by James Spiller

Created on: September 21, 2008   Last Updated: November 24, 2008

Nearly four and a half centuries ago, Spanish conquistadors, who had sailed to the Americas in hopes of finding riches and fame, arrived on the shores of a strange and foreign place. As they began to explore the diverse terrain of modern day Peru, the Spanish quickly realized that they were not alone. Waiting for them was an empire of massive proportions. Spanning over 2,500 miles, populated by 10 million people, and possessing gold and silver in amounts that the Spanish could never have dreamed of, the Inca Empire was in sole control of the South American continent.

Fast forward to today, and things have changed. Gone are the gold and silver, long ago melted down to form Spanish money. Gone are the magnificent cities sitting atop massive mountains and boasting some of the most advanced engineering seen by humans, now reduced to ruins. Gone are the once proud Inca people, who, with their bare hands, built one of the most prosperous civilizations on the planet.

Though mostly destroyed by the Spanish, some vestiges of the Incas survive today. One example is the city of Choqquequirau. Located in the Vilcabamba region, Choqquequirau is a magnificent city high in the Andes mountains. Once a sacred place inhabited by religious leaders, today the city is a tourist attraction. Unlike the nearby Machu Picchu, however, Choqquequirau is one of the remotest cities tourists can visit. There are no roads anywhere near the city. The only way to experience the majesty of Choqquequirau is to hike for 4 days, traversing some of the roughest trails imaginable, starting from the nearest city of Cachora.

Located 4 hours from the Inca capital of Cusco, Cachora is a simple small town . Comprised of a main square, a school, a few restaurants, and many homes, Cachora is where my journey into the mountains began. After leaving Cusco at 6 in the morning, a long bus ride, and an incredibly bumpy and uncomfortable taxi ride into the city, we found ourselves in the simple Peruvian town. After a delicious lunch our guide, Vincente, a native of Cusco, led us out of the city and towards the ancient Inca city.

Traveling with us was our guide Vincente, a cook, a porter, and two mules. The cook, porter, and mules departed several hours after we did. They are used to the terrain, and know many shortcuts, so they were able to leave after us, arrive before us, and were able to have our meals cooking by the time we caught up with them.

The first day of our journey was a relatively easy one. Though we

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