Salkantay Trek In The Andes

Five unforgettable days in Peruvian mountains and Sacred Valley.

It was a last minute decision. We spent incredible two weeks in Peru as a family couple years ago. This year, it was supposed to be a surf trip for my daughter Emilia and daddy. But daddy had a basketball accident early June, which ended up with a hamstring surgery…

I’d go back to Peru any minute, but a full week of cold waves (Chicama is known for the longest left wave in the world! It’s impressive, but there is so much more to see in this giant country!), wet and cold wetsuit, left waves (I’m regular, not goofy) and sitting by the pool after a long morning of surfing is just not me. Knowing there are so many incredible villages, volcanos, markets, jungles and treks in the Andes to be seen, I made a deal with my 15 year old: she’ll go up north surfing with few of our friends, I’ll go explore and we will meet again in Lima and do something fun together.

She loved the idea (no mommy yelling about third Inca Cola of the day or time spent on her phone after surfing, no putting ceviche and sprouts on her plate ;) and off I went to contact trek agencies in Cuzco about availability for the Inca trail!

The famous Inca trek leading to Machu Picchu gets booked many months in advance, I had couple weeks only. But thankfully I learned about another, equally picturesque and even harder psychically, trek in the Andes: Salkantay!

What an adventure! Breathtaking views every minute of the trek- just like the cheesy, filtered and edited laptop screen-savers.

And compared to my trek around Annapurna 20 years ago in Nepal, where me and a friend did it all by ourselves, including not hiring a Sherpa (and that was way before the crowds flooded this part of the Himalayas), this time I was in a hurry, only had few days (and exact dates), wanted to be guided and spend some time combining exhaustion with incredible views. Me and the nature (and small group of equally adventurous people), ancient Inka world. And I got it all!