24 June: Salkantay Trek Day 4

Salkantay Trek Day 4: Santa Teresa to Hidroelectras to Aguas Calientes

We hiked 11.8 miles at 7,055ft-7,986ft. Some of our group went on an adventure sidetrip with a zipline, a suspension bridge and rock climbing in the morning, We had originally planned to do the zipline but decided that we weren't interested in the whole adventure package. We walked past the remnants of a village which had been completely flooded about ten years ago and had subsequently moved higher up and along a very pretty river, but nothing as spectacular as the previous days. Then we walked past the bus station and along the train tracks to Aguas Calientes. Most of our group was taking the bus back, so they left the majority of their gear at a hotel and carried only what they needed for the next day. We had the luxury of having our packs since we would be taking the train from Agua Caliente and would have only a short distance to carry them.  We spent the day walking around Agua Caliente and stayed at a hotel in Aguas Calientes.

Part of the Hydroelectric
System

One of the choices had been a 4 day trek or a 5 day trek. In restrospect although I am happy with the 5 days, I realized that the people who did the 4 day tour didn't miss much. They weren't able to do the adventuring, but the parts they were driven on were the less interesting parts of the walk.