Machu Picchu Bathed in Fog, Till the Sun Broke Through
March 20, 2015
By Karen and Duane Sherer Stoltzfus
Peru SST Co-Directors, 2014-2015
Early in the morning, the Spring 2015 Peru SST group poses in the traditional spot that overlooks the Machu Picchu ruins.
On the evening before we visited Machu Picchu, we talked about how we wanted to make the most of the chance to see this mountaintop retreat; few people have this opportunity, and for nearly all of those who do, it’s once in a lifetime. We scheduled a light breakfast for 5:30 a.m. to be ready to leave the hostel by 6.
We woke up to the sound of rain. We walked to the bus loading zone, in the rain. We waited to board our bus, in the rain. We made the climb to Machu Picchu, a series of steep switchbacks, in the rain.
When the students posed for the traditional group photo, on a terrace overlooking this masterpiece of Incan architecture, they were framed in fog and mist. It took an act of faith to believe that the Temple of the Sun, the Room of the Three Windows, the ceremonial baths and the vast residential and agricultural complexes were arrayed nearby.
Our guide, Amadeo, shows a picture of a helicopter that landed at Machu Picchu during an advertising shoot that caused damage to the site.
But what could we do? We took the photos, long faces and all, and proceeded with our tour. Amadeo, our guide, took the lead (and seemed a little downcast himself).
Machu Picchu, as the author of one of our textbooks noted, was like a Camp David for Incan royalty, a place to get away from the crowds and the stress; it was also a religious center where festival days and astronomical events were celebrated. The site includes about 200 buildings. In the 15th century, the site may have been a bustling retreat for 500 people at a time, with the Incan leader Pachacuti holding court.
For the first couple of hours, Amadeo provided a introductory tour. He explained that the American professor and adventurer Hiram Bingham made the remote site known to the outside world, in 1911, through his famed expeditions, but that we should qualify references to him as the scientific discoverer of Machu Picchu. Local people knew what was there, if not its implications.
Huayna Picchu climbers, Elizabeth, Maria, Ammon and Ike line up for a photo overlooking the Machu Picchu ruins.
We saw the major buildings as well as other items of interest, like a cable installed by Japanese geologists to measure the gradual sinking of sections of Machu Picchu.
Amadeo’s role as our guide ended here. We said our goodbyes at the entrance gate to Huayna Picchu, a peak that towers above the Machu Picchu complex. Huayna Picchu is restricted to 400 climbers each day, who face a relentlessly steep hike. We managed to get tickets for the full group by purchasing them in early January.
And this is when Machu Picchu showed us the personality we were hoping to see. By the time students reached the summit of Huayna Picchu, the sun was shining and beginning to burn away the mist and fog. There were great photos to be taken. We also agreed to meet later in the afternoon at the terrace where we had paused for group photos earlier in the morning, to try again.
Round two for the traditional group photo at Machu Picchu, later in the day, once the had fog lifted.
Otherwise students were on their own to explore the area. Many students hiked up to the Sun Gate, which offers a panoramic view of Machu Picchu, and some also took a shorter walk to the Incan Bridge, part of a mountain trail that heads west from Machu Picchu. (A twenty-foot gap was left in this section of the carved cliff edge,over a 1,900 feet drop, that could be bridged with two tree trunks, otherwise leaving the trail impassable to outsiders).
If they wished, and many did, they could stay at the retreat until around 5, catching the last bus down the mountain to Aguas Calientes. A few students chose to walk down instead, an hourlong hike.
First view of the ancient city of Machu Picchu.Climbing in rain gear, Courtney and Lea manage a smile.Appreciating Machu Picchu, on trust (the Funeral Rock in the fog).Early in the morning, the Spring 2015 Peru SST group poses in the traditional spot that overlooks the ancient city of Machu Picchu.Step close, rocks are visible (under the Guard House).Step back, they are lost. . . . . . or nearly so.Making our way through the ancient city of Machu Picchu with Amadeo.A Machu Picchu spider was busy during the night, in spite of the rain.Lea poses in a doorway as we walk through the ancient city.The rock quarry in the city of Machu Picchu.Beyond the rock outcropping, what could be an abyss.The introduction of llamas at Machu Picchu showed a deft marketing touch. Early morning, the sun still struggles to break through.A finely worked trapezoidal window.Fog and mist, in tandem.Amadeo in a teaching moment.Jo by a window (and partly out of the rain).The astronomical observatory of the Intihuatana, in the fog.Our guide, Amadeo, shows a picture of a helicopter that landed at Machu Picchu during an advertising shoot that caused damage to the site.A Japanese system for detecting a drop in land levels at Machu Picchu..Templo de las Tres Ventanas, or the Temple of the Three Windows, in the early morning fog.Tres portadas – or three dorway?A view of the Temple of the Three Windows from the other side, early in the morning.A short while later, signs of the lifting fog. Llamas now coming into view.Water fountain at Machu Picchu.Christian awaiting the climb to Huayna Picchu.Ammon, Courtney and Maria, before Huayna Picchu.Image of Huayna Picchu just before our climb.A short while later, sun is burning through the fog.Signs of clearing. . . as the sun breaks through.Maria on the way up Huayna Picchu.Elizabeth near the top of Huayna Picchu.Elizabeth at the top of Huayna Picchu.Micah on Huayna Picchu.Courtney and Jo on Huayna Picchu.A ledge on which to rest, at the top of Huayna Picchu.Huayna Picchu climbers: Elizabeth, Maria, Ammon and Ike.Maria and Lea, on Huayna Picchu.Ammon makes it to the top of Huayna Picchu.Elizabeth celebrates as she finishes her hike up Huayna Picchu.Maria and Lea emerge from their hike up Huayna Picchu.Christian looks pleased as he completes the 2-hour long Huayna Picchu hike.Ike poses outside the Huayna Picchu exit after his hike.Templo de las Tres Ventanas, or the Temple of the Three Windows, in the sun.Terraces at the edge of the mountain.View through an Incan window at Machu Picchu.The astronomical observatory of the Intihuatana, in the sun.Machu Picchu llamas enjoying some lunch; tourists enjoy llamas.A llama emerges from his (or her) climb up the hillside.These terraces are designed to withstand intense rains.Courtney celebrates her birthday, overlooking the city of Machu Picchu.The GC women pose for a photo at Machu Picchu.The GC women get silly at Machu Picchu.The GC men pose for a formal photo at Machu Picchu.Lea celebrates the arrival of sunshine at Machu Picchu.Round two for the traditional group photo at Machu Picchu, later in the day, once the had fog lifted.Round two for the traditional group photo at Machu Picchu, later in the day, once the had fog lifted.Elizabeth runs to get into the group photo before the camera goes off.Another group shot using Elizabeth’s tripod.A view of the Urubamba River from Machu Picchu along the trail to the Inca Bridge.The narrow trail to the Inca Bridge.A view of the Inca Bridge, built into the rocky mountainside near the city of Machu Picchu.Duane and others make their way down to the Inca Bridge.Professor Duane poses late afternoon before leaving Machu Picchu.Back in Aguas Calientes, in the main plaza, at the end of a satisfying day.Flowers along the river walk in Aguas Calientes as the sun sets.The city of Aguas Calientes near sundown.In Ollantaytambo the next morning, before returning to Cusco, we pose with our Las Portadas hosts, Leopoldo and Noemi.En route back to Cusco, we pass an Andean parade.
