Saturday, 3/2. Today began with heavy clouds and rain in the air. But the day ended up being rain-free with gorgeous views.

The plan called for choosing from several options. Climbs to the mountain seen in most pictures (which isn’t Machu Picchu Mountain) is restricted to only 400 people a day and involves scrambles plus cable handholds. Pass. Climbs to the actual Machu Picchu Mountain (located behind most photographers) also has a 400 person limit and rises 2,000 feet above the site. I had the chance and passed, mostly because of potential of cloud cover making the walk a waste. Options 3 and 4 were relatively short walks to the “Sun Gate’ or to the Inca Bridge. While most did one or the other, two of us chose both. Views were spectacular. The Inca Bridge was very impressive. Building a stone foundation alongside a cliff wall while leaving a section missing was brilliant. The log bridge could be pulled back. Excellent defense. The Sun Gate had two purposes. It was the main (and grand) entrance to Machu Picchu and had seasonal importance with a calendar marker at MP. The sun rises through the pass on the summer solstice (or something like that).

Returned to town in the afternoon for a late lunch and free time. I watched a soccer match between Real Madrid and Barcelona. Met two delightful people who shared (too much of) their wine with me.

Machu Picchu totally lived up to expectations.

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