground for us and a nice boxed lunch, and so, I am over the moon excited when I spy a beautiful set up from our bus, mess tent included. As I’ve mentioned before, Embark Exploration Co. thinks of every last detail on these trips! This is our celebratory luncheon, our final lunch together in Peru to mark the completion of our seven day Salkantay Trek.

As we arrive, I notice a long table inside the tent so that we can all sit together. The decor is simple and absolutely beautiful with traditional Peruvian scarves laid out on top of green and white tablecloths. There are vases filled with local fresh flowers and our napkins are folded in a fancy star shape and placed perfectly atop our plates. There are actual wine glasses and bottles of Peruvian white wine too! Immediately I find myself thinking that I can’t wait to recreate this scene in my own way back home in New Hampshire with my friends and family. As I look around the table capturing this breathtaking beautiful and equally as bittersweet moment, everyone smiling and feeling good, it hits me. We are nearing the end of our time here in Peru.

Lunch is served and we once again consume another five star meal prepared by local Peruvians consisting of fresh breads, potatoes, vegetables, chicken, soup, and to top it all off, a mango pudding with perfectly placed edible flowers on top for dessert. After we finish our meal, Chris shares a tradition from other treks he has gone on where each person shares a key takeaway or moment from the trip with the group. I love this tradition and can tell the group does too as each of us nods our head agreeing to partake. As my turn nears, I can feel myself getting anxious and my emotions bubbling to the top. I feel a lump form in my throat and I know a few tears are about to make their appearance so appropriately, I break the ice by starting with the words, “Am I the only crier here?”. Everyone laughs for a moment which gives me just enough time to take one deep breath and pull myself together. I have so many thoughts running through my mind and so much I want to say, but I remember three applicable rules of Council that I learned during my recent Mindful Outdoor Leadership training program at Kripalu - Be brief. Be spontaneous. Speak from the heart. I do my best to honor these rules and ultimately, share my big three. I share that getting to be the lucky one who was dropped into a group of 21 amazing humans that I didn’t know at all just over one week ago has been a real gift, not to mention such a welcome surprise! I talk about how each of us came to this trek with our own strengths that we have leaned into along the way not only for our own benefit, but most importantly in an effort to support others where they may not be as strong. Lastly, I share how grateful I am for our guides, for their time, knowledge, and love, and for the growth that has no doubt resulted from this experience. Others share their gratitude for our phenomenal guides too and for their leadership and compassion on this journey. Chris talks about the unexpected gift of losing his cell phone forcing him to disconnect and learn the power of presence on this adventure in Peru. Brian shares how fortunate he feels to be here with his wife Karen, the two having just celebrated their wedding anniversary days before. You can hear a pin drop as each person speaks. I will be sure to carry this tradition with me and share it with others on future treks.

The contrast in emotion is palpable around our table as we shift gears from more serious to way less serious. Vicki and Chris remind us they have been keeping track of funny quotes we have said throughout the trek. Oh shit, I think to myself. What is going to get dug up now?!? As Vicki reads the quotes aloud to the group, I find myself nearly peeing my pants a few times recalling specific moments in time, the context, and reliving it all once again. It feels so freaking good to laugh this hard all together.

Our celebratory luncheon culminates with Chris presenting our four fearless guides with their tip from our group. We compensate each guide well, but as Chris shares our thanks before handing each one their respective envelope, I can’t help but think about how no amount of money could truly display the amount of gratitude and appreciation we all have for these guides. They have taken time away from home and from their families, shared their knowledge and love of Peru and its deep history with us, shown us compassion and love, kept us safe, made us laugh, and led us on trails deep, deep in the mountains that, had any one of us been alone, we never ever would have found. They are experts, professionals, amazingly awesome humans, and to me, angels walking on Earth.

As lunch comes to a close, we pack up our things, head to our our bus, and make our way to our final excursion of the day. We drive for a short while and arrive to the Salineras de Maras, the Maras Salt Mines. From above, this place looks like a gigantic grid of white and light brown sections below. I can’t wrap my brain around how this ends up being salt, but as we get closer and tour the mines, we learn a lot. We are shown the one single water source that feeds the entire mining area. It looks like a small stream of water, if even a stream, and I can’t fathom how THAT is responsible for all of THIS. We learn about the three different layers of salt that ultimately form, one brown, one pink, and one white. The brown is for animals and the pink and white are for human consumption. We learn that there are approximately 4,500 salt wells, each producing about 50 kilos of salt each harvest. That is A LOT of salt! And finally, we learn that the local families each own about four to five wells that they work to mine and harvest together each season. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought I could be so interested in salt, but this is some cool shit!

After tasting and purchasing a few different types of salt to take home, we head back to the bus and toward our final destination for the day, our original hotel in Cusco where it all began. I say a serious prayer that there will be no festivals, no parades, and no celebrations going on in the city center this evening because I really, really just need a good meal and a solid night of sleep before hitting the trails again.

As our bus pulls up and we exit to make the short walk to our hotel entrance, I see floats parked on the side of the street. Thankfully, my prayer has been answered. The celebrations have ended. Serenity now.

I grab a quick bite to eat in the hotel restaurant with Lori, Lisa, Karen, Brian, and Jen. Jen will depart first to head back home with an early pick up at 5:30 AM tomorrow morning. The thought of saying all of my goodbyes feels overwhelming to me and then I remember the word “tupananchiskama” and shift my brain to thinking “until next time”. I hug Jen and wish her safe travels home and do the same with Karen and Brian and some of the others that have arrived to the restaurant too. Then, I say goodnight to the rest of the group and head to my room. Tomorrow is my final climb and I am on a mission to get as much rest as I can.

As my head hits the pillow, I think about my return to the states that is just over one day away, I think about hugging my kids and Paul so tight, and I hope for another tropical beach vacation dream-filled night of sleep.

Goodnight world.