Marampata to Maizel - Day 3: Trek Choquequirao to Machu
A big day ahead. At 6:00am we arise to a sunny morning with some residual
cloud in the valley below. At 7:30am we break camp and return along the
track towards Choquequirao. I feel revived, but still a bit tired after
yesterday's mammoth effort. It was an easier sleep on the grassy base rather
than the stone floor of yesterday's camp site.
It looks different in the morning mist and much easier in the cooler temperature. Just after the gate a staff member wants us to turn around and pay our dues. Jan had major arguments, one - because no-one was there at the supposed opening hour of 7:30am and it's now 8:00am and two - because we are going through to Yanama, not Choquequirao. In the end we simply moved past and ignored him. I puzzled at the location of this gate office being so early on the track, it must cause many such argument. At the turn-off to Yanama the habitat changes rapidly to a more jungle like environment. The track becomes muddy and the vegetation is thicker and in places arches over.
Apparently speckled bears and puma live here, but are rarely seen due to human traffic causing warranted fear in them, not only that it is just difficult to seen anything into the vegetation beyond a few metres. Flowers are abound and invisible birds are in song. Songs about jungles also move through my mind and voice.
As we ascended we saw the irrigation channel built to provide water to
Choquequirao and also had lookout views of the complex.
The trekking poles proved their usefulness. Steep muddy decline slides were
checked with them. I thought of Chris and Ben and the difficulties they will
have with their packs on in some of these sections.
Jungle existed for a relatively short distance of say 3km, as we moved over
the peak and into the valley it becomes temperate. The heat increases, insects
- butterflies in particular come out. The track is very steep and dusty as we
move closer to rio Blanco. We settle briefly 1/2 way down in a paddock,
because the animals needed a rest and we needed one. Only briefly, because the
other insects to present themselves were horse flies & mosquitoes. I bring
out my tropical strength Rid repellent, and was glad to have brought it with
me. The Peruvian stuff is not up to the job, as Jan finds out. Soon, Ucco and
Jan accept my offer to share my insect repellent.
The track pops up the occasional relic of civilizations past. Here is a meal
grinding basin just lying on the side of it. It's rest was assured as my
airline baggage allowance as only 20kg.
We tried but failed to find the route to a set of ruins called
Cota Coca. The
location details, I must admit were scant. I must admit though, archaeology is
only of fleeting interest to me. Here is ar reference to the explorer who
found them for the modern world :
American archaeologist Gary Ziegler and the British writer and explorer
Hugh Thomson. There were some terraces I spotted, built half way down the side of a steep
valley, covered in vegetation, who knows, they could be it.
Later, I found a map and coordinate reference here
https://mapcarta.com/W591061600. The coordinates are Latitude -13.36442° or 13° 21' 52" south, Longitude
-72.89672° or 72° 53' 48" west. Choquequirao is bottom centre and Yanama top right of the map.
Looking at a higher resolution using
Gaiagps.com
you can see why it is not easy to locate. The trail down is very steep and
trail location easy to miss given the density of the shrub ( and as I say these ruins were only of a cursory interest).
After a very steep descent we get to the river flowing with rapids. The day
and our bodies are hot, the water is cool being fed by a glacier: so what is
there to do but strip off and have a soak. Meantime Ucco prepares lunch for
us.
Lunch, a snooze. I muse as I was lying down that a series of wasp nests were
in a tree just above my head.
Our nap was all too short; it's time to move on. Tracks that go down also go up, Jan with a wry smile points out where we have to go with his walking stick ! It was a long hot ascent to recover the height loss of the valley descent.
After a total of 9.5 hours for the day we arrive at 5pm to our campsite at Maizel.
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