Tales from the Loonybin

Peru Day 6: Inca Trail Day 3: Runcuracay and Phuyupatmarka–This entry was written on May 14, 2006

Yesterday, we left camp for the second pass. We met up with a bunch of people from other groups along the way, including some from the Bay Area and a couple from Buckhead. What a small world! The first part of the day was the hardest–climbing to the second pass, up a thousand feet. When we reached the top, we made an offering to the mountains in what might have been traditional. It’s hard to say, since so much of the culture was wiped out by the Spanish colonialists.

From the second pass, we descended 1800 feet to our lunch site, where the porters already had everything prepared for our arrival. Lunch was quick and uneventful, after which we embarked on a climb of 800 feet, back up to 12000 feet, to the third pass, which was also our campsite for the night. Along the way, we passed through a cloud forest, an incredible collection of plants that thrive on the cool air and humidity of the clouds. Fortunately for us, it was clear as we hiked, so we could see some incredible flora. By the time we made it to camp, we were rewarded with the beautiful sights we had just seen and a great view over the whole valley below.