Most Inspirational Moment
The first sight of Machu Picchu mountain from our campsite on the third night of the trail, with sunbeams shining through cloud onto the ruins of Phuyupatamarca below. Utterly beautiful; we sat on a rock (with feet in diy spa bags!) watching the light fade.
Watching an eagle for about 20 minutes, swooping and landing right beside us in the mist at the top of Dead Woman's Pass.
And corny, I know, but the first sight of Machu Picchu is hard to beat.
Thoughts on Group Leader
Bruce was amazing - 70% Inca and so proud (rightly) and knowledgeable of his heritage - he absolutely brought to life the stories, the people, the culture and sophisticated building skills of the Inca, along with being equally knowledgeable about the other sites, landscapes, flora and fauna that we saw along the way. Way exceeded anything I would expect of a guide; he was also patient, kind, and a fun travelling companion. He made great recommendations for dinners, even finding a restaurant where we could make our own Pisco sours, and picked up on our personal interests so he could add to them with extras and observations.
Advice for Potential Travellers
It gets much colder once the sun goes down than I had realised and pretty much most days had four seasons - from hot sun to hail! I was able to borrow some extra thermal layers but would recommend at least one long-sleeved merino top for early evening/night time - even with a 3/4 season sleeping bag you needed all your clothes on at night (plus hat and gloves!).
Also we all underestimated the effects of altitude and most of us were short of breath at the very least. While the trail is marked as a 'moderate' we all felt - for the second day's climb to Dead Woman's Pass - that it was tougher than this - not because there are a lot (a lot!) of steps but because climbing them at altitude was so much harder than it would be at sea level.