Machu Picchu, Inca Trail, Challenge Completed!

Voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel steeped in mystery and myth. Thought to have been built on the request of the incumbent Emperor Pachacuti as a royal estate, Machu Picchu is an engineering marvel. Built without mortar, the stones are cut so precisely that they fit perfectly together. Sitting atop two fault lines, during earthquakes, the stones knock against each other and then fall back into place.

The rise and fall of the Inca Empire lasted a mere 130 years. Following the Spanish invasion of the Inca Empire in the early 16th century, Machu Picchu was abandoned, and the Spanish were unlikely ever to have seen it. Left to the elements, the citadel had grown over with vegetation. It was forgotten over the centuries until 1911, when Hiram Bingham III of Yale University visited the site as part of an expedition in search of another city. Returning the following year, Bingham spent 4 months with local labour clearing the vegetation, and the next 3 years excavating and studying the discovered artefacts. 

From here, the final descent into Aguas Calientes is on a hair-raising 9km zig-zag mountain road called Hiram Bingham Hwy. Barely wide enough to fit two cars and lacking guardrails, it is an unsealed road and a rough ride that is not for the faint of heart nor for those who are prone to vertigo.

Once you arrive in Aguas Calientes, book yourself into a thermal bath to rest and recover your weary body. Take a walk through the local craft market before settling in for dinner. Try the Peruvian national drink, the Pisco Sour, whilst indulging in the spicy and bold flavours of Peruvian cuisine.

Originally, I would have liked to complete this challenge in one day - 4 miles on the rowing machine, 16 miles of indoor cycling, and 6 miles of run/walking.  However, I chose to end the 2025 year with this challenge and didn't have the time to prepare the running part.  I divided it up into two days.  I must not have entered the two dates correctly.