The Long Way to Wonder: Our 5 day Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu
The Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. A five-day adventure we thought would be a bit of a challenge… and turned out to be an absolute mission. But that's the point!
Day 1 – “Comfy Vans & Comically Awful Breakfasts”
It all started too well. A weirdly comfy van ride and high hopes. Then reality hit: a classic South American breakfast—dry bread and mystery eggs—and straight into a trek starting at 3,900 metres. The first hour? Gentle incline. The next? A brutal 350-metre climb that nearly finished us off. Three blokes wheezing uphill, with a €2 Snickers keeping Artur alive. The lake at the top was stunning though—glacier blue and well worth the climb. Our huts looked great… until we actually got inside. Later, we had to hike up another hill just to get dinner. Cheers for that. Dinner was veg-heavy, stomach-light. Cold night ahead. Artur, somehow, slept like a baby.
Day 2 – “Altitude, Absolute Downpour & Artur Losing His Head”
We woke up to another disappointing breakfast, then set off on the toughest day: a massive climb to 4,630 metres. The “three muscular phenomenons” (us) powered up it—eventually—then chilled at the top like heroes. And then came the descent… and the rain. It didn’t just rain—it attacked. Everything we owned got soaked. Shivering at lunch, we waited for tea that never came fast enough. Rain stopped just as we left. Then came back worse. Proper soaking. Every group took cover and debated life choices. Eventually we just legged it through the storm. Final five minutes? Sunshine. Classic. The camp had hot showers for 10 soles—bargain. Artur lost the plot, but we survived. It was colder than the night before and all our clothes were wet. Morale: low.
Day 3 – “Football, Flip-Flops & Hot Springs”
Somehow, slightly better sleep. Shame we had to put on wet clothes again. Luckily it was a shorter, easier day—only three hours of mainly downhill trekking with cracking views. Midway, we hit a bizarre hut with a full-on football pitch. Naturally, we warmed up by almost taking out a woman with the ball three times. Then came a 5-a-side match. Decent shifts from Chris and Artur. After that, we found out we’d be in tents tonight. Brilliant. Quick stop at a coffee plantation for a cheeky latte and cappuccino, then camp setup drama with El Patrón led to us blagging two tents. The afternoon was spent in ridiculously hot springs (great spot, obv). Swimming shorts chaos for Stace. RIP his flip-flops. Dinner was finally decent. Bedtime came with cautious optimism.
Day 4 – “Jokes, Knees & Nearly There”
Straight into an 800m incline. Thanks for that. But the rest of the day was downhill, so we cracked on, fuelled by snacks from the world’s best tuck shop. At the viewpoint, we finally saw Machu Picchu in the distance—a proper moment. We kept ourselves entertained by winding up El Patrón and taking far too many photos. The last stretch was murder on the knees and ankles, but we made it. Lunch featured “not alpaca” burgers and a deep debate about who ordered best. The final few hours were a long trudge along train tracks before finally reaching Aguas Calientes. A hostel with a real bed? Yes please. A hot shower? Even better. Artur even hit a solo on the karaoke. What a shift.
Day 5 – “Machu Picchu & a 9:20am Pint”
4:30am wake-up. Cheers Kristoff and your loud showering. We skipped breakfast and slogged up to the entrance. Absolutely dripping with sweat. But we made it just in time for the 7am entry and avoided the crowds. Machu Picchu was everything we hoped for—absolutely unreal. We ditched the guides straight away and explored on our own. Then climbed Huayna Picchu too (because apparently the legs weren’t finished). After 1,000 photos, we celebrated with a beer… at 9:20am. Because why not?