Day 3 at Machu Picchu

Jack was feeling pretty fatigued from his efforts yesterday and was not keen on any more peak bagging.

He wanted to explore more of the site using his guidebook. I really wanted to see MP from three different vantage points and was keen to climb Machu Picchu Mountain. It was also the highest peak at 3082m. That was one of the reasons I didn't want to do the Temple of the Moon circuit yesterday

Jack's view of Machu Picchu Mountain

The Cameron brothers were also keen to do MP mountain, so the three of us booked on.

We caught the 8am bus up to the site. It was another fine and warm morning. The checkpoint entry gate is along the Sun Gate Track and the walk is restricted to 400 people per day. However, the full quota is not normally reached, most preferring to do the Huayna Picchu hike instead

We started at 8.45. The walk is mainly steps, which was not to my liking as the steps are usually very steep and not easy for my little legs to climb, even with the help of my walking poles.

I was also feeling the effects of the previous week's walking, but I tried to find a slow plodding rhythm. The track was also shaded in parts by forest which helped keep us cool on the ascent.

There were many good viewpoints to stop and look at the MP site, which was getting smaller in size, the higher we were climbing.

The boys could have probably got up the mountain in half the time, but they were very patient and waited for me as I climbed slowly but steadily. Thanks guys!

We reached the summit in just over one hour and the 360 degree views were fantastic. This peak was 500 metres higher than Huayna Picchu and the panorama was amazing! My three peaks challenge was done!

 

Breathtaking!

 We spent 20 min enjoying the views, snacked, took some photos and then descended.
After a 45 min descent, I left the brothers at the Sun Gate track junction. They were off up to Intipunku and I met Jack down at the MP site by the Inca fountains. We found a nice lunch spot on the lower terraces where we watched the clouds start rolling in over the mountains. Rain was on its way.

There were still several places I wanted to revisit with Jack, so we again looked around the Royal Palace and the Temple of the Sun and then with the weather looking very threatening, we headed off towards the exit.

We were almost tearful when we turned around to take one last look at the MP site and realised we had finally visited the number 1 place on our bucket list and that it was done and dusted. It had felt like all of my childhood Xmases had been rolled into one surreal experience!

There was a downpour of rain for about 2 hours, but then it cleared late afternoon. We played cards, had a very happy hour, or two and then had dinner at a very fancy restaurant, one of the best in town. French cuisine and one of the best meals that we have had all trip. Beautiful way to spend our last night at Machu Picchu.