We entered the dining tent to find several of our party sitting glummly at the table. I asked out loud "what should we do with our packs?", but nobody answered. I then asked our friend Marv the Brit specifically, and he replied "I don't know." It was then we noticed that none of the guides were present. "Oh well", we said, and set our packs down in the mud for now and set down to a very uninspiring breakfast of hours-old pancakes with no butter or syrup. Seems like the porters had other things on their minds that morning than breakfast, such as the thought of packing up 15 soaking wet tents in pouring rain and getting us all on the trail by 5am.
As more and more people showed up under the mess tent, it continued to get more and more crowded, with everyone hunched over and dodging around the sides of the tent to try and fit it. Finally, Ozzie showed up (I'm sure there were a million details that morning that he had to iron out before we seperated from the porters) and told us that we could either wait in the tent for another 30 minutes, or go get in the queue at the checkpoint that opened at 5:30 just down the trail where they would approve you to head on to Machu Picchu. We were torn, but more of us wanted to get out of the tent, so we assumed our position in line and awaited in the rain for the opening of the final section of the trail.
Finally, we showed our tickets and set off for Inti Punku ("the Sun Gate"), the entrance to Machu Picchu, where the sweeping views were supposedly the reason for our being awoke at 4:00 a.m. The hike was not too rough, by the standards of the previous 3 days at least, although it continued to rain on us the entire time.
After several hours flew by, we climbed the steep steps up to the Sun Gate, where we would finally be treated to magnificent vistas of Machu Picchu after 32 miles and countless steps...or not.
The entire valley below us was covered in fog and mist, and we couldn't see more than 20-40 feet ahead of us. There were several groups hanging around the Sun Gate waiting for a glimpse, but it didn't seem imminent. So much for the Sun Gate and the views of the sunrise through the ruins. What would the Incas do at this point of their pilgrimage?
Seeing our resolve falter, Ozzie told everyone "not to worry, the best views still lie ahead, let's keep going, gang."At least the trail was all downhill from here, and we made our way down to the guardhouse where Ozzie led us to a bluff where the best views reportedly were to be had.
We arrived to be greeted by even more mist. Our spirits were even more dampened at this point, but Ozzie, always positive, started leading us in our now familiar chant of "MAC-CHU PIC-CHU! MAC-CHU PI-CHU!" while other groups eyed us warily.We waited for a couple of minutes, though, and all of a sudden, "Wait, what is that?" Carrie cried. We saw a brief flash of stonework appear before us. Within 5 minutes time, the city slowly revealed itself to us, piece by piece, until the entire mammoth struture lay before us. 
It was breathtaking, and the experiance was only magified by the manner in which in became apparent to us. Looking around our group, we noticed that everyone's frowns had been turned upside down, as we were all now beaming from ear to ear. Comments like "It was all worth it", and "Man, I'm so glad I came" were quickly replacing all the grumbling on the rainy morning, which now seemed like a distant memory. Other group photo was taken, of course.
After we had snapped all of our trophy photos, Ozzie lead us down into the city proper for a 2 hour tour of the ruins. We don't want to go into too much detail regarding the city for several reasons; namely (A) we had to bust our humps for the right to be here, and (B) we feel the city deserves to retain some of its mystery, or else there would be less incentive for the audience of the blog to one day make the trip themselves (something we highly encourage).
It was breathtaking, and the experiance was only magified by the manner in which in became apparent to us. Looking around our group, we noticed that everyone's frowns had been turned upside down, as we were all now beaming from ear to ear. Comments like "It was all worth it", and "Man, I'm so glad I came" were quickly replacing all the grumbling on the rainy morning, which now seemed like a distant memory. Other group photo was taken, of course.
After we had snapped all of our trophy photos, Ozzie lead us down into the city proper for a 2 hour tour of the ruins. We don't want to go into too much detail regarding the city for several reasons; namely (A) we had to bust our humps for the right to be here, and (B) we feel the city deserves to retain some of its mystery, or else there would be less incentive for the audience of the blog to one day make the trip themselves (something we highly encourage). Suffice to say it was extremely amazing, as the ruins combined with the natural beauty of the valley to create one of the most magical places either of us have ever been (if not THE most magical). 
If you haven't been here yet, come see for yourself some day. There is a two-day trek or a simple train ride to Machu Picchu, so your fitness level does not have to be a factor. 
After been shown around the city, our group was down for the count. We all loaded up in the big busses out front, and made our way into Aguas Calientes, the local town that had sprung into existance in the prevous 50 years to service all the visitors to Machu Picchu. We wandered around for a while sweating in the intense heat until we found our hotel. After eating some lunch, we were down for the count. We got up long enough to eat some pizza next door, and then Dave went to play some cards with the few remaining crew members in town before heading home to find Carrie sick in bed. It turns out that 6 of our 15 members got sick within a 36 hour period of leaving the trail. Was it a case of the porters cleaning our veggies in untreated water that final day, or perhaps simply a final parting gift from the Incas? I suppose we will never know...
If you haven't been here yet, come see for yourself some day. There is a two-day trek or a simple train ride to Machu Picchu, so your fitness level does not have to be a factor. 
After been shown around the city, our group was down for the count. We all loaded up in the big busses out front, and made our way into Aguas Calientes, the local town that had sprung into existance in the prevous 50 years to service all the visitors to Machu Picchu. We wandered around for a while sweating in the intense heat until we found our hotel. After eating some lunch, we were down for the count. We got up long enough to eat some pizza next door, and then Dave went to play some cards with the few remaining crew members in town before heading home to find Carrie sick in bed. It turns out that 6 of our 15 members got sick within a 36 hour period of leaving the trail. Was it a case of the porters cleaning our veggies in untreated water that final day, or perhaps simply a final parting gift from the Incas? I suppose we will never know...
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