HikeCoo-ing to Machu Picchu

Commemorating a trek in Peru with my son, Andrew, along the Salkantay Trail, outside Cusco to Machu Picchu, June 2010

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Posthaste from Lima—

into the interior

on wonder's wingspan.

High expectations:

Inca capital, Cusco,

colonial town.

Christian festival

hoists Spanish conquistador:

burdensome idols.

Street inquisitions:

masked whipping boys raising welts

on Corpus Christi.

Sacsayhuamàn (my

'sexy woman'): stone stronghold,

now Humpty Dumpty.

Skirted in thin air,

Salkantay's sacred summit

catches our deep breaths.

My cocoa leaf prayer:

may you sharpen your senses

along the knife edge.

Clouds claim the mountain—

still we climb in its presence:

altitude addicts.

Crossed over the past—

and found a sunlit future's

unfolding present.

The way the river

favors the valley's floor, our

trail turns the mountain.

When we got a glimpse,

the goose bumps began to jump

between now and then.

Mystic morning rite:

interpreting the silence

of Machu Picchu.

Terraces of time,

where oblivious llamas

graze among clouds.

Daft dandelion

to the ancient stonework said:

"Make a wish and blow."

"Widen the window."

The transcendental tourist

sees ruins recede.

Up these Inca stairs

rushed 500 footstepped years.

I will take my time.

Guide me to the hut

at the top of the mountain

where the gods hang out.

Trek Facts

Days: 7

Distance: 39 miles

Highest point reached: 15,213'

Group size: 2 guides, 9 trekkers

haiku, haikus, Peru, Inca, Incas, trek, trekking, Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Salkantay, Corpus Christi, Sacsayhuamàn

macklinjohn@hotmail.com