Day 7: Camp Kamcancha
Good morning! The sun is shining. Roosters are crowing. Dogs are barking at the roosters. And other dogs are now barking at those dogs. But who cares about all that noise… WAKE UP!!! THE SUN IS SHINING!!! You can dry out that wet jacket in about five minutes in these rays!
Glorious blue skies
Today’s breakfast featured the usual spread of fruit, granola, and yogurt. There was also orange juice, toast, ham and cheese. Plus, we were each served a large pancake. Matt constructed a tasty pancake taco with butter and jam inside. Then the chef brought out a plate of extra pancakes, and we learned the Quechua word “yapa,” meaning “a little extra or bonus.” Qi proceeded to eat two full pancakes and gave Matt grief for only eating one. But hey, somebody is smart enough to save room for chocolates.
Additional educational nuggets from breakfast include the word “granola” translating directly to big wave (aka. “gran” and “ola”), while the wheat bran cereal is called Salvador de Trigo, which directly translates to “safe wheat.” In food recommendations to try later, Suspiro a la Limeña was emphasized. Explora has it on the menu and Luis said we can get one that is lucuma-flavored to kill two tasting birds with one stone.
Before leaving, all members of the expedition (guides, travelers, and camp staff) gathered for some official introductions and shared appreciations. The horse team was no longer planning to follow our route, so we bid farewell. The rest of us marched out of camp in an eastward direction, up a steep incline, then down a giant ravine, and back up the other side.
Laura is not here to whip up a grass bridge, so we traversed this ravine the old fashioned way
Continuing along the Inca Trail (we were still the only ones going backwards), we saw many groups of hikers and porters heading the other direction. On paper, Peru has regulations about the maximum weight that companies are allowed to make porters carry, but it’s obvious the enforcement of those regulations is questionable (compared to Tanzania’s protections for Kilimanjaro porters), given what some porters were hauling past us.
Oxbow back on track
There were no major towns along this portion of the trail, but that doesn’t stop entrepreneurial locals from setting up stands on the side of the road to sell travelers various goods and refreshments. The most popular refreshment is Chica – a fermented or purple corn-based beer/kombucha-style drink. Luis, Brai, and horse guide Alejandro purchased a round (only 3 soles total – about 85 cents) and immediately downed them. It was impressive.
Cheers to the sun!
Chica-powered hikers
The rest of the hike was an Andean flat with a slight rise in elevation toward the end. The wildlife enjoyed the weather as much as the humans, with a variety of hummingbirds zipping around the side of the path. The snow-capped peak of Mt. Veronica loomed beautifully large in our sights as we followed the Urubamba River to Kilometer 82, and the bridge across the river to the town of Piskacucho — which is the traditional starting/entry point of the Inca Trail.
Mt. Veronica showing off today
Bridge to Piskacucho, Kilometer 82
Para bailar Urubama!
We have an official train-pointing
One for the calendar
Hike to Piskacucho details
After officially “exiting” the Inca Trail entrance at Kilometer 82, we found Nan & Britt awaiting us in town with a Explora Van. Given the fact that we successfully hit our time splits on the morning hike, and our Plan A Camp 4 location was only a short drive away, we all opted to make a short field trip to nearby Ollantaytambo. But first, we had a quick box lunch of chips and quinoa with trout (instead of a fancier restaurant that probably would have taken at least two hours). Nan & Britt regaled us with the story of their mountain evacuation adventure from Day 5.
On the drive from Piskacucho to Ollantaytambo, Matt played bluetooth DJ and successfully timed Free Bird to end right exactly with our arrival in the main plaza. Chio took the lead and showed us around the town. We visited a Cancha — a common architectural arrangement featuring an enclosed residential area surrounded by four houses. These houses were about 600 years old and had a whole bunch of guinea pigs running around. We’re pretty sure this is the exact same Cancha we visited in 2022. That Singer sewing machine in the corner looked very familiar.
Expedition Ladies…
… and Gents
After strolling thru a few more back alleys, we made our way to the Ollaytatambo National Archeological Park entrance where Brai donned his official Peru archeological site tour guide credentials and guided us to the top with useful knowledge about Incan masonry, engineering, and beliefs. One of the most important structures on site is the Sun Temple. It was in the process of being built, but before it was finished, the Spanish invaded. The construction quickly turned from the Sun Temple to creating a military base on the same site.
“Let them come. There is still one Inca yet in Ollantaytambo who still draws breath.”
When Indiana Jones is teaching his class
Agricultural, astronomical and military structures
The other side of the door!
Once we were done exploring the top of the Ollantaytambo site, we climbed back down thru the crowd and checked out some fountains at the bottom before exiting. We found Chio and Luis holding a table for us at Incabacks Cafe — where we ordered a quick snack of amazing empanadas, a refreshing mango smoothie, and a colorful chicha icee.
One mango smootie please!
Back in the van, we headed to our Plan A Camp 4 campsite, called Kamcancha. When we arrived, we (aka. the camp staff) immediately started a pachamanca with potatoes, corn, pineapple, beef, chicken, and trout. The operation starts with a fire and some super-heated stones. When the stones are deemed hot enough, the rocks are carefully re-arranged and the food joins the party. With everything in place, the structure is covered with metal/tarp/dirt to cook inside the earth for about an hour.
Panchamanca Masters
What a coincidence! An hour is exactly how much time we need to get one last fabulous round of massages. When we were done, the team was just about ready to open the pachamarca and prepare dinner. Because there was so much food, and so many options, tonight the food was served buffet style. Everything turned out wonderfully and we all had our fill.
There was talk of another game of “Booyah!” but with a very early start planned for tomorrow (it’s gonna be good!!!), we decided to head to sleep instead.
PS. Animal antagonist of the night: A VERY vocal bull. 🐂
