It was the 2nd morning waking up on Inca Trail, woken up by our guide with a hot (boiling hot!) cup of coca tea at 4:30 am.
- Phuyupatmarka Campsite
- Archeological site of Phuyupatmarka
- Intipata (Yunkapta) archeological site
- Wiñaywayna camp
- Wiñaywayna archeological site
It was really cold in the morning to get up, though I was warm and cosy in my thermals and silk lining in the sleeping bag. I always put a clean pair of warm merino wool socks, so that my feet don’t get cold. Also, I had a terrible sleep tonight as my friend was snoring really loudly and also someone at the tent nearby.
As usual we’ve got a warm small bowl to wash up by our tents. Then packed our stuff, so that porters could pack the tents and their backpacks, and went for breakfast. We had some pancakes, jam and etc. As usual for each breakfast. At this point I was dreaming about having a real cup of coffee, instead of that instant one, but for now it will have to be enough.
I could feel my legs very sore from the first and second day hikes. Especially my thighs. Going up and down any steps was really painful. I took my supplements as every morning to help the muscles to recover (BCAA amino acid, creatine and ZMA). Not sure if they helped at all, but so far I was still on Inca Trail.
It was getting a bit brighter at 5:30 am and we could see our amazing toilet tent. Unfortunately, the curtain was broken on the first night, so at this point they decided (I guess the guy who carries and takes care of the toilet) to just remove it completely. So when you sit on the toilet you can enjoy this amazing view of Andes and the clouds. It’s just amazing!

Also this morning the toilet was very filthy with 3 layers of stools stacked on top of each other and I had a slight diarrhea this morning. My apologies for a person who comes next and to the toilet guy. It got flushed later on, but still it was pretty dirty.

At 6:10 they gathered all the porters and our cook in the area where the tents were standing to introduce them. We’ve already knew our two guides Alisban and Carlos.

After introductions some people took some time taking nice pictures of the mountains, cloud and the mist. Some even went on a small clear area nearby, but that required going down the slope a bit and walk 50m or so and then to go back. However, my legs were in so much pain, so I just took the pictures from the camp.



Short after that, around 6:45 am, we were on our way on Inca Trail. Guess what? There was more rocky steps going up!
You could really see lush, tall and green vegetation and further we walked, the more it looked like a jungle.


You could see that nature here was teeming with life all kinds of fungi, moss and lichens. Some people stopped to adore those branches overgrown with moss and lichens.

That white lichen I’ve photographed below was impressive as I’ve never seen one like that. Also you can see multiple ones above it too! It almost looks like the bottom of the sea.

As we kept walking further, all the tree branches and stems were covered with vegetation. It really gave a sense of being in the jungle.





We couldn’t see much down the hill as the clouds and fog was covering most of it.


The road was getting a bit narrow and very sharp fall on the edge, so we had to be careful and give way to the passing porters by moving closer to the wall.

Then at around 8 am we reached a passage carved in the rock, where our guides took the pictures of all of us standing in front of it.

The fog in some places was quite thick, probably due to the vegetation keeping moisture and releasing it to the air.


At 8:30 am we had a stop. Our guides demonstrated some of the techniques used by Andean people (and possibly Inca).
First was how to make a rope from the grass.

Then they demonstrated a sling with a stone. The stone flew quite far to the desired direction with quite high speed. We did move back a little bit just in case though.

After that a rubber sling demonstration followed.

The act of shooting the stem of a reed in the Andes is called chuki or chuq’i.

It was quite interesting to watch all of those demonstrations and our guides seemed very skilled in them!

We were going down a lot and I could see us being a little bit below the clowds.

Phuyupatmarka Campsite
The cloud forest in Phuyupatmarka, Peru is a unique and beautiful ecosystem. It is characterized by its dense vegetation, high humidity, and frequent cloud cover. The forest is home to a wide variety of plant and animal life, including many endemic species.
The cloud forest in Phuyupatmarka is an important water source for the region. It also plays a role in regulating the local climate and protecting the soil from erosion. The forest is threatened by deforestation, climate change, and other human activities. However, there are efforts underway to protect and restore the cloud forest in Phuyupatmarka.
Around at 9:00 am we reached Phuyupatmarka campsite, which is around at 32 km on Inca trail, where we just stopped for a short break. Some people climbed on the top of the rock to get a better view.

At first, I didn’t want to go up and I was saying my legs, but then later I’ve decided to go anyway. I could even catch some signal on my mobile and send Whatsapp messages to my friends and family to let them know I am alive and well!

It also had a stunning view of Inca archeological site and luckily the clouds were not covering it!

Archeological site of Phuyupatmarka

Phuyupatmarka (“City Above the Clouds” in quechua) was an ancient settlement, perched high in the Andes Mountains at 3613m elevation, served as a vital waystation for travelers journeying towards the mystical Machu Picchu.
The site’s significance extends beyond its strategic location and showcases the remarkable ingenuity of the Inca civilization. Elaborate agricultural terraces, carved into the steep mountainside, demonstrate their mastery of engineering and their ability to cultivate crops in the challenging Andean environment. These terraces provided sustenance for travelers and likely supported local communities.
In addition, Phuyupatmarka may have held religious or ceremonial significance for the Inca. The presence of ceremonial structures (small shrines or altars) and the site’s commanding position within the mountain landscape suggest a deeper spiritual connection.
I also noticed that porters were filling up drinkable water here from the springs and carrying it up to Phuyupatmarka campsite. Not sure if that leaf was put there intentionally to reduce contamination or it was by accident.

You can even clearly see the water canal leading from the spring with stone structures – ceremonial fountains. There were 6 of them in total. The Incas used these fountains for bodily “purification”.

We stopped here and sat on a big rock to hear about the site from our guide. Everyone seemed quite tired and I was walking around and taking pictures of the people and the site.


Luckily the sun came out for a moment and there was no people in the site, so I managed to take once nice picture of it.

At 9:52 am, we were moving these stairs down through the site.


We could see Intipata Inca site far away and much lower than Phuyupatmarka with a lot of agricultural terraces while hiking down. This was our next destination on the Inca Trail.

The steps were getting really worn out, though they were carved in the stone, and luckily it was dry, otherwise it would be like an ice rink.

We had to go down quite a lot of stone steps and trekking poles were really good to have.

We passed a cave while going up the steps, which looked like Inca building inside of a cave. It had typical Inca windows built of stone.

Then we passed another inca site, but we didn’t stop there.

Then went down these steps through the cave. They were quite steep, even though it doesn’t look like and in the bottom there is not much stopping you to go down the cliff if you would have slipped.

Then the vegetation around the Inca Trail go really thick again just like in the jungle.

I could see we were way below the clouds now and could see the green Andes mountains.

At some point I started noticing a lot of butterflies so I took some pictures of them too. I was way much more relaxed going down the mountain. However, I didn’t manage to capture the colourful ones as they were moving too fast and the lighting conditions were not the best. I was listening to my music with my earbuds and watching butterflies fly around me. It was really a lot of them, sometimes in large groups of 6 or 10.


The trail was getting really narrow now, but still very green. At this point I was going alone. Pretty much most of the way from Phuyupatmarka archeological site. The guide and one of my friends was somewhere behind me. I could hear them speaking sometimes somewhere higher up.

Intipata (Yunkapta) archeological site
We reached Intipata at 12:35 pm, where we stopped for a short break and also to take some pictures.

Intipata (“Terraces of the Sun” in Quechua), standing at at 2930m altitude, during the Inca period primarily served as an agricultural production center aimed at meeting the needs of Machu Picchu’s population. It is situated within the montane Yunga ecosystem, which hosts a diverse array of plant and some exotic looking animal species, such as Dwarf brocket (Mazama chunyl), Grey-breasted mountain toucan (Andigena hypoglauca), and Spectacled bear (Tremarctos ornatus), all adapted to the area’s distinctive conditions.



There were quite a lot of steps in Intipata and if you wanted you go even higher up to see the view from above, but we didn’t have much time for that.





It was time to go down some steps heading to our camp. It was really painful for me and also they are quite steep!



Once we were down we crossed the little bridge and left Intipata site behind. I turned around to take one last look at it and it looked impressive.

On my way down to the camp I was taking lots of pictures and some unusual ones were these two spiders, which I’ve encountered. That black one was pretty bigm and the body was halfway out of it’s web nest. I did use zoom to capture the image, but when I moved slightly too close it got spooked and ran away. It did look like a false widow, but South America is not their habitat, so I can’t really tell what speices it is as Google Lens failed to identify (even though I did the extensive search).

Another spider, which was very near by looked like Wolf Spider. However, I can’t tell for sure it is Wolf Spider. But generally Wolf Spiders are not dangerous, even if they would bite you in self defence their venom doesn’t pose danger to humans (unless you are allergic).

Wiñaywayna camp
We arrived to Wiñaywayna the camp 1:25 pm. We had lunch and it was a time for a rest. The tents were already ready, so we took a nap inside of them. I woke up at 2:47 pm by the sound of rain hitting the tent. It was cozy and dry inside though. Luckily, we didn’t get any rain today or yesterday while hiking despite thick dark clouds and thunders.

I felt asleep for a little bit longer with the sound of rain until our guide woke us up for the next smal adventure.
Wiñaywayna archeological site
Once we got up, we went to Wiñaywayna (Winay Wayna at 4:10pm, but we had just a good hour and a bit to explore it, so we could make back in time for our dinner.

Wiñaywayna, meaning “forever young” in Quechua, is an impressive Inca ruin situated on the Inca Trail, at elevation of 2666m and just 3.3 km from Machu Picchu. This well-preserved site, discovered in the early 1940s, features terraced agricultural areas, intricate stonework, and stunning views of the Urubamba River. A cascading staircase and intricate fountains, in total 16 of them, connect the upper and lower residential areas of the site.



I wasn’t sure if I wanted to go down to explore those Inca ruins below as I was afraid I might not be able to go up after that. The guide left us to explore it in our own pace, so I had time until the dark, hence I decided to do it. The steps down were quite steep and they were getting a bit slippery as it started a bit drizzling (not really raining though).
The Winay Wayna showcase a remarkable integration of architectural, agricultural, and religious design characteristic of Inca ingenuity. Built into the mountain slopes, the site aligns with the Inca practice of adapting construction to the natural environment due to the lack of flat land in the Andes of Cusco. It features numerous agricultural terraces for crops like potatoes, corn, and coca, as well as administrative areas connected by a stone staircase as shown below.


The Wiñaywayna ruins in Perú, dating back to the mid-15th century during the Inca Empire, are an archaeological site believed to be built by Inca Pachacutec. Named after a local orchid, these ruins are a notable stop along the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. The site’s exact purpose is unclear, potentially serving as a spiritual or rest area for elders or royalty. The guide mentioned people coming to cleanse themselves before going to Machu Picchu. Architecturally, Winay Wayna features upper and lower structures connected by elegantly curved stone steps, with the upper part characterized by a unique circular building and the lower part by linear parapets and massive stone slabs. A staircase linking these levels runs alongside ancient fountains or baths. Surrounding the ruins is an agricultural complex with terraces made from finely crafted local stones.

The architecture mirrors that of Machu Picchu, with trapezoidal windows, niches, and steep gabled roofs. Winay Wayna serves as a final archaeological site before Machu Picchu, named after the surrounding Epiderdrum orchid. Unique to its high jungle location, the site is rich in biodiversity. The Incas used quipus, a knotted-string system, to accurately track agricultural production, storing crops in qolqas or warehouses.





The typical Inca walls cut to fit precisely without any mortar looked stunning.

We could also see some waterfalls from Wiñaywayna site. You could also go down to the river if you wanted to, but it was quite a hike down and then back up and it was getting dark as well as my legs were barely functional.

I’ve managed to climb up slowly and before leaving took some more shots of the site as it looked impressive, especially with less people walking in there.


Hikers on the Inca Trail will encounter Wiñay Wayna along their trail in the evening a day before Machu Pichu.
Finally, after an hour and 15 min I was heading back to the camp as my legs were killing me.
At 6:00pm we had our happy hour (tea time). Our chef even baked a cake for us to mark the last day of the hike, since tomorrow a short couple kilometers and we are in Machu Picchu.


After dinner we had heard the stories of hardship for porters from our guide (that wasn’t the first time when he told the stories like that), we were told to gather tips that we want to give our chef and porters. It was recommended 80 PEN from each person and 500 PEN in total for the cook. That’s what we collect. On top of that, we had a discussion how much to give to the guides and since most of the group were Americans, were tipping culture is very prominent, someone suggested a quite large sum and then someone said that it should be 10% from the price, which would be 90 USD. It was implied that everyone should give the same amount, but then some people started objecting and suggested that it should be more voluntary than mandated amount as some people interacted more and some almost none with the guides, especially some of the ones going up front every day. So in the end I gave 40 USD to the main guide and 30 USD to the secondary guide, so in total 70 USD. I know some gave 90 USD and some a little bit more and some less. The guides in all scenarios were quite happy.
In my, opinion it is still quite a lot, which is around 500-600 USD for the main guide and given they do 7 hikes like this in a month it becomes 3500 USD – 4200 USD per month on top of the salary. I think in Peru it is quite a lot and we are spoiling the guides a bit this way. Also compared to the porters who get barely 10 USD in total per hike, they can have only 3-4 hikes a month and their salary is much lower and they are doing the hardest bit of work! We were told that additional porter is 150 USD, so I would guess only part of that goes to the porter. The minimum pay for porters is 93 USD for 4 day hike. It was increased to 168 USD in 2022, but then it was stroke down by a judge just a few months later.
Tomorrow was the last day of the hike and finally Machu Picchu!