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Peruvian Pilgrimage

American Fitness, March, 1998 by Jurgen Ankenbrand

An unexpected adventure on the Inca Trail.

In June 1997, 12 adventure runners, four women and eight men from all over the United States, came to Peru to do what most trekkers take three to four days to do. We attempted to cover the long, 44-kilometer Inca Trail (about 30 miles) in under 12 hours. Ages ranged from 35 to 65 years. All had traveled before and made exercise an important part of their daily life. Running, however, was not the only reason we came to Peru. A hunger for adventure was a common trademark among the group.

The Inca civilization is relatively young in historic terms. Lore has it that the Incas emerged from the Lake Titicaca region in southern Peru at the beginning of the 16th century.

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They built an immense empire, covering an area from the equator through today's Peru, Bolivia, northern Chile and part of Argentina. They did not have the wheel or any other mode of transportation. The entire empire was accessible on foot with runners (couriers), capable of covering more than 100 miles per day.

How did the Incas conquer and keep other tribes within their Inca empire without constant revolts? They had a highly organized and structured society. They expected the conquered people to conform to their rules and customs, but at the same time allowed them to maintain some of their own customs and a small measure of their own way of life. They guaranteed safety and protection for all plus a fairly good life, making living under another rule more palatable.

They had no written language, but devised a way to keep track of people, supplies and other items through a simple yet effective system. This consisted of many colored strings with various knots of different sizes.

The Incas worshipped the sun, earth and moon. They were connected to nature, and understood how to live off the land. They had initiated a sophisticated system of terraces to farm with limited amounts of water. Many of these terraces are still in use today.

In addition, the Incas were excellent masons, working with stones and boulders weighing up to several tons, moving them up and down steep inclines. Without any sophisticated tools other than those made of stone, they fit huge boulders together so precisely that a knife could not be inserted into the spaces between the stones.

As the Spaniards came in the 1630s, killing the Incas and plundering the country and empire, the Incas fled to the Andes to their main city of Cusco (the oldest continuous inhabited city in all of South America). They eventually retreated to Machu Picchu, the mountain citadel, today world famous after its discovery by Brigham Young in the mid-1930s. Many ruins across Peru, Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail are the Inca's legacy to the world today.

Since the Incas had no wagons or moving vehicles of any kind, roads were not needed. Instead, they built a trail system many thousands of kilometers long to link their empire. Most trails were built with cobblestones and are only about three to six feet wide, allowing runners to pass with ease. Along the way, they had storage facilities with food and other supplies. As the empire spread from the Peruvian coast to the Andes, many steep mountains had to be crossed. Consequently, the trails are steep and rugged, with steps up to two and a half to three feet tall and strewn with large rocks and loose gravel. This is the setting in which our Inca Trail marathon takes place.

Trail or adventure running can be done anywhere in the world, wherever your wanderlust takes you. Selecting the Inca Trail as our destination for an adventure race came about after reading an ad in Ultra Running magazine. Our group consisted of 12 runners with varying levels of experience.

We met in Lima, Peru's capital. From there, we flew to Cusco, the former Inca empire capital. Cusco is at an altitude of around 11,000 feet. Hikers experience shortness of breath at the slightest increase in physical activity. Therefore, it's advised to take it easy the first day or two to let the body get used to the altitude.

By air-conditioned bus, we drove to the starting point of the Inca trail in the small village of Chillca. From there, we went on a short 12-kilometer run to kilometer 88, the actual Inca Trail start.

What seemed a planned adventure took an unexpected twist for me, with an unusual outcome. As a semi-professional photographer and elected group photographer, I suggested I leave camp ahead of the group, and pick out a spot to take pictures of the runners. I was advised to watch out for a fork on the trail and turn right, this being the only possible location where a wrong turn could be taken.

I left camp at 4:30 a.m., armed with a flashlight. As I reached the fork, it was still dark, and I forgot about the advice and kept going on what looked like the correct trail. Three hours later, almost on top of the 13,000-foot trail, I asked an Indian man if this was the way to Machu Picchu. He pointed downward, making it clear that I went the wrong way.

Peruvian Pilgrimage

American Fitness, March, 1998 by Jurgen Ankenbrand

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