Day 08 – Neblina, neblina everywhere

We left Chalhuanca on a 212 mile run to Ollantaytambo.  Dropping from 8,600 ft. to 3,600 ft. in 50 miles, we continued through Abacay and started another eastbound climb with the fog, or neblina, setting in.  Emergency flashers on, speeds diminished and visor sprayed with defogger, check!  It was actually refreshing to change up the riding conditions and the neblina persisted for quite a while.

The natives here are remarkably well-conditioned with stout legs, even without Pilates.  Without much flat land, they’ve resorted to terracing the mountainsides for crops.  Their homes being down in the valleys, make for a pretty good hike before their workdays in the terraces even begin.  Similarly, the herd tenders drive their stock up high to graze and back down at days end.  I think I’d invest in a saddle.

I can’t remember what we had for lunch but soon afterwards we were following the Apurimac River through another valley to be confronted by road construction that gave us about an hour roadside break.  To pass the time, Tim and I cut up and chewed on some of the local cactus.  This, in itself, might be why I can’t remember the lunch stop.

When the “Pare” sign turned to “Siga” we complied and rode like jackrabbits to pass the tour buses that had gotten the jump on us.  Climbing back up to 11,000 ft. then dipping down again we entered the Sacred Valley of the Incas and followed the Urubamba River to Ollantaytambo for a 2 ½ day stay.  Ollantaytambo is the gateway town to Machu Picchu and served as the Incan refuge when those pesky Conquistadors invaded Cusco.  The scenery and architecture are truly a delight.