Mountain biking through small villages, donkey herds, and the Inca's trail.

Our wonderful guide, Abel, and Gregg. | Gregg riding through a donkey herd.

At Moray, an agricultural experiment for the Incas.

The purpose of these depressions to the Incas was a mystery, but their depth and orientation with respect to wind and sun creates a temperature difference of as much as 15 °C (27 °F) between the top and bottom. This large temperature difference was possibly used by the Inca to study the effects of different climatic conditions on crops. In other words, Moray was perhaps an Inca agricultural experiment station.

Great single track riding!

Aguas Calientes looking back into the jungle | Looking up into the town, nestled in this jungle canyon.

Gregg, shopping. Yes, shopping. The markets are amazing and the prices ridiculous, especially considering most everything is handmade.

The bridge over the river that connects the town of Aguas Calientes | Gregg's gigantic jungle avocados.

The train back to Ollantaytambo | Views along the way.

Our first site walking in at sunrise | Surrounding mountains

The city of Machu Picchu is enveloped in clouds in the morning... this quickly changes throughout the day!

The quarry at Machu Picchu -- an amazing site considering that the Incas created this city from the rocks, without wheels and at an altitude of 8,000 feet.

Gregg makes friends with the black llama -- the most revered llama in the Inca culture. | The sun temple -- facing southeast, this temple absorbs the energy of the morning sun for the people.

This scene was magical. Alpacas in the foreground and Huanu Picchu misted in clouds in the background.

Hiking the amazing peak of Huanu Picchu was incredible feat and not for the faint. Step after step was felt through every part of the body!! | The Inca stairs were built into the terraces rather than at the ends of the terrace for strength.

At the top of Huanu Picchu... the knee made it!

The surrounding peaks of Machu Picchu

One of the most stunning views of this magical city.

We started by taking the curvy, hairpin and hairstanding road up to the 14,000 foot peak of Abra Malaga. As we winded through green steep countryside and deep valleys on both sides, we passed small remote villages accessible only by foot. Village children would run out to the road to watch us pass. Alpacas, mountain goats, and sheep added to this picturesque scene around every corner!

Trying not to be car-sick was a feat in itself, but I captured this video of an incredible section of the drive:  http://vimeo.com/17801871

Once we got to 14,000 foot peak Abra Malaga, the climate completely changed to cold, foggy alpine frigidness!! We could actually see our breath! It was here we were dumped with our downhills bikes to start our 5-hour descent to the backside of the Andes into the jungle. So we started our drive at dry highland valleys, started our descent on the top of a mountain, and only about 30 miles as the crow flies we are in a moist and humid jungle. Yes, the climate and setting changes that quick. It’s amazing.

On the dry highland side of the mountain pass Abra Malaga, in the Sacred Valley before our ascent to 14,000 feet.

At 14,000 feet in the fog and cold! We start our 10,000 foot descent here.

Small villages and homestead along our ride.

Waterfalls on every corner.

The jungle valley below via the twisty, hairpin road. We rode the bikes down as far as you can see into that most distance mountain range!!

The Sacred Valley

The Sacred Valley is so called because their soil and climate can grow just about anything, hence the Incas named it “sacred.” That and the powerful spiritual connection with the earth (called “Pacahama”) that blankets this region. When you stand at 12,000 feet and look around, you can’t help but think it’s sacred as well: green rolling fields, the snaking Urubumba River, Inca village ruins on what seem to be impassable ridges, and huge Andes peaks surrounding the valley on all sides.

This was a full day. We visited a wildlife sanctuary for condors, pumas, and other miscellaneous Andes wildlife including the hairless dog (I don’t think that really counts as Andes wildlife).

Afterwards, we visited an alpaca and llama textile farm that walks you through the steps of alpaca wool fabrication, coloring, and textile crafts.  This was very cool — did you know alpacas and llamas are part of the camel family?

After feeding and interacting with what could be my next sweater, we came to the area where they dye the wool with natural dyes from native plants and insects. Yes, insects.  The most vibrant red coming from the blood of a tiny cactus-leeching insect no bigger than a flea.

We watched the process of squashing the insects to retract the blood, grinding the color, mixing it in a big pot, then dying the wool in strands by hand. So cool! Now we see the bright red color in traditional Peruvian clothes and costumes everywhere.  All from a tiny bug!

You can see here the spools of yarn and the roots (plants, insects, grains, flowers, etc.) that each came from. The color mixer dude is pulling one of the insects from the cactus for the red color. Then below he dyes the alpaca wool strands in the pots of color, then they are hung to dry.

Freshly dyed yarn hangs to dry

The colors of the alpaca yarn from the elements of plants, leaves, insects, earth.

Once the wool strands dry, they are ready for weaving! You’ll have to see my sweater later!

The agriculture terraces in the background, at Pisaq ruins.

The Inca stairs at Pisaq have been in place for over 700 years and are a truly amazing display of the Inca's stone mastery.

The sun temple at Pisaq. It generates energy from the sun and radiates through touching its walls.

From Ollantaytambo, the mystical face of Wiracocha in the opposing mountain was said to be an angry Inca God.

The people still use traditional methods for just about everything. And it’s mostly the women carrying everything. No backpacks here — blankets are the primary form of transporting everything from babies and boxes to animals, grain, and wood. One can’t help but notice the hunched-over bodies of the elderly local women everywhere. These women below adorn their typical dress in the streets, but always want a sole (about 30 cents) to take their picture!!

Typical Peruvian women.

Classic Inca stonework, no mortar used. Can you see the llama?

Anything you want alpaca

Peruvian ladies and their llamas... got soles for a photo??

Huge bamboo gardens with boo 50+ feet high and 12 inches around at the base. Hundreds of species of plants, palms and ferns that all seemed to be on hormones. Everything was big, lush, green, and thick. It all seemed to fold over me as I stood at a lookout or at a waterfall.

What was most impressive was something that I couldn’t get in pictures or really put into words. The sounds. There was an erie thick pulse in the air of bird and insect sounds that never ceased. It was constant — like a nonstop rhythm of coos, caws, and creeks. According to the self-guided interpretive tour (a tattered black and white photocopied map of the forest), these sounds come from a large number of native birds, parrots, hawks, owls and frogs.

I stopped at the El Yuque tower, overlooking the forest and the beaches of Nuquillo below, checked out some waterfalls, walked some trails, then worked my way back down the narrow, windy road back down to sea level. I noticed that guard rails were only installed at the most suicidal-looking turns (looking straight down into rocks, a waterfall or a green canopy that was already 100 feet high), but every turn should have them!!! Here is my ghetto video from inside the Hyundai, heading down.