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Taking Back Roads to Machu Picchu
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Taking Back Roads to Machu Picchu

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I always spell it wrong as Macchu Picchu or Machu Pichu but you get the point.

Good article from the NY Times describing the alternate ways to get to the top and avoid the most touristy areas. Good advice. It really sucks there's a waiting list for the most touristed way to the top. The 4-day trek here comes recommended as well from a friend there a few months ago.

Full article - Taking the back roads to Machu Picchu

Taking the Back Roads to Machu Picchu
By PATRICK O’GILFOIL HEALY



AS it runs through craggy mountain passes and ancient Incan ruins, the fabled Inca Trail in Peru reveals surprise after surprise to travelers hiking its length to the lost city of Machu Picchu. But here’s a new one: To set foot on that fabled Andean footpath, you’ve first got to fight through a three-month waiting list.



A few years ago, the Inca Trail was becoming the Long Island Expressway of central Peru, brimming with trash, tourists and growing concerns about overuse. So the Peruvian government began enforcing strict limits on the number of people allowed on the trail. Right now, only 500 people a day may enter — about 200 tourists and 300 guides and porters.



And so, “alternative” Inca Trails are gaining popularity with travelers unable or unwilling to book a slot three to six months in advance. These treks can be booked a day or two in advance and can cost less than half as much as a hike on the Inca Trail.



Which is how I ended up huddled in the shadow of a 20,500-foot mountain one afternoon last summer, shivering around a table with seven other trekkers as we tried to scarf down plates of cold fish before the snow and wind tore them from our hands.



Unable to beg, borrow or steal a spot on the traditional Inca Trail, we had each decided to take on one of the most popular Plan B routes — a four-day trek past Nevado Salkantay, a jagged, snowy fang of a mountain that lies about 10 miles south of mountaintop Machu Picchu. (Tour operators also offer two other main routes, through the Lares Valley or via the lost Incan city of Choquequirao.)



The Lares Valley sprawls out to the east of Machu Picchu. Hikers generally pass by the snow-capped mountain Helancoma and thread through Andean villages, past mountain lakes and on to Inca ruins in the town of Ollantaytambo. From there, hikers walk or catch a train to Machu Picchu.

Continued on NY Times.com

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Photo title: Río Urubamba slithers

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