At some point mid way into the night, I wake and think, did my laundry ever get dropped back off?

Just before falling fast asleep last night, I had called the front desk and requested that they simply leave my clean laundry on the porch whenever it was done and I would get it in the morning, but now, here I was paranoid it had gotten lost somewhere between the hotel and the local person who had taken the job. I jumped out of bed, grabbed a soft warm blanket made of Alpaca, wrapped myself tightly in it, and made my way to the front door. I opened it and peered out onto the porch but saw nothing and so, just as quickly, having lost all paranoia, worry, and care about the laundry, I turned around and went right back to sleep. I managed to sleep through the rest of the night in my glorious, giant, super comfy bed all cozied up under layers and layers of soft, warm blankets.

My alarm goes off at 5:15 AM and when I peer out on the porch again, my laundry has magically appeared, everything fresh and clean and folded so neatly.  Considering my eyes were basically closed when I checked last night, I am convinced it has been there the entire time. If I were at home, I would likely take for granted these clean clothes, but here, after having spent five days on the trek camping and eating dirt sandwiches with every step I’ve taken, this is a MAJOR treat.  My gratitude level is on steroids as I get dressed, feeling clean and so ready for the day ahead.

I dress the blisters that have been forming on both of my heels with some moleskin and cover each one with a waterproof bandaid. I figure that will do and hell, it’s surely better than the time I wrapped duct tape around both heels, raw with massive blisters, while hiking the backcountry at Yosemite. I then proceed to scoop out a wad of Vaseline and slap it on both feet, in between all of my toes and on the bottoms of all of my toes, to hopefully avoid additional blisters there.  Yes, this is the glorious side of self care that nobody tells you about when hiking countless miles over countless days out on the trails. Vaseline baths for your feet that initially feel gooey, wet, and slimy, but then, rather quickly after putting your socks on, you forget all about because well, you’ve gotta take care of your feet!

After another fantastic breakfast and two small cups of strong and hot black coffee, I head out to the lobby to leave my overnight duffel in the sea of black duffels for the night ahead in Aguas Calientes. We will hike all day and end up in this new and different location at the end of it all where we will stay for just one night before returning to this hotel tomorrow evening. 

Todays adventure includes a short bus ride, a 90 minute train ride, an eight mile trek on the Inca Trail, 2,000’ of elevation gain, and finally, our arrival to the Inti Punku Sun Gate where we will see Machu Picchu for the very first time. Today is the day I think we have all been waiting for.

To say our guides are phenomenal would be an understatement! Keeping 22 humans organized and on time is one thing, but they have also managed to keep track of 22 overnight duffel bags, 22 boxed lunches, 22 train tickets, and 22 additional tickets allowing us to enter Machu Picchu. They are like a well oiled machine, communicating every detail to our group, keeping time for us, each one responsible for different things and always working together as a team. We are so lucky to be guided by Nep, Harry, Uri, and Elena on this journey. 

After arriving at the train station, Harry leads us all like cattle through the entrance area and over to the boarding area. We wait in line as other trains board and depart and I wonder where all the people are going, who they will see, where they will end up. Then, it is our turn. We are given the green light to board, find our seats, and settle in for the ride ahead, a quiet and relaxing way to start the day. I close my eyes briefly for a quick snooze and then awake just in time to get a coffee from the beverage cart passing by and have some great conversation with three of my teammates sitting together with me. I watch the landscape as we pass and realize we are entering the cloud forest once again. I am excited for yet another change in scenery bringing us back to a landscape that I loved so much upon our first day of trekking.

The train stops at kilometer 104 and as we exit, I can immediately feel the difference in the air. We are covered by trees in this cloud forest, almost jungle-like, and the Urubamba River roars just to our left giving the air a cool and damp effect. As we begin, we immediately cross the river on a long, hanging bridge. It rocks and sways with each step and I feel like a kid again as I play and smile and wiggle by body following its rhythm. We step off of the bridge and back onto the rocky dirt trail and quickly arrive at our first check point, the main gate. I apply my first layer of deet and suntan lotion of the day in preparation for the sun, heat, and mosquitoes that lie ahead.  The gate agent checks our passports and tickets one by one and then, we are back on the move. We will climb for approximately three strenuous hours before arriving at Winay Wayna, a type of mini Machu Picchu. Then, after lunch, we will continue on for another near two hours to the Sun Gate.

Harry leads the way, slow and steady at first. It feels like the perfect pace as we quickly discover there will be little cover on the trail today. We snake along the side of the mountain, dirt kicking up as usual with every step. From the start, we climb, up and up, conquering steep step after steep step after steep step until we break and then begin again. It is hot as fuck. With each moment that passes the temperature rises.  After the initial realization that my body is air hungry and drenched in sweat though, magic seems to occur as my body stabilizes and adjusts to the heat, to the climb, to the conditions. I find yourself in go mode, right foot and then the left on repeat. Eventually, I know there will be a break or we will reach the destination, but until one of those things happen, I find a way to just keep stepping.

As I push off with one leg and step up with the other, I find myself thinking that my ass and legs better be rock hard after all of this work! If only…

After two or three brief breaks and about half way into the first portion of our trek, we reach an area of the trail where the steps begin to switchback and get even steeper. I didn’t think this was even possible!  The name of the game on this steep, step filled, atrociously hot day, and most days on this particular trail I would imagine, becomes find your own pace and roll with it.  As always, trust yourself. Listen to your body.  Most importantly, don’t chase anyone and don’t race anyone unless you really want to suck wind and end up completely and totally out of gas entirely too soon. I find my pace, albeit very slow and steady, but slow and steady wins in these conditions. My legs are burning. I am grinding.  This is a real embrace the suck experience for me and so, embrace the suck I do.

Left pole up, right foot up, breathe.  One step complete.  

Right pole up, left foot up, breathe. One more step completed.  

And so on for, well, I have no idea how many steps. I lost track, but I do know it went on for the next 25-30 minutes as we climbed.

It is amazing what the mind and body are capable of.  I could hear fellow trekkers around me saying things like “this sucks” and “I can’t” and “holy shit”. Now, don’t get me wrong, these were all things I didn’t disagree with, but upon hearing their thoughts out loud I thought to myself, this is prime time to shift the narrative and send our brains the message that we ARE doing this. And so, I personally went in that direction. 

I AM doing this. 

I AM strong.

I AM moving forward.  

This IS happening.  

I AM one step closer to the top. 

And guess what?  I kept my head down and I kept my pace and I kept moving forward and it became at least 1% more bearable than had I shit talked myself the entire time. I find myself using this approach several times today as I embrace the absolute suck of it.

Shortly after we complete our massive grind and burn session on the trail, there is some relief as we briefly descend, find a bit of shady cover, and then arrive at a beautiful waterfall. In an effort to cool off, some of our team dunk their heads under the falls or into the water below, others wet their hats, and I choose to soak my buff in the refreshingly ice cold water before putting it back around my neck.  

Oh. My. God. The relief from that ice cold water on my neck in the blistering heat is indescribable. BEST THING TODAY!

After we take some time to play and rest near the water, we continue onward and upward to Winay Wayna, built steep into the hillside overlooking the Urubamba river below which we had crossed at the start of our day. The terraces blow my mind as I think about the men that built them by hand so many eons ago. The site is gorgeous, lush and deep green in color.

By the time we arrive to our lunch spot, I am famished both mentally and physically after all of the work and pushing that I have done for the past three hours in this heat and so I do what any normal human would do. I wolf down my chicken salad sandwich at warp speed, so fast in fact that my throat burns a little from trying to swallowing it all at once.  This serves as my reminder to slow the fuck down, chew, breathe, and actually taste and enjoy the rest of my lunch which I gladly do.  

Before we get moving again, myself and a few of the ladies head off to use the bathrooms nearby.  As we get closer to the bathrooms, their wretched scent hits my nose. I inhale, my reflexes kick in, and I begin to gag. For a few moments I think I may actually vomit, but then I mentally pull up my big girl panties and physically pull up my buff to cover my nose and mouth and somehow manage to use the toilet.  By toilet, I mean a hole in the ground that you have to squat down over and perfectly aim your pee into so you don’t spray it all over your boots. If you do spray it all over your boots, you really don’t care much because all you know during this experience is your legs are shaking in said squat position because you have just climbed up thousands of steps at a massive incline in the heat and there is no way you are reaching out to touch the walls for balance. But hey, peeing is a sign of hydration and that is a very good thing so, I choose to take the good with the bad.  

I digress…

Following the bathroom fiasco, we hike for less than 30 minutes from our lunch spot and arrive at our second checkpoint of the day where our guides present our tickets and we are cleared to continue on. Before we do so, Nep tells us that all of our guides will now drop to the back of our group. We are free to move forward at our own pace.  We can expect the terrain to be “undulating Peruvian hills”, which we have learned could mean anything from serious ups and downs to small rolling hills, and also, we will arrive to the Sun Gate within about 60-90 more minutes.  We will know we are there, Nep shares, because the sign will read “Inti Punku”.  I make a mental note of this because, despite hoping I will know I am there without seeing that sign, maybe I won’t. I’ve never been there before and God forbid I walk one extra step or get lost today.

Once we are given the green light to proceed on, I notice a feeling in my gut. The mixed emotion of our guides leaving us to proceed on our own for the very first time and of realizing that THIS IS IT. I feel the fire inside me shift from a slow burn to a rager, flames burning higher and hotter. I am excited and curious to see what lies ahead and so, I do what I know to do. I put one pole and then one foot followed by my other pole then my other foot out in front of me, and one step at a time I begin to move forward.

Shortly into the final leg, I notice my teammate James just behind me and his core group of friends just in front of me and so, I motion him to pass me by so that they can all experience this together.  I came into this adventure solo and for a moment, think I might like to arrive to the Sun Gate solo too, but shortly after James passes, I catch the group and we take a short break together. As I stand there for what was probably less than three minutes in time, I have the realization that I too am part of this group now. We have all come this far together. These amazing humans and I will forever be connected through this experience we have shared. They have all welcomed me. I have loved hanging with each of them. We have laughed a ton, sweat even more, and made memories that will last a lifetime.  And so, for once in my life, right there on the trail, I choose to quickly and gladly accept that I do not have to do things in this life all on my own or all alone.  I do not have to arrive at the Sun Gate solo.  Instead, as the group begins to move forward again, I gladly dive right into their support and camaraderie and move forward side by side with them.

Just before we reach the final set of steep stone steps that bring us up to the Sun Gate, I feel the emotion of it all beginning to hit me. I slow just long enough to let it begin to creep in and I am glad I do. This is a moment to celebrate the excitement of it all, to feel proud of how far we have come not just today, but over the past six full days on the trail. It is the moment to soak it all in. I want to be sure I soak it ALL right in, into my memory, into my DNA, into my soul, and so, I do. As I step, one foot up then the other, I begin to pick up the pace just a little as the excitement and anticipation of this moment come bubbling up and overflow from my insides out. I take my final step up, the sun casting shadows on the stone beneath my feet, and turn to the left where right before my eyes, for the very first time in my life, my eyes catch sight of Machu Picchu.

I am breathing hard.  I am covered in dirt. I am soaked in sweat. But, I did it. I made it. Here I am.

We did it. We made it. Here we are.

I catch my breath and smile so big it hurts. As I stop and stand and allow myself to take everything in, I am, as expected, overwhelmed with emotion.  I am in awe and wonder and near disbelief as I scan the sites below me, this “lost city of the Incas”. Quickly though, I realize it’s all very real as I feel tears dripping down my face. I sit down, let my body rest, and let my mind begin to process not only what we have all accomplished thus far, but most importantly, how big this moment in time really is for us all.

We sit at the Sun Gate for I have no idea how long. I am far off in my own world letting this whole experience imprint on me so that I never forget it as long as I live. I think about the world, history, ancient civilizations, the people that were here before me and will come after me, and all the things that had to occur in this world for me to be sitting where I am sitting right here and now.  I think about this epic adventure, this group I joined on a whim, and how grateful I am to be a part of it all. I think about how nothing happens by coincidence, there are no accidents, and everything is meant to be as it is. I think about connection, culture, the Universe, and most importantly, I think about my family back at home, Jack, Anna, and Paul. I think about my parents and my brothers and my sister. I think about my friends, family, and loved ones. I think about those that have passed on and I think about how close I am sure my entire spiritual team has been to me along this entire journey that is Peru.  Hello heart rocks.

Just before we begin our descent down into Machu Picchu where we will briefly explore before catching our bus to the hotel, Harry reads us in Spanish an excerpt from a poem in “The Heights of Macchu Picchu” by the Chilean poet, Pablo Neruda. Chris follows with the English translation. This feels to me like the perfect way to close our time here at the Sun Gate.

Along our way down, Nep stops to share with us the history of an offering site, a large rock where it is customary to make an offering of three Coca leaves. The leaves represent the three worlds, Hanan Pacha (the upper world), Kay Pacha (the living world), and Ukhu Pacha (the lower world). Additionally, they represent the Andean Trilogy made up of the condor, the puma, and the snake. The leaves are held together with both hands, signaling respect, and they are held in the shape of three mountains. The person making the offering always faces three surrounding mountains, one at a time, sending their wish off to the Apus, the powerful spirits of the sacred mountains. They do this by saying the name of the mountain aloud and then, making a wish and blowing in the direction of the Apu. The three coca leaves are then placed on the rock as an offering and a way of saying thank you to the Apus and Pachamama. As someone that has been giving thanks and making a daily offering to the mountains and Pachamama, I find myself fully engaged as Nep speaks and completely fascinated by this practice.

Before catching our bus to the hotel in nearby Aguas Calientes for the night, we spend a short time exploring Machu Picchu, knowing we will return tomorrow to see the bulk of the site. Today I got my first glimpse of the optional hike for tomorrow that about half of us are signed up for. I don’t think I understood what I was actually signing up for months ago when I got the Email from Embark, but here I am. One more challenge before I rest. Dear God, what was I thinking?

Aguas Calientes proves to be my favorite small town that we will visit on this trip. There is so much life in the air, restaurants and shops at every turn, and just amazing energy all around. I do some shopping and then, as we sit outdoors at a small restaurant for dinner, we watch two children push their small toy cars up the hilly street made of stone. Their happiness is palpable. Moments later, I am consumed by their laughter and faces filled with pure joy as they fly by, whizzing down the bumpy hill on their cars having the time of their lives!

As my head hits the pillow, my legs are tired and my feet are sore but my heart? My heart is full. It has been a huge day and tomorrow, there are more adventures to be had so for now, off to dream land I go.