Choquequirao Trek

We will pick you up from your hotel at 5:30am to begin our private mini-van excursion to the town of Cachora for 3 hours. During our trip, we will have a small stop in Curahuasi to have breakfast in a local restaurant. Afterwards, we will continue our trip for one more hour until our destination. We will then reach our meeting point with our horsemen and their mules. They will carry our equipment to the camp of our excursion. The town of Capulioc is found at the foothills of a big mountain called Padreyoc.

The backside has an incredible view point with a spectacular view of its mountains. From this viewpoint, we will begin our rest toward the inside of the canyon until our campsite in the Chiquiska forest (1930ms.n.m). As we go lower, the temperature increases. The campsite includes bathrooms and showers with cold water.

Weather: hot, sunny
Distance: Approximately 16km
Trek time: Approximately 4-5 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

This day will begin with an early trek (6:30am), we will descend for 30 minutes until the Playa Rosalinda (Rosalinda beach) (1500m.s.n.m). This place is the bottom of the canyon where the temperature is very hot during the day. From here we will cross the Rosalinda bridge to begin our ascent towards Marampata (2,850m). Here we will have a spectacular view of the canyon while enjoying our lunch.

It's common to observe condors flying here. After lunch and a short nap, we will continue toward our campsite in Choquequirao (3,033m). The landscape changes along del camino: the vegetation is full of trees, bromeliads, and ferns. We will spend the second night here. This campsite includes bathrooms and showers with cold water.

Weather: Hot. Cold at night.

Distance: Approximately 13km
Trek time: Approximately 6 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

At sunrise the first rays of sunshine hit Choquequirao (3,033m). The atmosphere is very cool inside the archeological center. You will have a ticket to a guided visit to the best sites of the most significance, like the temples, terraces, storage places, and the new excavations. After visiting the inside of the park, we will continue on toward the Choquequirao pass (3,500m) surrounded by native trees, flowers, and orchids.  Once we at the mountain pass, we will observe gigantic mountains and the Rio Blanco (White river). From up above, we will begin our descent toward our camp to have lunch at the bottom of the canyon beside Rio Blanco (1,000m). After, we will ascend toward the other extreme along a path surrounded by vegetation in the hot climate zone until our campsite in Maizal (3,000m). This place has an incredible view of the mountains. We will spend the third night here.  
Weather: hot, windy, cold at night.  
Distance: Approximately 18km
Trek time: Approximately 6-7 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

On this day after breakfast, we will continue our hike on a trail surrounded by vegetation and flowers. Along the trail, you can see the remains of mines that were once exploited. As we keep on ascending upwards, the weather becomes a bit colder and we will find ourselves in the remains of the Incan trail. This trail will lead us to the San Juan pass (4,200m). From this beautiful place, you can see a mountain range called "La Cordillera del Vilcabamba" that lies at more than 5,300 meters. You can also see glaciers and many surrounding mountains. After some photos and a rest at the San Juan pass, we will continue on to our campsite in the town of Yanama (3,500m). Along the trail, you can see many stones of different colors, thanks to the number of minerals that we have in this area (silver, gold). The town of Yanama is a little below our campsite. We will spend the night at the foothills of the Pumacillo mountain, preparing ourselves for the low temperatures during the night.

Weather: hot, cold, and humid at night 

Distance: Approximately 17km
Trek time: Approximately 5-6 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

After our breakfast we will begin our trek to the highest point of our trip. Along the way, we will see some impressive landscapes, native birds, trees, and native bushes from this ecological level. Due to your distance from the cities and the tranquility of the area, it is likely that you will be able to see condors that inhabit these areas once we arrive at the highest point, called the Yanama pass (4,680m).

We will have the pleasure of seeing the snow-capped peaks of Salkantay (6,400m), Pintuyo (5,460m), spectacular mountains and the depth of the Totora valley (3,250m). We will have lunch near the town of Torora. Afterwards, we will continue descending to collpapampa for 2 hours more where we will spend the night.

Weather: Cold  & Hot
Distance: Approximately 19km
Trek time: Approximately 7-8 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

The day after, we will begin our descent after having breakfast in the middle of a canyon surrounded by vegetation (the outskirts of the jungle). In this valley, the temperature rises as the hours pass. This valley is inhabited by bromeliads, orchids, fruit trees, waterfalls, insects, birds, butterflies, and more.

Along the way, we will find small houses where people can buy drinks, ice creams, and fruit like the granadilla (native fruit from the area) and oranges. Our campsite will be in a town called La Playa (2,010m). This is a very nice place with a hot climate.

Weather: hot, sunny
Distance: Approximately 15km
Trek time: Approximately 4-5 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

This day we will go into the Lucmabamba valley to begin going upwards via the Inca Trail surrounded by coffee plantations, fruit trees, and orchids. The weather is very cool in the morning and gets hot later in the day, bringing about more mosquitos. From the top part, we will see the Willcamayu and Santa Theresa valleys. A few meters down, we will end up at the archaeological park called Llactapata (2,650m).

We will visit the archaeological complex with the help of our guide as well as see the backside of Machu Picchu and the surrounding mountains. Later we will descend through the valley surrounded by fruit trees to Hidroelectrica. We will keep walking along the railway tracks to the town of Machu Picchu for 2 hours (Aguas Calientes). In Aguas Calientes, we will have a soft bed in a hostel and a dinner in a restaurant. After the dinner, you can visit the town of Aguas Calientes.   

Weather: hot, sunny
Distance: Approximately 9km
Trek time: Approximately 5-6 hours
Food: Breakfast, snacks, lunch, and dinner.

We'll take the first morning bus to Machupicchu, which allows us to arrive before the first hordes of tourist coming from Cusco by train. We'll spend a full day on a guided tour of the Sanctuary of Machupicchu, and if time allows we can walk to the Inti Punku, the Sun gate. In the afternoon, we'll descend by bus to Aguas Calientes, then return to Cusco by train. We'll arrive in Cusco in the evening, and transfer you to your hotel of choice.

Sunrise over Machu Picchu: The ruins are at their most magical at dawn, as the sun slowly creeps up behind the mountains the veil of mist lifts to reveal the ancient Inca city in all its glory. Only when the mist has lifted can you begin to grasp the sheer size of the Sanctuary Machu Picchu.

Note: campsites may change at your guide's discretion.

INCLUDED:

• Pick up at your Hotel
• Private transport from Cusco to Cachora
• Professional Guides Trekking Experts
• Professional Cook
• Camping Equipment: 
  • Cooking and dining supplies (chairs, tables, utencils etc)
  • A large 2 person tent
  • A 5 cm foam matress for comfort
• Horses and an expert horse guide: Our horses will take 9 kilos of personal items per person, your sleeping bags and matress
• Meals: 
  
  • 7  Breakfasts / Novo Andino style with natural juice
  • 7 Lunches / Novo Andino style
  • 6 Dinners / Novo Andino style
  • An afternoon snack of coffee, tea, chocolate and cookies, etc.
  • Coca tea in the morning when you wake up
  • Boiled water to fill your water bottles from the second day until arrival at Aguas Calientes
• Tickets to enter Machu Picchu
• Tickets to enter Choquequirao
• A hotel in Aguas Calientes with breakfast
• A two hour prefessional guided tour of Machu Picchu
• Expedition train from Aguas calientes to Ollantaytambo
• Transportation from Ollantaytambo Station to your Cusco Hotel / hostel

NOT INCLUDED:

• Entrance to Wayna Picchu (+20 US$)
• Bus tickets from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
• Lunch and dinner las day and dinner 7 day in Aguas Calientes
• Drinking water (partially)
• Food in Aguas Calientes
• Alcoholic expenses