Explore the spectacular Moonstone Machupicchu Trek 5d/4n. We follow the footsteps of the Incas who built a high route from their capital city of Cusco westward through the rugged cordillera, and filled their empire with amazing temples and royal residences. We camp high, and discover the beauty of tranquil Andean valleys with sublime views toward the 18,000-foot snow peaks of the Urubamba and Huayanay Ranges. We also explore amazing Inca stonework in the enormous 15th century quarry site of Kachiqhata. After dropping down into the Sacred Valley of the Incas we reach the royal Inca town of Ollantaytambo, with its remarkable Sun Temple. We travel to Machu Picchu by train for a full exploration of the famous city.
Day 1.- Cusco Chiripahua
We pick you up at your Cusco hotel for a transfer by van west across the high Anta plain, following the route of the royal Inca Road which led from the capital toward the northern quarter of the empire. We stop first at the sacred Inca shrine known as Quillarumi (Moonstone in the Quechua language of the Incas), one of the finest of the carved rock huacas in the vicinity of Cusco. We continue to our trailhead by the Huaracondo River where it drains into the western edge of the plain, and meet our porters, who arrive from nearby communities. We commence trekking on a broad trail northward, above the west bank of the Huaracondo River. After an easy two-hour hike, we reach Huatta, a substantial pre-Inca fortress dominating the crest of a ridge at 3,855m / 12,645ft. Archeologists currently excavating the site are revealing burial sites and occupation levels from the Formative Period (2,500 years ago) on through the enormous fortifications of the 4th century Regional Development period; a scattering of late-period Inca structures seems like an afterthought on the top of the highest hill. The site is classic: a defensible ridge with dominating three-way views along intersecting valleys. After lunch we continue on our way westward into the range, and camp next to a rural school in the hamlet of Chiripahua at 3,750m / 12,300ft. (L / D)

Day 2: Chiripahua – Chancachuco

We climb gradually through fields and glades of the indigenous Chachacomo tree, in a landscape of pastures and small fields clinging to the steep mountainsides. Wherever there is water, we find an Andean family compound of adobe and straw. But there is little water in this mountain range – we are reminded hour by hour of how precious a commodity water was and is to the Andean people. We climb to a small glade at 4,400m / 14,432ft for a delicious lunch, then continue up to the col at the head of the valley. From our location atop the Accoccasa Pass (4,625m / 15,170ft) we enjoy breathtaking views of the immense snow peaks: the Huaynays to our west, the Urubamba range to the north. We enjoy an easy descent, to camp at 4,350m / 14,268ft in the broad valley of Chancachuco, facing the glaciers of the Huaynay Range. (B / L / D)

Day 3: Chancachuco – Huayrapunku/Kachiqhata Quarry

Toward the western end of the high valley, we follow the contours of a now-abandoned Inca aqueduct which transported water from the Chancachuco valley north to supply the otherwise-arid north-facing slopes above Ollantaytambo. This aqueduct once transported water across a sheer cliff face high above the Silque River. Today, on the mountainside above us we can glimpse traces of the original stonework, testimony to the extraordinary engineering in the project.

We reach our final pass (3,940m / 12,923ft) and visit a spectacular ridge-top Inca shrine called Huayrapunku (Gate of the Wind), with an astonishing view towards Nevado Veronica (5,682m / 18,637ft) directly across the valley. The site offers unsurpassed views to the terraces and temple site of the royal town of Ollantaytambo, over 4,000 feet below us. Constructed in the 15th century by the Inca emperor Pachacutec, the town was an important administrative and religious center.

We descend, past the curious Inca administrative site of Llaqtallaqtayoq, to our camp on a broad terrace at 3,525m / 11,562ft at the edge of the enormous Kachiqhata quarry. In the afternoon we explore the intricate quarry workings. From this steep talus slope beneath the sheer face of Cerro Yanaorco, immense red granite building stones were carved onsite and then skidded down to the valley floor, across the river, and then up to the sun temple site on the far side of the valley. We explore the ramps and work platforms around the largest of the stones. Orchids and other flowers are abundant in and around the quarry site, set high on the mountainside above the valley floor. (B / L / D)

Day 4: Kachiqhata Quarry – Ollantaytambo – Aguas Calientes

We descend on a broad Inca trail down through the lower quarry zone, and stop at a key hilltop, from where the worked stones were skidded down the steep slope to the Vilcanota River below. On the far bank, between the river and the Sun Temple, we can see several of these “Tired Stones”, which were abandoned half-way between quarry and temple. Chroniclers tell us that work on the temple site was suddenly halted when the Colla masons fled back toward their homes in the Lake Tiahuanaco area, just prior to the arrival of the Spanish invaders. We continue down, cross the river, and arrive finally at the famous Sun Temple in Ollantaytambo. We have time to explore the temple and the adjacent village, before catching a late afternoon train to Aguas Calientes. We check into a hotel for the night. (B / L are included; Dinner in Aguas Calientes is left to you)

Day 5: Machu Picchu – Cusco

We enter the site early in the morning for an in-depth guided tour of the ridge-top citadel of Machu Picchu. After our tour you will have free time to explore the site, or to climb Huyana Picchu or Machu Picchu mountain. We descend to Aguas Calientes for our return to Ollantaytambo, continuing by chartered bus to Cusco in late af­ternoon, arriving around 9:30PM. Transfer to your hotel. (B / L)