Globalista

Peru has many wonderful places and sites but for travellers interested in the spectacular, there is little to match the amazing feeling of arriving at the Sun Gate and gazing down onto the historic Inca ruins of Machu Picchu. This wonder of the world is a must on any trip to Peru, but if you can manage heights (the trek starts at c. 4000 metres) and your heart lungs and legs can carry you, make a supreme effort - which it is for anyone over the age of 50 - and get off the train at Kilometre 104 (for those not eager or fit enough, stay on the Hiram Bingham train to the end of the line. This journey, which departs from either Cusco or from along the Urumbamba in the Sacred Valley meanders through “swiss style” ravines and rivers as it snakes its way up the mountain.)

You can pre-book a guide through your travel agent or as I did, confirm a personal guide whilst in Cusco. Cesar joined me on the train and told me he was carrying oxygen, just in case. I had been instructed to carry little other than water and a stick; to wear light clothing and a take a rain jacket. I was also carrying my packed lunch. (I mention each of these items because at one point you will want to throw all of them away, as your heart and lungs struggle with the thin air.)

It was around 9.30am as we got off the train and started across the “flat” bridge and my first thought was that this was going to be easy. My wife, who remained on the train and had seen the sheer vertical ascent I was about to attempt, must have thought ‘he is never going to make it’. The trek takes approx 7 hours and includes regular rest stops and one pit stop for lunch. In April, Cesar told me, there would be little shade; it was hot, and after the first hour I looked down towards the valley and fantasized that I might ask Cesar if we could go back down; I was not sure that I could make it.

I was relieved when we made our first stop at a small bench wedged into the very narrow path that snakes up through the precipitous terrain. This was the original path that the Incas had carved out. As you ascend the air becomes thinner (in all you climb circa 3,000 ft) and at some places the path is almost vertical. At one point Cesar pointed ahead to some magnificent terraces. I told him that they looked wonderful; when he replied that we would soon be standing on them, my heart sank. They were much higher up and it was then that he told me we were climbing to the top.

Just as I thought that I was done for, the heavens opened and it started to rain: the temperature dropped 10 degrees and I was saved. From the terraces we climbed through waterfalls, crossed bridges and gazed down and across at the vast jungle and mountains of this beautiful and isolated place. By 3pm I knew that our goal was within reach and we actually quickened our step to make the final assault up to the Sun Gate. We reached it an hour later, and as I passed through its portals and gazed down to Machu Picchu, my exhaustion was replaced by a feeling of exhilaration and achievement unlike I had ever felt before.

It takes another 40 odd minutes to descend to the ruins, and after being reunited with my wife who was waiting for me at the bottom of the steps, we made our way to the Sanctuary Lodge. This is the only place where you can stay within the Heritage site; it is a small Orient Express hotel and you have to book it way in advance. If you do not get accommodation, you have to stay in the valley in Aguas Calientes from which you have to take a 30 minute bus ride to reach the ruins; believe me, you want to stay at the Sanctuary. Firstly, you do not want to have to get into a car or bus to get to a place where you can put your feet up and have a drink and secondly, if you stay at the Sanctuary you can visit the site late at night. This is amazing if you are lucky enough to have a full moon, and you can also visit the ruins at dawn before the multitude of tourists arrive from the valley.

Machu Picchu Sanctuary Lodge (+51 84 984 816 953; www.machupicchu.orient-express.com)