Incas, native of Peru, invaded Ecuador less than one hundred years before the Spanish. The fall in love with this country, as us today! At this time, they had built a really huge road to link up Peru to Quito in Ecuador. This road was used to send messages. Runners took over from each other every 5 to 7 km which allowed to send messages at a speed of several hundred of kilometers each day. It is not even better today! This road is always visible on certain parts and we decided to follow it on 40 km during 3 days to reach the Ingapircas ruins.
This excursion required a little preparation. We had bought topographical maps at the Geographical Military Institut of Quito. We had also printed itineraries and recommendations from the Internet. But the most difficult was to find camping equipment to rent a sunday! The charmants owners of our hotel called a sympathetic mister called Joel who came wih all we needed. Thus we had a brand new tent Quechua (direct from France), ground cloths, camping stove and cutleries. We were ready to go on the Inca trail!
To reach the beginning of the trek it was also an expediion. We had to take a bus for Alausi (2h) and from here we took a van for Achupallas. This one drove around the city during one hour before leaving, it was completely full! Even when we though it was full the driver let other people get in!
Finally the trek started at 1pm. And it began in bad conditions because we could not find the footpath! Following the compass, we went through private fields, between cows and pigs, and under dog’s barks! The land was very humid and after only one hour our feet was completely wet (we did not know yet they would stay wet during 3 days!). We crossed few footpaths but everytime they did not ended nowhere.
In fact we walked off-piste the two first days. It was exhaustin because we had to go through really big clumps under which there were often cowpats and mud. The second day we even started with an exhausting climbing with several hundred of meters directly.
And then it became foggy and a hail fall. We were at the top and we had no landmarks but the ones given by the compass. We followed the south as planned; and our intuition.
Rémi essore ses chaussettes:
We walked through the lad, jumped to cross rivers, we climbed rocks, killed bisons to survive… no kinding! And at the end of the second day we caught a glimpse of road! Yeah! The Inca trail! We did not at the middle of the route but we had finally found the road!
The day after we got up at 5.30am and we went fast. It was hard but not so hard than the days before because we had a trail! But sometimes it disappeared under the vegetation and we always had rivers to cross. But we were happy to know we were no lost!
We suffered a bi during the last kilometers and … far away we saw what we came for: the Ingapirca’s ruins! It is not Machu Pichu but it is worth it!
Finally, walking along the 600 years old inca trail, surrounded by magnificent landscapes, it’s purly magic.
Je commençais à me faire des soucis : vu comment vous êtes capables de vous perdre en forêt de Fontainebleau, on pouvait s’attendre au pire sur les traces (invisibles !) des Incas.
Je suis rassurée de vous avoir vu retrouver la civilisation (même disparue aujourd’hui !)
Quant à l’essorage de Rémi : avez-vous pensé au truc des sacs plastiques dans les chaussures ? Garanti essayé et approuvé sur le vieux continent !
Vos images sont merveilleuses, on ne s’en lasse pas.
Séchez-vous bien !
Merci pour ces précisions magiques…on a toujours très envie de vous rejoindre…et de suivre le chemin des Incas!
bonjour et BONNE et HEUREUSE ANNEE 2011
cela faisait un moment que je n’avais pas regardé votre épopée, vous en avez fait du chemin.J’ai appris pour votre agression ,pas tout, mais voyant vos photos, je vois que cela va mieux
donc apparement tout se passe bien et vous êtes toujours aussi enchantés de ce long périple
les photos sont magnifiques, que du plaisir a les regarder
PS/ la maman a raison pour le plastique dans les chaussures comme quoi, il faut toujours en avoir dans le sac
je vous embrasse très fort et vous souhaite bonne continuation
et BONNE ANNEE
[…] le chemin de l’Inca, ce même chemin que nous avions parcouru en Equateur (voir cet article). Après une 30aine de minutes de marche nous atteignons la porte du soleil, un poste de garde qui […]