Salkantay Trek: Day 4

9/24/09 – 7:30am. Campsite 3. Our tent is sweltering.

I kick off my sleeping bag and ¨What the $”!%?!¨ My legs and feet are covered in painful red bites. I wake up Mike and his legs are possibly worse than mine. After letting out every curse word in the book we hop out of the tent and discover everyone else has the same problem. We have no idea if it was a spider or a mosquito or some other insect, but whatever it was it went to town on us. For some strange reason the bites only cover our legs though.

We quit complaining and walk through ¨town.¨

Moral is low and we don´t have the same enthusiasm and as the bright eyed versions of ourselves three days prior. We really just want to get to Machu Picchu. We walk on a dirt road and quickly grow bored of the repetitive scenery. The highlight of the day is passing a waterfall…

We stop at a train station for lunch. One of the girls woke up with a bad bite on her ankle that swelled up and started oozing puss. Yea, real nice. We ask if there is a doctor in the restaurant but have to settle for a dentist. He eagerly pulls out a travel medical kit and, like the bench warmer who finally gets to play in the big game, he cleans out the wound and wraps it in a fresh bandage.

Unfortunately at this point we have to carry our big rucksacks the rest of the way. Some choose to take a train – for a price of course.  Others try and unload some of their weight to those taking the train. Mike and I say, ¨Screw it,¨ and throw everything on our backs.

A sign tells us we will die if we walk along the tracks but, again, our guide assures us everything is OK.

The train tracks are hell. You either have to walk on loose rocks and risk rolling an ankle or concentrate on syncing your gait to the wooden planks. I choose the latter and go into a zen like trance, focusing carefully on hitting each plank. I start to think that perhaps it was a bad idea to drink the night before.

As we near the town we realize something very important is missing - our guide. Washington finally staggers up to us after an hour wait. He is so hung over he can barely see and is nearly passing out. After chugging some water he starts to come back to life and we continue on. Entering town we see beautiful hotels and again I urn for nice accommodations but instead keep trudging along to our budget hostel.

Mike and I are ecstatic to sleep in actual beds and take a shower. There isn´t hot water. Who cares? The shower head hangs from a cord without a holder and the water barely trickles out. So what? After four days of perpetual sweating and sleeping on hard ground, the hostel is heaven.

At dinner we learn we will be waking up at 2 am tomorrow to ensure we get passes to Wina Picchu, the top tip of Machu Picchu, a privilege only granted to the first 500 people.

Up Next: Machu Pichu

Independence Day in New Paltz

Rather than deal with Turnpike traffic, obnoxious crowds and boisterous BBQs, I spent my 4th of July weekend in New Paltz, NY with a few buddies. Just a little over an hour from my house we found scenic views, peaceful trails, thundering waterfalls, delicious wine and free whiskey. New Paltz is a little college town with an interesting bohemian twist. Nestled in the town’s center you will find organic coffee shops, micro breweries, live music and loitering hippies all within a few short blocks.

Johnny watching the falls (inspiration for Whitecliff’s Awosting White)

Located in the Hudson River Valley, New Paltz provides easy access to over ten wineries. We first stopped at Adair Vineyards, which failed to impress with their “limited” selection of 4 wines. Thankfully our second stop more than made up for the disappointment. We were instantly charmed by the serene scenery of Whitecliff Winery’s surrounding vineyard . I don’t know if it was the calming classical music or the cool breeze flowing through the bar or the 11 wines we tasted, but I loved the place. I just kept thinking, “Now this is a winery.” The two bartenders leading our tasting were excellent as well. One of them even stayed past her shift to share her New Paltz knowledge. I always enjoy talking with the locals and learning about what’s off the beaten path. Apparently a whiskey distillery had just opened that would be giving out free samples the next day. So we headed over to Tuthilltown Spirits the following afternoon and sure enough there was free whiskey!

Don’t worry, New Paltz isn’t just for alcoholics seeking booze soaked getaways. We also went hiking, rock climbing and enjoyed our hotel’s hot tub. I even got some pretty decent pictures during the trip. Johnny asked me to take his picture while suspended from a ledge with a cigarette in his mouth…it didn’t go so well.

But he still made it to the top.

Doing a little victory dance. He deserves it. After all, this is what we climbed up:

We were only there for a few days, but had a great time and didn’t spend too much money. Access to the hiking trail was $10, which I think is ridiculous. But besides that the wine tastings were cheap and the whiskey was free. Viva USA! I mean…Happy 4th of July!