Day One | Our day began early, 6:00am. After breakfast, we headed out for an hour long drive up into the mountains. Once at 15k feet, we got on our bikes and headed down the other side; a 34 mile bike ride down into the valley below. The air thickened, the temperature gradually rose, and the fog that clouded the landscape disappeared the further we descended. At the end of the road, we arrived at the hostel where we ate lunch. A couple hours spent white-water rafting, dinner, and sitting out on the large, open-air porch with the river rushing below concluded day one.
Day Two | Another early start and a quick pre-hike breakfast on the second day of our journey. It was a short drive to the trail head where we began a 14 mile hike into the upper jungles of Peru. About halfway though the hike, I wasn't feeling well, but I pretty much had no choice but to finish the hike. We finally arrived at the hot springs at the end of the trail, and soon after made our way to another hostel at a local village. While everyone else left to eat dinner, I happily stayed inside for the rest of the night and ate soup.
Day Three | The next morning, I felt somewhat better, and enjoyed another pre-hike meal complete with some pancakes! For the first part of our day, we went zip lining, which probably wasn't the best idea for me given my current condition. After, it was another brief drive to the trail head that led to Aguas Calientes, the town that lies at the base of the mountain where Machu Picchu is located. After lunch, we began the 10 mile hike. Not even halfway through, my sickness caught back up with me, which made the rest of the hike pretty brutal. I'm pretty upset that I got sick in such a beautiful place; I wish I could've been appreciating the scenery around me rather than trying to power through the hike. We finally arrived at Aguas Calientes, where I was able to get some meds at a local pharmacy to hopefully recover for Machu Picchu the next morning.
