I am traveling to Peru with fellow Adventure Lifer, Ashley Bailey. We start our trip with our flight to San Francisco being delayed by an hour and a half. That's an hour and half more that we could have slept in. Bummer! We eventually board the plane and even make our connection in SFO. The icing on top of the cake: our bags make it with us. …

We actually get to sleep in late today and enjoy the early morning at the hotel. We were surprised by the breakfast: the omelet bar is fantastic. There was more variety than your typical continental breakfast = time to load up! We spent the day at our office in Lima, meeting with our staff Gianina, Fabiola and Milagros. They took Ashley and I out …

Ashley and I awake at 6:45 AM for our flight to Cusco. I can't believe how packed the Lima airport is. Good thing we got there early! Fortunately, LAN Airlines impresses once again, and we move through the line quickly and efficiently. After checking in and going through security, we pay the domestic flight tax (20 soles) and move on to the …

We woke early again today to head to the Sacred Valley for whitewater rafting! The Urubamba River is the river that flows from Cusco through the Sacred Valley to Machu Picchu. It eventually joins the Apurimac to become the Ucayali, one of the main headwaters of the Amazon. I was surprised by how low the water was, but the guide explained that we …

Early in the morning, we load into the van and drive to Malaga Pass. We started our ride a few miles below the pass. The road is newly constructed and hasn't even been opened yet, so we have it to ourselves. It was freezing in the morning at 14,000 feet! Imagine that! As we continued to ride and lose elevation, it got warmer and we shed layer …

We drove to Santa Maria and began our hike on a trail that the Incas had used to travel between the Amazon and Cusco. The trail followed one of the steepest hillsides I have ever seen. I couldn't believe that people could manage to build a trail on a mountain like this today, let alone several hundred years ago. The trail ascended sharply for …

Normally, the Manco Multisport trip has an extra day of hiking today, but we were all tired and just wanted to get to Aguas Calientes. Vidal suggested that we skip the hiking trip to Patallacta and drive to the train station instead. We were quick to take him up on the offer. The train left early in the morning, so we left Santa Teresa before dawn …

We meet Vidal and the group early to beat the crowds at the ruins. Some of our group have already gone up to hike Huayna Picchu. They had to get up at 3:30 AM to grab one of the limited number of passes. I really wanted to hike it, but the prospect of waking up that early certainly put a damper on that idea. I suspect that this will not be my last …

We catch an early bus to Puno this morning. Ashley and I barely have enough time to grab some pastries at the hotel as we were betting on the transfer driver being late. Instead, he shows up early! The bus to Puno is a luxury liner compared to the chicken buses of Guatemala (where I lived for several years). We have a guide and a hostess, who …