Inca Quarry Trek to Machu Picchu
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The Inca Quarry Trek to Machu Picchu (also known as the Soqma and Cachicata Trek). The hike starts in a small town and takes you through the high mountains passing the beautiful Perolniyoq waterfall, visiting an ancient Inca Qorimarka archaeological site and the Inca Cachicata Quarry. The quarry is the place where the Incas unearthed rocks to build Ollantaytambo. On this hike we will enjoy the beautiful snow-capped mountains and the famous sacred valley. At the end, we will visit one of the most spectacular citadels of Machu Picchu.
Highlight of the trip
The Inca Quarry Trek to Machu Picchu is recommended for people who want to experience nature and explore the less popular paths to Machu Picchu. Other tour that take you to Machu Picchu are: inca trail to machu picchu, salkantay trek 4 days.
- The route of the Inca Quarry Trek to Machu Picchu is very little visited, if you are looking for walks outside the common without a doubt this is the one, you will enjoy the solitude and the beautiful sunsets, surrounded by mountains and snow-capped peaks like Verónica.
- Visit one of the most famous quarries from where the Incas obtained their lithic materials of great proportions, it is still possible to see many stones already worked ready to be taken.
- You can visit some of the local communities, who still practice the ancestral agriculture of the Incas.
- You will have the best postcard photo of Verónica's mountain from Puerta del Sol. This route offers you very beautiful archaeological sites such as Perolniyoc, Ñaupa Iglesia (Choque keel).
- Enjoy a train trip to Machu Picchu, the route has a change of landscapes from the sacred valley to the cloud forest.
- Delight your palate with the best gastronomy of Cusco and Peru, everything is prepared by our experienced cooks.
We will pick you up at 05:30 am from the hotel and we will go to Choque quilla, a small Inca ceremonial place. From here we will continue until we reach Rafqa (2800msnm), where we will start walking and that is where our support staff awaits us to join our walk. After an hour of walking, we will arrive at the small community of Soqma (3000msnm). Another hour of walking will take us to the Perolniyoc waterfall (3300msnm) where we will stop to take photos and eat something. From here, we continue to the Inca site of Qorimarka to explore for around 30 minutes, and then arrive at the camp at lunchtime.
- Hiking distance: 4-5 Km
- Estimated walking time: 5-6 hours
- Maximum altitude: 3600msnm
- Minimum altitude: 2800msnm
After our breakfast, we started walking. Four hours of walking will take us to the top of the first pass Pukaqasa (4400msnm). After enjoying the views of the mountains and the lower valley, we went down approximately 20 minutes to the lunch spot. From here, we continue another 2 hours to reach a small Inca site with incredible views of the sacred valley of the Incas and the Veronica mountain (5750msnm). Finally we arrive at our Choquetacarpo camp (3600msnm)
- Hiking distance: 10-11 Km
- Estimated walking time: 6-7 hours
- Maximum altitude: 4400msnm
- Minimum altitude: 3600msnm
The third day, we had an early breakfast and then we continued our descent to the Cachicata quarry (3500msnm), where we will witness the Ollantaytambo quarry with remains of solid stones in which they had worked and that were destined for the construction of Ollantaytambo there are some places interesting that include several large buildings, half-finished quarry stones and caves with Inca mummies still in place. After exploring the quarry, we will continue descending for about 2 hours towards the city of Ollantaytambo (2900msnm), which is the end point of our walk, then we will board the train to travel to Aguas Calientes or to the town of Machu Picchu (2040msnm). We will spend the night at the hotel and have dinner.
- Walking distance: 6-7 Km
- Estimated walking time: 4-5 hours
- Maximum altitude: 3600msnm
- Minimum altitude: 2040msnm
We will wake up early in the morning to have breakfast at the hotel and then take one of the first buses to Machu Picchu (2400msnm). There is a good reason to be at the entrance of Machu Picchu early. It is worth the effort to wake up early since the Inca citadel is quieter in the early morning and we will have plenty of time to take photos and enjoy the sunrise in Machu Picchu. Our guide will take you to the classic place to take postcard photo. This point of view offers an excellent view of the entire complex, and then our guide will give you a tour of Machu Picchu that will inform you about the history of Machu Picchu and the most important constructions. At the end of our visit, we will take the bus to Aguas Calientes for lunch and then we will board the train to return to Ollantaytambo where our private transportation will be waiting for us to take us back to Cusco-Hotel.
Included:
- Information prior to departure 1 or 2 days before the trek
- Pick up from your hotel in Cusco
- Horses and horses to carry our camping and cooking equipment
- Professional guide speaks Spanish and Quechua
- 4 seasonal tents, with capacity for 4 people, but only used by 2
- Sleeping pad
- 04 breakfasts, 04 lunches, 04 dinners
- First aid kit including emergency oxygen bottle
- Train from Ollantaytambo – Aguas Calientes – Ollantaytambo
- Transfer from the Train Station to Cusco
- One night’s accommodation at the Hotel Aguas Calientes
- Bus from Aguas Calientes to Machu Picchu
- Entrance ticket to Machu Picchu
Not Included:
- Sleeping bag: can be rented in our office $ 20 usd
- Walking tracks: possible to rent $ 15 usd
- Lunch in Aguas Calientes on the last day.
- Tips (cook, rider and guide)
- Travel insurance
- Huaynapicchu Mountain $ 30 usd
What to bring?
- Original passport is required for the Cachicata trek
- Hiking shoes are suggested for the Cachicata hike
- Waterproof jacket, rain pants / poncho
- A warm jacket
- Hat and gloves
- Tshirts
- Comfortable pants
- Sun hat
- Sunscreen
- Insect repellent
- Toiletries and hand sanitizer
- Personal medications
- Camera and film
- Flash light
- Spare batteries
The Cachicata Ollantaytambo Quarry is located at about 4100 meters above sea level, about 6 km. away from the Inca city of Ollantaytambo.
To get to Canteras de Cachiccata and La Puerta del Sol Cusco from the Inca city of Ollantaytambo it is an approximate 3 hours of steep road, and to reach the Inca viewpoint of Inti Punku (La Puerta del Sol Cusco) is an additional 1 hour.
The visit to these tourist attractions can be done in any season but the agency recommends that you do it in the dry season (March – October) so that you can make the walk without any problem such as rain and admire the landscape in all its splendor.
The trip from the city of Cusco to the Inca city of Ollantaytambo is approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes in private mobility but if you wish to travel by public transport units the approximate time is 2 hours.
The Walk to the Canteras de Cachiccata being part of the Inca road circuit that runs through the country of Peru, and the Qhapap Ñan circuit, it is recommended that it be carried out with the supervision of an authorized agency that provides you with the professional guide service for that you can enjoy the best way to walk to Cachicata and take a nice memory back to your country.
Inti Punku or «Puerta de Sol» is the highest point in the Cachicata Trek Peru towards the Inca quarry being at a height of approximately 3886 meters above sea level from that point you will be able to appreciate an impressive view of the Sacred Valley and the Nevados that are around as they are the snowy Veronica.
At the moment no income is being charged, which will allow you to discover with greater freedom the way of the Incas to the Inca quarries of Cachicata Cusco.
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