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Just Another Hike in Peru’s Sacred Valley

Posted on February 12, 2020 by Philip

Posted in Calca, Pisac, Sacred Valley 1 Comment

The weather forecast gave me hope so I decided to head out the door for the Sacred Valley this morning with the hope of getting in a few miles of hiking in Peru’s Sacred Valley along the Rio Urubamba from Calca to Pisac before any significant rain appeared.

I was not disappointed. In fact, today turned out to be a spectacular day with only a couple of brief periods of very light rain. The hike itself was a bit tougher than I expected because Google Maps once again mislead me into thinking it was just over 10 miles when in fact it was over 13!

Despite the long distance, it is generally quite flat hiking along the river so I wasn’t too concerned when I crossed over the bridge at Calca and headed east.

Fortunately, the entire hike is along along a dirt road. This time of year, though, that means the road is likely to be extremely muddy. Thanks to the recent heavy rains that have sent the river cresting over its banks in many places, it was necessary to slog through the mud in quite a few places.

To be honest, I am really tired tonight so I’m not going to do a lot of writing about the hike except that I’m glad I did it and, as always, say far more cool things than I expected.

(Be sure to click on each individual photo to see a larger version.)

This was the dominant scene all day — soaring mountains, a roaring river, and farmlands all across the valley.

Thank goodness for this sign. You never know when a basketball game is going to break out in the middle of nowhere.

The awesome waterfall was the biggest reason I wanted to make this hike. I saw it on Saturday from the road and knew I had to get some photos.

Across the river is the small village of Lamay. It’s known for its many restaurants that specialize in cuy (guinea pig), but I think its setting below the valley behind is beautiful.

Everywhere you look are the remains of ancient walls first built centuries ago and still in use today.

The road into Coya also leads to a stunning setting in the Andes.

Two more waterfalls coming down from the mountain tops flow into this ancient water channel still lined in many places by Inca stonework.

I wish I knew about the colonial history of this area. I was surprised when I came across this old home that likely was the headquarters for one of the large haciendas that controlled farming in the region.

Nebraska + mountains = the Sacred Valley.

You just never know what kind of traffic will fill the back roads up in the Andes!

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Hiking Back in Time at Kinsa Cocha

Posted on July 20, 2019 by Philip

Posted in Pisac, Ruins, Sacred Valley, Unique Places Leave a comment

The best part of exploring the Cusco region is visiting places that very few people take the time to see because almost know one outside locals know about them. Kinsa Cocha, a small lake 25 kilometers up into the mountains above Pisac in the Sacred Valley, is one of those places.

[ Note: Be sure to click on the individual photos to see a larger version. The scenery on this hike is some of the most spectacular anywhere in the region.]

Yesterday my friend, Thuy Mai, and I went up to Kinsa Cocha and had a great time hiking high in the Andean altiplano before walking back down along ancient Inca roads on the way back to Pisac.

Getting to Kinsa Cocha is pretty easy, though not so cheap as public transportation doesn’t normally go there. Once we got to Pisac on a colectivo we hopped on in Calle Puputi, we had to ask for a taxi up the valley into the mountains to the lake. (We ended up paying 70 soles for a taxi to take us there, but could have paid the driver 40-50 soles more to wait a few hours to take us back down.)

The taxi let us out at the lake where we started hiking the trail with the cold wind in our faces. Strong winds aren’t common so this was unexpected for me as I only had a long sleeve T-shrirt and a very light windbreaker! I know — it wasn’t very smart of me.

Kinsa Cocha itself is nice, but not worth the trip by itself. If you’re patient, however, the best is just around the corner!
Watch for animals along the way like the alpacas and llamas we saw early on our hike.

Kinsa Cocha is actually dammed up on the east end to make sure there is a steady water supply for Pisac far below. You can take trails around either side of the lake and you’ll likely see alpacas, llamas, and sheep along the trail. It’s not the prettiest alpine lake I’ve ever seen, but if you’re patient you are soon rewarded with incredible views.

The climb above Kinsa Cocha is very rocky with some slightly steep sections, but there are nice steps cut into the rocks most places and there is relatively little climbing involved the entire hike. That makes it a pretty easy hike for anyone willing to explore this remote area.

Once you leave the village behind, the trail leads you to breathtaking alpine views.

This was my second time there and I have never seen another person except for an occasional shepherd along the way. We didn’t even see any animals after the first 200 meters. I have a feeling it was because of the season as I saw a lot more when I was here last spring.

Off in the distance we saw dark clouds and the concern for rain was very real, but fortunately it was only cold and windy as we left civilization behind.

Once you pass over the high part of the climb above Kinsa Coach, you’ll find yourself steeping back in time as the only sound you’ll hear is the wind and the chirping of small highland birds. (We did see a pair of huge Andean geese — biggest I’ve ever seen — far below us on the edge of a second small lake, but they were too far away to photograph.)

As you leave Kinsa Cocha behind, you realize you are walking among the ruins of a very, very old Andean settlement that likely originally pre-dated even the Incas. None of the handful of remaining houses was occupied and likely they were only used as shelters by shepherds in case of bad weather needed to escape the severe storms that frequent the highlands.

The more I looked around, the more obvious that this was a small village that had been abandoned long ago. Stone walls surrounded us along with the foundations of a few stone buildings. The bleak landscape made me wonder about the life that people must have led here perhaps centuries ago long before the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century.

As the dark clouds moved closer and a few drops of water began to fall, Thuy wisely decided that we needed to head back down to the village lest we be caught in a storm without shelter.

Sure enough, as we were almost back to the village on the east side of the lake, a cold rain began to fall. Again, being much wiser than me, she spotted a man outside his home a little farther down the hill and said we should go see if he would allow us to shelter in his home until the rain passed.

We were thrilled that the man, Felix, actually had a small room with large table in a room connected to his home where he offered us some coca tea. As we relaxed sipping the hot tea with the sound of raindrops falling on the roof above, he soon returned with a nice bowl of fresh popcorn! After a couple of hours’ hiking at over 4000m (13,500′) in altitude, it was a pleasant and much appreciated surprise as we shared this wonderful snack with Felix.

Finally the rain seemed to almost come to a stop and we decided to start out hike to the highway about 8 km (5 miles) in the valley below. Of course, it didn’t take long before powerful winds started to blow and light rain began to fall once again, but it wasn’t anything we couldn’t manage. (Thank goodness the wind was at our backs!)

This first view of the rainbow literally stopped us in our tracks. I’ve never seen a rainbow this wide.
This was our last view as the rainbow arced across the valley before us.

As we walked along the dirt road, soon saw an incredible sight in the distance. Ahead of us was perhaps the most spectacular and longest lasting rainbow I have ever seen. We took lots of photos from several places along the road before it finally faded away.

The next hour found us walking along mostly ancient Inca roads cutting which are used by the local campesinos who normally walk up and down the mountains instead of taking the very rare cars that pass on the dusty road.

I loved this old road passing through a eucalptus grove. An old woman told me above this shortcfut down the mountain months ago.
I was surprised at how much grain was still waiting to be harvested this time.
I doubt the scenery looks much different now than it did hundreds of years ago.
The old wall alongside the road was indication that this was an Inca road.
We were able to keep the distance rain behind us most of the time.

We passed idyllic fields, stepped aside as old women led their family cow up the mountain, skirted an unfriendly horse who seemingly wanted to kick rather than let us pass on the narrow trail, and were even asked by one old woman to go around her cow who had taken over the trail ahead in search of grass to eat.

I guess local cows have the right-of-way over foreigners. Such is life in the Andes highlands.

As we both began to grow quite tired, a car approached from above and the driver stopped to ask if wanted a ride down the mountain for 5 soles each. He probably would have taken half that from a local person, but as we’d already hiked about 5 hours it was a bargain we couldn’t pass up.

His old car rattled its way down hill towards Pisac while he and his passenger in the front seat chatted away in Quechua, the language of the Incas that is still spoken by almost everyone in the region as a wonderful day’s trek came to an end.

If you ever have a spare day, Kinsa Cocha is one of the best hikes in the region. You’ll likely not see another soul and you get a chance to experience an other wordly view of a lost Andean village from another time long ago in the highlands.

And if you’re willing to hike down towards Pisac you’ll have the chance to see a bit of Andean life that has changed little in centuries and perhaps share a bit of it with friendly local people.

Thanks, Thuy, for a great hike!

Please feel free to leave a comment below. I love to hear what people think! If you like this, you can share this page with the links below or even subscribe so that you’ll be notified when I post again. (I don’t sell anything here, so you don’t have to worry about that.)

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A Day Exploring Pisac

Posted on June 11, 2019 by Philip

Posted in Pisac, Sacred Valley Leave a comment

Pisac is not one of my favorite places because it is far too “touristy” for my tastes. It seems as if the town itself is dominated by foreigners looking for New Age solutions to age old problems.

Still, the town itself and the impressive ruin complex that dominates the mountain above keeps drawing me back over and over for a variety of reasons.

My most recent visit was a couple of days ago when I wanted to combine a little picture taking with a hike up the mountain trail to the explore the ruins of Pisac.

Getting to Pisac is easy and cheap. Simply head over to Calle Puputi (about 10 minutes from the Plaza de Armas) and hop on any of the hordes of colectivos for the 40-minute ride. The cost if only 4 soles (weekday) or 5 soles (weekend).

You can also catch a taxi for a quicker ride for 1-2 soles more, but I strongly recommend the experience of riding in a colectivo full of Peruvians. (Note: they do not leave until they are full and they’ll likely pick up more people along the way!)

The colectivo will drop you off before the bridge crossing the Rio Urubamba (or Rio Vilcanota as it’s known up river). Cross the bridge and go straight ahead to reach the market of the lower entrance to the ruins.

Sunday is the big market day in the central plaza next to the church. People from all over the area come to town early in the morning to sell and incredible variety of fruits and vegetables of the highest quality. While the market itself is dominated by hundreds of booths aimed at tourists, there are always some cool bargains and unique items to found.

I chose to climb up the mountain from the town below as it provides fantastic views of the valley along the way and the chance to see parts of the ruins that would be missed by taking the easier taxi route up the back side of the mountain.

It’s a tough climb just to get to the entrance. There you show your Boleto Turistico ticket. (I have the advantage of being a resident so I just show my residency card, sign in, and enter for free.)

Seeing how far you have to climb is intimidating, but worth it!

There begins the climb up through a large agricultural sector until you get a split in the trail. The left path is easier though it takes a little longer, but I chose to go to the right up the steeper path up the mountainside. (The views of the Sacred Valley are worth it!)

My main goal for the day’s hike was to visit the Intihuatana sector — the most important religious area of all major Inca sites. Of course, like all but one site, the Intihuatana is located at nearly the highest point so a lot of climbing is involved to get there.

Needless to say, it was more than worth than effort as the views of the Intihuatana stone itself and the surrounding countryside were incredible. On my last visit, I didn’t even see the Intihuatana and only realized of it’s existence after reading about it.

The Intihuatana sector features some of the finest examples of Inca construction.

The stone itself is very impressive and it enclosed by a curved wall — very rare in Inca architecture — and accessed through a massive door which opens to a view of the river valley below. Most Intihuatana stones were destroyed by the Spanish as part of the attempt to extinguish the Inca religion, but I know of three that still exist.

The Intihuatana stone sits in a spectacular setting overlooking the Rio Urubamba valley.

No one knows the real purpose of the stones and even the name Intihuatana (loosely translated to “hitching post of the Sun”) was probably first coined by Hiram Bingham in the early 20th century. Their importance to the Incas, however is undeniable and they possibly played more than one role in the religious and cultural life of Inca civilization.

Every trip to every ruin site is a unique experience different from previous trips. I always notice new things and learn more as I build upon previous knowledge and experience combined with lots of research between trips!

Each time I am reminded how lucky I am to live in one of the world’s most wonderful places surrounded by both breathtaking beauty and sites of profound historical significance.

The qantu — the sacred flower of the Incas and the national flower of Peru.

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