Inca Trail Day 1 - Getting Started

Sexy Llamas and Caballero on the Inca Trail

The buzzing sound of my alarm clock wakes me up at 5:30 am, still half a sleep and a bit disoriented I put the alarm off, turn around and I'm about to fall a sleep again when it finally hits me ... today is THE DAY, the day I have been looking forward to for so long. Today, 6th of May 2013, I will start hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. During this 4-day hike, I will follow this ancient trail through the Andes and hopefully on the 4th day before sunrise I will arrive at Inti Punku, the Sun Gate to see the wonder of Machu Picchu appear below me. All of the sudden filled with excitement, I jump out of my bed and into the shower. I already packed my duffel back last night, so after a quick breakfast I am ready to go ... 

Inca Pisac the entrance to the Sacred Valley

Intihuatana Ruins - Inca Pisac

The Sacred Valley of the Incas comprises the valleys connected by the Urubamba river between Pisac and Ollantaytambo. Pisac is the gateway to the Sacred Valley and located in the Yucay Valley on the shores of the river, its elevation is 2950 meters. This Andean village is famous for its Artisan Market on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays but even more so for its beautiful Inca ruins - Inca Pisac - built high up in the mountains at an elevation of 3300 meters. We visited Pisac on a Tuesday, the perfect day to combine a visit to the ruins with strolling around the market. 

Atlas Mountains Imnane Valley Trekking

Tizi n'Aguersioual

I already wrote some posts about our Atlas Trekking in Morocco last month but somehow I missed to describe our first day there, so here it goes. On our first day in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, we woke up around 8 am and about an hour later we were having a wonderful breakfast on the rooftop terrace of the Imlil lodge in Tamatert. It was a beautiful sunny day and the views from the terrace were just stunning. After a delicious and very relaxing breakfast, we met our guide Ibrahim. He told us that we were going to do an acclimatization hike in the beautiful Imnane Valley before starting the harder work the next day when we would attempt the 2-day climb of Mount Toubkal. 

The Fascinating History of Dinant

Dinant

While visiting Dinant last weekend, I was so fascinated by the history of this beautiful city that I decided to write a post about it. Dinant, a small historic town build along impressive cliffs on the banks of the River Meuse, is located in the Walloon part of Belgium about an hour drive from Brussels. The name Dinant comes from the Celtic word Divo-Nanto meaning the Sacred Valley. Due to its strategic location on the Meuse, Dinant has seen many battles over the years ... from the invasion of the Vikings end 9th century till the bombardments during the second World War.

Atlas Trekking Preparation and Packing List

Berber Village

The Atlas Mountains are a mountain range of about 2500 km stretching through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The Atlas Mountains in Morocco and particularly the High Atlas is the most popular part and a true hiking paradise. Many visitors come here each year to hike through the beautiful valleys, through the Berber Villages or to climb Mount Jbel Toubkal, with an elevation of 4167 meters the highest peak of North Africa. The Atlas Mountains are easy reachable from Marrakech. It is about one hour drive from Marrakech to get to Imlil, most Trekking Companies will include in their price the pick-up from Marrakech. Arranging an independent trek is quite easy, however to make the most out of your trip it is important to go well prepared.