Hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu (our biggest challenge yet)

So far so good. We have just done our first incline and my heart was pumping, but if you go really slow and steady then it's manageable. So that's what I'm going to be doing, even if I'm at the back. Caboose. The caboose. Choo choo. Luckily, they've been taking a ton of breaks, thank God. And at this one we get to see this awesome archeological site that I already forgot the name of. But it's really cool. Apparently the second largest after Machu Picchu. And it's a launch! Watch us, you trudges. We did it! Oh, actually, sorry, this is the wrong camp. We've got to go two more miles. First night, slept super, super well. I'm sure because of our hike yesterday, I just passed out immediately at like 9 o'clock and we got woken up at 3.30. We're going to pack our stuff up now and start hiking by 6, obviously after breakfast. I'm pretty nervous for today because it's the Dead Woman's Pass and all uphill all day. But yesterday went better than expected, so I think I can do it as long as we just do slow and steady. That's the key. So we got this. But yeah, here I am, half asleep, a little nervous but excited. But if you are going to wake me up at 4.30 in the morning, opening my tent and handing me a cup of tea is a pretty good way to do it. 10 minutes into the hike, we've already got a new environment and a waterfall. It's pretty cool. Pretty things means breaks. Thank goodness I need breaks like every 20 steps. Look at the adventurers adventuring. No mountain can hold them back. Up, up, up, up, up the stairs we go. We're not even a quarter of the way up. Halfway there, I'm proud of us. And he said it's about just as steep so we can do this. And that calls for celebratory cookies. Another break. We're almost there, to the top. 30 minutes. Almost there. To Dead Woman's Pass. Let's pass. Made it to Dead Woman's Pass. Woohoo! Everyone said it would be super duper hard and it was. So I'm not going to sugar coat that. But I thought I'd be crawling on my hands and knees. And you know, I think it went better than I thought it would. So if I can do it, you can do it. Just take it slow, take lots of breaks. And we're here and the views are incredible. So totally worth it. And now we get to go downhill for lunch. We're here. Hard to stand. Just a little wobbly. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. All I need is your hand in mine. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Getting closer. Even from afar. Good morning. Inca Trail, day three. We made it through day two. Oh my gosh, dead woman's pass, the infamous killer. It was challenging, not gonna lie, but I have to say at no point did I feel like I couldn't do it. It was like slow and steady. If I needed to take a break I did and I was super tired at the end of the day. You can probably see I'm still tired but slept like a baby last night. So day three, it's supposed to be a little easier but still like six hours of hiking or something like that. So yeah, it'll be great and we're in the most beautiful campsite ever. Surrounded by mountains and the sunrise. I don't know if you can see it here but excited, feeling good. Guys, that's the peak of the Salcantay Mountain. It's so beautiful. We made it to the last mountain pass and it's gonna be all downhill from here or some up and down I guess but much easier than yesterday. So I'm looking forward to that and the views have been incredible. So most of the hiking today is down stairs which we thought would be easier than going up but now I'm not sure because my knees doth protest. This is getting difficult. Somebody rolled me down this hill. Spooky in Kincaid. Maybe there's treasure. We're gonna find out. Oh my gosh. Wow, thank you so much. Last dinner. 3.40 or something in the morning. Peter enjoying his juice. All the Machu Picchus will be taken. Holy ----. Yeah. We made it to Machu Picchu. Check it out. stairs and I sweat a ton, it was totally worth it. Hard work deserves a cold beer. Congratulations because now we can say that the class of 2012 is 100% complete. You want a beer and you never want more. Can't tell if I smell or if it's just wet plant air. Wet plant air. The key is brakes. In the words of immortal DJ Khaled, the key is to make it. He knows how to ruin every video. We made it to Machu Picchu. Or Pikachu. Not after we do it. We made it to Machu Picchu. No, I can't do it.